khammons's blog

Exploring the Hill Country of Sri Lanka

khammons — Mon, 3 Mar 2008 10:15:23 -0600

The town of Haputale in Sri Lanka's Hill Country will forever be etched in my memory. After a grueling hike up Adams Peak, I enjoyed yet another spectacular train ride through the Hill Country, admiring first the beauty of the tea plantations and surrounding mountains, then passing through vast green...

Pilgrimage to Adams Peak (Part 2)

khammons — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 10:57:35 -0600

After
visiting the Hindu temple, I returned to my guesthouse for dinner. It
was a delightful place with two verandas surrounded by gardens which
overlook the village of Dalhousie
and the green-carpeted hills around town. The Tamil family that runs
the guesthouse insisted on feeding me meals of gigantic...

Pilgrimage to Adams Peak (Part 1)

khammons — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 10:17:20 -0600

After four days in Kandy,
I boarded the train and headed deeper into the Hill Country. My energy
was low and I would have slept the entire ride if not for the
spectacular scenery. In a country that has already impressed me with
its beautiful beaches and ancient cities, one wouldn't expect it to get
much...

Buddah's Sacred Tooth (2007)

khammons — Fri, 7 Dec 2007 10:00:18 -0600

If you can't tell by now, my hands are feeling much better and I'm rather enjoying my ability to type. In one aspect, my inability to sit in front of the computer was a blessing on this trip, but in the same instance, Sri Lanka has impressed me so much that I've been dying to share its wonders with...

Exploring the Buddhist Caves at Dambulla in Sri Lanka (2007)

khammons — Sat, 24 Nov 2007 09:48:33 -0600

Traveling
can't always be always a fairy tale and it only makes sense that this
day would be challenging. After two days biking across vast ruins in
one of the hottest parts of the country, I climbed Sigiriya in the
early morning, quickly packed my bags and caught a tuk-tuk south to the
town of...

Climbing Sigiriya Rock in Sri Lanka (2007)

khammons — Sat, 24 Nov 2007 09:29:38 -0600

After two days bicycling through the hot and dusty plains of North-Central Sri Lanka,
my room at the Flower Inn in Sigirya couldn't have felt more
comfortable. Through my windows I looked out on the charming garden of
the guesthouse and by the early evening I was ready to explore the
town. I...

Discovering the ancient city of Polonnaruwa in Sri Lanka (2007)

khammons — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 10:36:16 -0500

I
boarded the bus early the next morning in Anaradhapura with locals
piled on top of me as the Hindu driver weaved through twisting lakeside
roads to the hot and dusty village of Polonnaruwa,
which for three centuries was the royal capital of both the Chola and
Sinhalese...

Exploring the ancient city of Anaradhapura in Sri Lanka (2007)

khammons — Sat, 27 Oct 2007 16:12:06 -0500

It's
funny to think that my last update, in which I raved about the miracles
of Sri Lanka, came after just three days here and having only seen the
seaside town of Negombo.
So much has happened since then to re-inforce those feelings and my
excitement about this country that I hardly know where...

Miracles in Sri Lanka (2007)

khammons — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 20:37:01 -0500

Miracles may happen everyday, but when I'm traveling, it seems like they're happening ever other hour. I landed in Sri Lanka
with no clue or expectation what I was getting myself into. Even the
decision to come here was so natural that I didn't consider it for a
moment. It should have been scary landing...

Travel in India (2007)

khammons — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 11:43:14 -0500

The rigors and rewards of travel are something that I have come to live for. From hitchhiking across Hawaii and Alaska to all-night buses through Peru and Bolivia,
each trip has served to build my character and...

Arrival in India (2007)

khammons — Fri, 5 Oct 2007 20:40:15 -0500

It's been four days since I arrived in India and
it's taken every bit of that time to digest what I've seen and find
some way to explain it. I've always heard that nothing could prepare
you for India
and now I can safely say that is true. I've been staying with my friend
Arick, enjoying the...

Thaipusam Festival in Singapore (2007)

khammons — Fri, 5 Oct 2007 20:36:19 -0500

Somehow
this journey has felt different from the beginning. Maybe it's because
of the way it came about. Sitting across from my parents pitching a
weak plan of moving to Tahoe for the winter, only to have my mom tell
me that she thought it was a bad idea. "Do you have money to travel?"
she asked....

Angkor Wat (2006)

khammons — Tue, 2 Oct 2007 21:59:34 -0500

I've just
returned from the temples of Angkor Wat and I'm absolutely reeling from
the experience. Visiting such an ancient and incredible place could
only be compared to seeing the pyramids, Taj Mahal, or Machu Pichu;
places that you've seen so many times in postcards and photographs and
now...

Northern Laos (2006)

khammons — Tue, 2 Oct 2007 21:51:31 -0500

After nearly a week in Pai, I had to say goodbye to my favorite destination in Thailand and return to the city of Chiang Mai. Being back in the smog and traffic was shocking at first. Unfortunately, so many of Thailand's
cities suffer from the same problems and my impression of the country
has been...

Northern Thailand (2006)

khammons — Tue, 2 Oct 2007 21:40:29 -0500

After two amazing weeks in Laos I hopped a flight back to Thailand, arriving in the city of Chiang Mai after several days ago. It was a difficult decision to make after having such an enjoyable time in Laosand being tempted to journey on to Vietnam, but the timing was just perfect. Braden had been...

Arrival in Laos (2006)

khammons — Tue, 2 Oct 2007 21:31:15 -0500

There's
a lot of places out there that I've had the desire to travel to and
see. For many of them there were specific reasons that they interested
me or drew me in. Other places intrigued me because they only existed
in a fantasy to me, and pages of National Geographic.

Southern Thailand

khammons — Tue, 1 May 2007 08:36:28 -0500

I've been in Thailand nearly 2 weeks now and for whatever reason, I haven't managed to fill y'all in on the details. I've arrived in Bangkok straight from Tokyo, met my friend Braden at the aiport, and together we dove head-first into the insanity of that big city. I've put off coming to Thailand for...

More on Tokyo (2006)

khammons — Tue, 1 May 2007 01:14:26 -0500

I think y'all might just have to pry me out of Tokyo after the past couple of days. It's easy to assume that Tokyo's just any other big city, but its many faces have left me astounded. From exploring the Senso-ji Temple the first day to walking the streets of ultra-modern Shibuya yesterday, I've...

Arrival in Tokyo (2006)

khammons — Tue, 1 May 2007 01:06:48 -0500

Just got back from a walking tour of Tokyo and I barely know where to start when telling this story. So why not just start at the beginning. After a great home-cooked breakfast at the hostel, I walked to the subway in order to catch the train to the neighborhood Asakusa. I had been told some wild...