The Monsoon Diaries: How to travel the world with no time or money -

Grenada Más

by Calvin Sun | November 4, 2025 | Grenada, October 2025: Pirates of the Caribbean's At World's End | 0 Comments

🇬🇩 190 down. 3 to go. After our 3 day stay in Dominica, we took a long hour-and-a-half drive back to the airport from our Portsmouth lodgings, stopping for a quick photo opportunity along the way. Dominica's airport is tiny. You...

Dominica-n’t Miss This

by Calvin Sun | November 1, 2025 | Dominica, October 2025: Pirates of the Caribbean's At World's End, Way Way Off the Beaten Path | 0 Comments

From St. Vincent, we boarded InterCaribbean Airways JY 717 at 12:20pm. Their new airport, however, was built just 8 years ago and still has some operational quirks. The staff double-printed my first leg itinerary from St. Vincent to Barbados without including...

Dead Men Tell No Layovers: St. Vincent & The Grenadines in 12 Hours

by Calvin Sun | October 29, 2025 | Layovers, October 2025: Pirates of the Caribbean's At World's End, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 0 Comments

Fresh off a quick overnight in Grenada (courtesy of a free JetBlue voucher from last October's Welcome to Chinatown gala), we touched down at Maurice Bishop International Airport at 1:53pm. This marked the beginning of a 3-country Caribbean...

Getting Away With Robbinsville: The Akshardham Redemption

by Calvin Sun | October 6, 2025 | Camping, Layovers, New Jersey, October 2025: Camping in Robbinsville | 0 Comments

One of my more unique camping trips to have monsooned; this is what happens when you plan a camping trip months in advance just to visit a temple arguably worth seeing as a world-class destination. I was stuck at work all day Friday as Eddie took the initiative...

A Quick Halifax Check

by Calvin Sun | September 12, 2025 | Layovers, Lessons Learned, September 2025: Newfoundland to Saint Pierre & Miquelon, Walking Tours | 0 Comments

After two days in Saint-Pierre (and a turbulent ferry ride to Miquelon and back), we boarded an hour-and-a-half direct Air Saint-Pierre 9am flight to Halifax, landing around 9:30am local time (Halifax runs an hour behind Saint-Pierre), Our onward...

Miquelon Impossible

by Calvin Sun | September 11, 2025 | Doctor in the House, September 2025: Newfoundland to Saint Pierre & Miquelon, Way Way Off the Beaten Path | 0 Comments

Sometimes the most spontaneous detours leave the strongest impressions. That morning in Saint Pierre, we hadn't planned on leaving the island. But after completing two walking tours around St. Pierre and checking the ferry schedule, we realized we could still...

48 Hours in a Little Saint-Pierre-ce of France

by Calvin Sun | September 11, 2025 | Saint Pierre and Miquelon, September 2025: Newfoundland to Saint Pierre & Miquelon, Way Way Off the Beaten Path | 0 Comments

After three days soaking in St. John's charm, we dropped off our rental car at YYT Saint John's airport to catch the rare 5pm direct flight (PH1127) via Air Saint-Pierre to Saint-Pierre & Miquelon: one of the few weekly connections between Newfoundland and...

Don’t Be Dildo-Dallying

by Calvin Sun | September 9, 2025 | Canada, September 2025: Newfoundland to Saint Pierre & Miquelon, Way Way Off the Beaten Path | 0 Comments

While based in St. John's, we took a spontaneous day trip by rental car to the now-famous town of Dildo. You'll know when you arrive; they're incredibly proud of their distinctive name. Though a vocal minority has repeatedly raised referendums to...

St. John’s: The Eastern Edge of Everything Everywhere All At Once

by Calvin Sun | September 9, 2025 | Canada, September 2025: Newfoundland to Saint Pierre & Miquelon, Serendipitous!, Way Way Off the Beaten Path | 0 Comments

Months ago I decided to gift myself a week off after Labor Day...simply because I could. After a year as wild as this past one, I craved actual and intentional self-prioritization to restore some balance. Finding fares under $200, I booked a morning departure:...

