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

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...

The Coolest Hotel in Lapland (Literally)

by Calvin Sun | February 7, 2026 | February 2026: Lapland, Finland, How's the weather?, Lapland, What Dreams May Come | 0 Comments

After sneaking in some sugar donuts just in time before Kahvila Lohihovi Oy closed at 5pm, we continued our 2 hour drive south from Ylläs to the Arctic SnowHotel & Glass Igloos, about 30 minutes north of Rovaniemi on the shores of Lake Lehtojärvi....

Ylläs Hear Me Out

by Calvin Sun | February 6, 2026 | February 2026: Lapland, Finland, How's the weather?, Lapland, Way Way Off the Beaten Path | 0 Comments

How This Trip Happened On September 30, 2025, a monsooner named Yuhan — who's been on many trips with me — randomly invited me to watch her favorite anime that had a surprise 2-week return to theaters: The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, originally released in 2006. I...

Sundance’s Last Dance: Park City, UT

by Calvin Sun | January 27, 2026 | How's the weather?, United States, Utah | 0 Comments

Once again we're gathering friends across time zones and milestones; some have flown in from Philly, others from NYC, one flying over from Dallas just for the weekend to make new friends, all converging together this week on a mountain town for a week of...

Meet the Lappi Wedding Party!

by Calvin Sun | January 26, 2026 | Introductions | 0 Comments

Meet the Sundancers!

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

From a trip planned over a year ago after a bunch of friends joined me in Killington 2024, we are flying out to Park City, UT for our first time at the Sundance Film Festival for their final time in Park City, UT! Welcome back those returning with me for their...

Niger At Last: A Second Chance

by Calvin Sun | December 10, 2025 | Border Crossing, December 2025 Annex: Niger, Fail, Flying Fancy, Getting that VISA, How Did You Do That?, Layovers, Niger, Rules Are Meant To Be Broken, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, What Dreams May Come | 1 Comment

11 months ago, I sat on the tarmac in Niger's International Airport at Niamey, watching my trip evaporate due to visa complications. The Niger Embassy in Washington D.C. had stopped issuing visas to Americans entirely. But I don't give up. In late...

Yemen Day 4: Mukalla Drive

by Calvin Sun | December 5, 2025 | December 2025: Yemen - Hadhramaut Valley, Serendipitous!, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, Yemen | 0 Comments

Al-Mukalla Pulling ourselves away from a desert mirage paradise at Haid Al-Jazil, we swapped our armed guard at another checkpoint during the 2 hour drive to Mukalla. You point that thing away from me! After a long wait at one of the...

Yemen Day 3: Where Reality Surpasses Dreams at Haid al-Jazil-lion Miles Away From Reality

by Calvin Sun | December 4, 2025 | December 2025: Yemen - Hadhramaut Valley, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, What Dreams May Come, Yemen | 0 Comments

Haid Al-Jazil As the afternoon began to wane, we continued onto our accommodation for the night at the Haid Al-Jazil Resort Hotel, named after what it overlooks and its location perching dramatically on a cliff overlooking the Wadi Do'an. You'll find remarkably...

Meet The Monsooners Of Andorra!

by Calvin Sun | Sep 4, 2016 | Introductions

Who would be crazy enough to go on an international weekend trip to Barcelona & Andorra out of the blue? Why, these 4! Although they've never met one another (or know one another), all are weirdly/fatefully connected to each other in some way -- 3 are...

You’re Going To Miss … Southern Africa

by Calvin Sun | Aug 18, 2016 | August 2016: Southern Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Post-travel Reflections, South Africa, You're Going to Miss It..., Zambia, Zimbabwe

Dear Calvin, I hope this finds you doing well. I came across your site via CU Class Notes. I am CC 2010. I have been inspired by your story and website, and as a fellow lover of travel and medical student, would definitely be keen on learning more about...

Denouement In Windhoek To Free Emirates Business Class Upgrade!

by Calvin Sun | Aug 15, 2016 | August 2016: Southern Africa, Flying Fancy, Namibia, United Arab Emirates, Walking Tours

Uh..there's really no contest in trying to even bother following up to the last post; a post that describes a place where I watched the sun rise over the world's oldest desert, or where I took some of my favorite photos at the most surreal landscapes I've...

Deadvlei: A Witness To Eternity

by Calvin Sun | Aug 15, 2016 | August 2016: Southern Africa, Camping, Epiphanies on the Road, How Did You Do That?, How's the weather?, Namibia, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, What Dreams May Come

Some appropriately curated background music to an epic post, so please, if it's not already playing: Press play. And then start reading. Vemödalen - "The frustration of photographing something amazing when thousands of identical photos already exist." ...

The Cape Of Good Hope, Chance, and Serendipity

by Calvin Sun | Aug 12, 2016 | August 2016: Southern Africa, How Did You Do That?, Serendipitous!, South Africa, What Dreams May Come

After an epic 48 hours in Cape Town and capping off with an unforgettable 6 hour dinner at La Colombe, the group returned at 1am to our hostel and packed ahead for our drive to The Cape of Good Hope early the next morning....

The Cape Town Epic

by Calvin Sun | Aug 11, 2016 | August 2016: Southern Africa, Fit for Foodies, Mo' Money Mo' Problems, Rules Are Meant To Be Broken, Serendipitous!, South Africa, The Nightlife, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, What Dreams May Come

After a blockbuster back-to-back days at Victoria Falls and the Chobe National Park, our group flew back to Johannesburg for a one night layover to regain our senses. The next morning we took an 11am Mango Air flight (the low-cost carrier of...

An Elephant Symphony Plays In Chobe National Park

by Calvin Sun | Aug 9, 2016 | August 2016: Southern Africa, Botswana, What Dreams May Come

A Phanty Procession! To do Kasane is to do Chobe. Regarded as one of the top 2 "elite" safari destinations in Africa, Chobe is most famous for being home to the world's largest and most numerous elephant herds in the world (among other...

Victoria Falls: 4 Countries In 1 Day

by Calvin Sun | Aug 8, 2016 | August 2016: Southern Africa, Border Crossing, Botswana, Crisis, Fail, Getting that VISA, How Did You Do That?, Mo' Money Mo' Problems, South Africa, What Dreams May Come, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Today I've marked visiting the last of the world's 3 greatest waterfalls: In April 2014 we violated international law crossing Iguazú Falls (the world's largest waterfalls system) along the intersection of Brazil and Argentina, a year later we pushed a...

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