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

Dear Daughters,

by Calvin Sun | August 15, 2026 | Post-travel Reflections, What Dreams May Come, You're Going to Miss It... | 4 Comments

Dear daughters, In a rare moment of peace as your mom was recovering in the PACU and you were down the hall in the NICU, I found myself thinking about everyone over the years who made judgments about my lifestyle and said to my face: "Sure, you've been to every...

We Had Twins

by Calvin Sun | July 26, 2026 | Crisis, Doctor in the House, Let me tell you a Story..., Serendipitous!, United States, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, What Dreams May Come | 0 Comments

Identical twins. This was a birth by a thousand cuts. A story as old as time, for two lives as new as right now, where spontaneity gets sandwiched between a relentless tango with death. They were born after one of the hardest chapters of our lives: a rare...

Tomorrowland Babies

by Calvin Sun | July 25, 2026 | Festivals | 0 Comments

Four Tomorrowlands in, and this is the first I'll be writing about a trip I planned without having gone. What gives? It's not as if I didn't want to: Right as 40+ of my monsooners were heading off to Belgium, I was in a hospital room in Queens, meeting my...

Where Do You Go When You’ve Already Been Everywhere?

by Calvin Sun | May 17, 2026 | Camping, Epiphanies on the Road, Fit for Foodies, May 2026: Bobo's Farm, New York, Post-travel Reflections | 0 Comments

Where does one of the youngest most traveled person in the world still travel to after they've been to nearly every country in the world? Home, of course. I've hitchhiked onboard trains through the endless expanse of The Sahel, slept in guesthouses in...

It Zermatt-ers A Lot You Followed Through!

by Calvin Sun | April 3, 2026 | Border Crossing, Crisis, Fit for Foodies, Flying Fancy, How's the weather?, Serendipitous!, Spring 2026: French & Swiss Alps, Switzerland, Weekend Trips, What Dreams May Come | 0 Comments

Any normal person would have headed home after 4 consecutive days of 6+ hours of skiing black diamond powder at 3,330 meters followed by six hours of raving in a blizzard. But I am not a normal person. Unlike most people, I don't procrastinate on fulfilling...

Alpe “d’Huez” in Charge Here? We Couldn’t Wait Until Tomorrow, for Tomorrowland Winter

by Calvin Sun | March 28, 2026 | Festivals, France, How's the weather?, Spring 2026: French & Swiss Alps, The Nightlife | 0 Comments

We made it to a Tomorrowland Aftermovie! Click on the YouTube video below where it starts right where you see us dancing to Alok; me on the left, and Patricia right in the center in her lavender hoodie as the video slows in on her/us (well, really just her)....

Why Not “Disfrutar”?

by Calvin Sun | March 23, 2026 | Fit for Foodies, Flying Fancy, France, How Did You Do That?, How's the weather?, Introspection, Layovers, Mo' Money Mo' Problems, Serendipitous!, Spain, Spring 2026: French & Swiss Alps | 0 Comments

We got a lot going on in the world right now: There's now a war in Iran, the funding bill for our DHS still hasn't passed, and the entirety of the TSA has been working without a paycheck for the past month. With the war, I'd imagine both the region and Emirates...

Meet the Tomorrowland Winter Monsooners!

by Calvin Sun | March 2, 2026 | Introductions | 0 Comments

Why do Tomorrowland just once a year when you can do it twice AND ski/snowboard at the same time? Introducing the following returning monsooners for this iteration of our favorite annual festival. Welcome back those returning with me for their 2nd, 3rd, or even...

All Aboard the Santa Claus Express!

by Calvin Sun | February 10, 2026 | February 2026: Lapland, Finland, Fit for Foodies, Flying Fancy, Lapland, Way Way Off the Beaten Path | 0 Comments

I woke up to an Arctic sunrise again, this time to send Mel off on her early flight back at 7:30am; she had to return a day before the rest of us. After she left in an Uber to the airport, I cooked the last of what was left in the fridge at the Airbnb and saw...

For Richer, For Polar

by Calvin Sun | February 9, 2026 | February 2026: Lapland, Finland, Fit for Foodies, How's the weather?, Lapland, Serendipitous!, Way Way Off the Beaten Path | 0 Comments

I just woke up to this Arctic sunrise before everyone else in the Airbnb. I took the time to make some scrambled eggs for breakfast, brewed the coffee, and leisurely sat down to write this blog post as I waited for the rest of the group to come to life. What a...

Machu Picchu, Here We Come

by Calvin Sun | Mar 28, 2011 | April 2011: Peru & Colombia, Peru

It's currently 4am in Aguas Calientes and we just woke up after a 5 hour slumber/nap. I feel like a million bucks. No really, we're about to set out to wait in line at 4:30am for the first bus that leaves at 5:30am. To see what? To see Machu Picchu and climb...

I Won’t Pay You If You Lie To Me! & Ollantaytambo’s Beauty

by Calvin Sun | Mar 27, 2011 | April 2011: Peru & Colombia, Doctor in the House, How Did You Do That?, How's the weather?, Mo' Money Mo' Problems, Peru, Public Transportation, Uncategorized Stories, What Dreams May Come

Nausea. Dizziness. Headaches. Fainting. Vomiting. Death. All serious complications of Altitude Sickness where Lonely Planet says: "Altitude sickness is not a joke. It doesn't matter how fit you are; some people will get it and some people won't. Be especially...

San Salvador, Lima, And A Mid-flight Screw Up

by Calvin Sun | Mar 27, 2011 | April 2011: Peru & Colombia, Epiphanies on the Road, Fail, How's the weather?, Peru, Uncategorized Stories

Before I know it, I'm already fast packed to another trip across the border. What's different this time is that out of all the inhabitable continents of the world (sorry Antartica, unless global warming happens, you don't count), only South America and Australia...

In Lima!

by Calvin Sun | Mar 27, 2011 | April 2011: Peru & Colombia, Peru

In the middle of a late night dinner at Pardos Chicken near downtown Lima, where we're having tasty cow hearts and some fantastic fried chicken. More to come when I have time to upload a few pictures and videos.

And I Go.

by Calvin Sun | Mar 26, 2011 | Pre-travel Preparations

After enjoying some nice send-off company in the wee hours of the night, I'm packed up and ready to go. See you on the other side of the hemisphere. Goodbye NYC, hello Perú!

Packing – South America

by Calvin Sun | Mar 25, 2011 | April 2011: Peru & Colombia, Pre-travel Preparations, What to Pack

Less than 24 hours before departure, I give you my packing list for Peru and Colombia, 7 cities in 7 days: The itinerary in 7 days: Morning flight to Lima Overnight in Lima Morning flight to Cuzco Morning bus to Ollantaytambo Evening train to Aguas...

What? I Only Have 5 Days?

by Calvin Sun | Mar 20, 2011 | April 2011: Peru & Colombia, Peru, Pre-travel Preparations

Before I even realize it, the countdown on the clock reads something less than a week. I guess it's time to start thinking of what to pack. After all, I only got 5 days and 9 hours before I reach Machu Picchu.

23 Days Left!

by Calvin Sun | Mar 3, 2011 | Pre-travel Preparations, United States

23 days left until South America! But in the meantime, what if I told you I'm already planning for this summer? Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Nepal, Kashmir (India), Sri Lanka, Myanmar, North Korea (you bet), and Singapore? Does that sound like a step up from last...

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