Singapore Airlines Business Class FRA-JFK

by Calvin Sun | August 5, 2025 | Flying Fancy, Germany, Summer 2025: The Long Road to Berlin | 0 Comments

After a slow morning walk and talking about our villain (antihero?) origin stories in Berlin, I hugged Daniela and Gabe goodbye, hopped on the tram for a few stops, went underground for the metro, and made it back to the hostel in time for a 1:30pm check out. Nisha,...

Remnants Of A Ghost Town: Panam Nagar

by Calvin Sun | Jul 28, 2011 | Bangladesh, How Did You Do That?, Mythbusters, Public Transportation, Summer 2011: From the Middle East to North Korea, Walking Tours, What Dreams May Come

Alex left for Chittagong today while I stayed behind in Dhaka. While it's only for 2 days, it's fun to travel alone again! In my brusque research of things to do around Dhaka, I've heard reports of a nearby abandoned ghost town called Panam Nagar in Sonargaon, which...

Dhaka Down Under

by Calvin Sun | Jul 27, 2011 | Bangladesh, Serendipitous!, Summer 2011: From the Middle East to North Korea, Walking Tours

Headed south today to check out the heart of what makes Bangladesh tick: Old Dhaka. Before I begin, I befriended a fellow Australian traveler named Alex at my hostel. We shared a lot of similarities in our style of traveling save for the fact Alex spends a...

Damn Beautiful Dhaka

by Calvin Sun | Jul 26, 2011 | Bangladesh, Mo' Money Mo' Problems, Summer 2011: From the Middle East to North Korea

The standard reply when you tell someone you're traveling to India: "W..wow!" The standard reply when you tell someone you're traveling to Bangladesh: "W..why?" To be honest, I didn't quite know what exactly brought me here. I didn't get a guidebook...

Yangon/Rangoon In Myanmar/Burma

by Stephanie Quan | Jul 26, 2011 | Fail, Myanmar, Summer 2011: From the Middle East to North Korea

As for the aforementioned goals: Got some cash out and changed them to dollars [check]. Couldn't get my flight changed to the next day [not check]. (Sorry Annah!!!!) Interesting side story: I told a security guard I was looking for the flight to Burma, and he just...

Sri Lanka Vs. India

by Calvin Sun | Jul 26, 2011 | India, Mythbusters, Sri Lanka, Summer 2011: From the Middle East to North Korea

There's this unfair stereotype that while India is crazy and frenetic, just emerging on the developed world, Sri Lanka always would remain one step behind. I have friends who enjoy (playfully, nothing too serious) stereotyping Sri Lanka's "tagalong", "little brother"...

Sri Lanka-KL?-Myanmar

by Stephanie Quan | Jul 25, 2011 | Malaysia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Summer 2011: From the Middle East to North Korea

I have a 3 hour layover in Kuala Lumpur today. If all goes well, I'll be able to 1. get my traveller's cheques changed into american dollars (which is the only currency Myanmar accepts) 2. get my second flight changed to the next day and get to spend time with Annah...

Da-Da-Dagobas: Anuradhapura

by Calvin Sun | Jul 25, 2011 | Sri Lanka, Summer 2011: From the Middle East to North Korea

Simply put, Anuradhapura is slightly more impressive than Polonnaruwa, but that's not saying much if I'm using the word "slightly." The dagobas are undeniably awesome and the ruins are less maddening (probably because there's less of them to see), but otherwise...

Poor Polonnaruwa

by Calvin Sun | Jul 24, 2011 | Let me tell you a Story..., Sri Lanka, Summer 2011: From the Middle East to North Korea

If this is your first time exploring ruins, Polonnaruwa is a great introduction. But if you've already have had your fair share of ruin-rompin', Polonnaruwa can feel exhausting. Unlike the grandeur of Angkor Wat or the immaculately preserved nature of Borobudur...

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