Hello, and welcome to a review of my second big trip! 

Between May 26 and July 1 of 2007, I traveled through Argentina, Brazil, South Africa, Thailand, and Hong Kong. 

I have selected some of the best of my 2,507 photos from the trip, which are displayed below.  Note that each picture is a thumbnail.  You can click on it to see a larger version. 

For the privacy of friends and family, I have only included photos of myself.  Still, I must mention my many thanks to those who met me on my trip - Stuart, Sue, and Mel; my cousins Lisa, Jason, James, Steven, Andrew, and Justin; my new friends Dave, Caroline, Jon, and Nicola; and last but not least, my girlfriend Christine, who flew out to Thailand.

This is a long review, with 250 photos, so pace yourself or break it up.

Argentina!  In Buenos Aires, right off the bus from the airport, I found this hostel and there I stayed for 5 days.  I walked around Buenos Aires for hours, and took lots of photos .  I was really impressed with the city, especially all the monumental sculpture.  I saw the famous Casa Rosada , the business district, (<-- nice butt!) and the extraordinary Ricoleta Cemetary .  Also, I noticed this big flower-shaped solar power generator , and this particularly magnificent sculpture , with lots of classical symbols .  On my last night in Buenos Aires, I managed to find an open table in the front row at a tango show , which was quite spectacular!   The next day I took a 24-hour bus ride down to Bariloche in the lake district.   There I took a few cablecars up to mountaintops and took more pictures and hiked around. A few days later I landed in Iguazu to tour around Iguazu Park and the famous waterfalls .  The falls are most beautiful!  I spent most of the day exploring the lower trails.  I didn't leave much time for the upper trail, which leads to the "Throat of the Devil."  To see the upper trail, you must take a 3km train across the park.  By the time I got to the train station, the last train had left, and the park rangers told me I would have to go back the next day.  Feeling adventurous, I evaded the park rangers, climbed over the fence with the 'no trespassing' sign, and ran along the train tracks.  I made it all the way to the "Throat of the Devil," and got this picture at dusk, when that part of the park is closed.  Then I had to find my way back in the dark!  I started back, and unfamiliar noises arose around me.  I ran fast.  The next day, before I crossed into Brazil, I rewarded myself with a fine meal - the most delicious steak I've ever eaten. 

Brazil!  Near the Brazilian side of Iguazu, I visited one of the seven wonders of the modern world - The Itaipu Binacional Hydroelectric Dam.    The volume of concrete in the Itaipu dam could build 210 stadiums (like Maracana in Rio).  The iron and steel used to build the Itaipu dam could build 380 Eiffel Towers.  The dam spillway can handle a flow 40 times greater than the water that passes through Iguazu falls.  What a dam!  After a long bus ride I got to Rio de Janiero.   I took a tour of the shantytowns (called favelas) and hung out on Ipanema beach .

South Africa!  In Pretoria, near where I was born, I visited the Voortrekker Monument , a lion park , and the 'Cradle of Mankind' museum with friends and relatives .  We took side trips to the Hartebeespoort Dam and the Pilansburg game reserve.  On the way down to Cape Town we stopped by Kimberly to see the 'Big Hole,' which is the largest hand-dug hole in the world . In Knysna I went on a 40km bike ride through the woods and hills.  Tough! In Cape Town I met a parrot, saw Camp's Bay, found a crystal ball and took this picture of the city at night.   Near Cape Town we visited the Rhodes Memorial , some penguins in Simonstown , and Cape Point . Heading east from Cape Town in a rental car with a couple of new friends we stopped in Hermanus, which is rated as the best place in the world for land-based whale watching.  I didn't see any whales, but I did find some seagulls and a rock dassie.  Our next stop was in a particularly nice place called Wilderness  where we hiked up to a waterfall , went to the beach , and sat around the bonfire reading (dirty) limericks.   I also met a pup named Mojo.   Back in Knysna we visited the Heads, which for many years was considered the most dangerous sea port entry in the world, due to the shoals and rocks  . Continuing east we stopped in Plettenberg Bay,  Monkeyland , and the Storms River head before we parted ways.  Later that night I met some guys at the hostel and had a braai .  After an uncomfortable 5-hour minibus ride I landed at the Sugarshack in East London and played some drums .  I made my way to Cinsa on the Wild Coast, where I stayed at the magnificent Buccaneers hostel.  I stayed for a week to surf,   but also managed to befriend this dog, ride a mountain bike around a Xhosa village, pet a tamed elephant, and see a Xhosa school concert (<- little guys!).  After Cinsa I went as far as Coffee Bay.  With some other backpackers I checked out some of the Transkei's grand caves and cliffs.    After a couple days in Coffee Bay I changed my plans and headed back east with some new friends in another rental car.  Stopping by the Bloukrans bridge, the largest bridge in the Southern hemisphere , we all jumped the world's longest commercial bungie jump which has 216 meters of freefall.  Quite a thrill!  We passed Storms River again,  and back in Cape Town we climbed Table Mountain .  A few days later I flew back to Johannesburg to meet a cousin and drive up to Kruger Park.    In the park we saw loads of rhino, impala,  giraffe, elephant , human , warthog , guinea foul , and baboon. When we found our way blocked by a troop this guy flapped out his ears to show we were just a little too close .  Carrying on, we found more giraffe and zebra .  After the weekend in the park I flew down to Durban to meet another cousin,  who showed me the inner-city tribal medicine dealers. In this picture you can see an actual monkey's paw for sale, like in that halloween episode of the Simpsons.   We also checked out a crocodile farm and saw a green mamba,  an albino peacock , some tortoise,  plenty of crocodile,  and this thing.

Thailand!    In Bangkok there's an abundance of tattoo shops.   With my sweet girlfriend, who flew in on the same day, we ate some hairy fruit and visited the famous Jim Thompson house .  We flew down to Phuket and eventually took a ferry over to Koh Phi Phi, which is a lovely little island . We rented a bungalow right on the beach, played with kittens and took longboats around the nearby islands .  When my girlfriend left I cut my scruffy beard like Wolverine from the X-men, and visited the Grand Palace back in Bangkok.   I found this Fook Hin shop and a sushi restaurant with a Godzilla out front.   I toured around the business center of the city, where there's a mall with BMW, Lamborghini, and Ferrari dealerships right inside, alongside the usual cloths and electronics shops.   The next day I took a bus and boat down to Koh Tao, where I rented this bungalow on the beach and scuba dived for a week, which was great fun.   I rented a scooter to scoot around the island and watched the firedancers at night .  Nearing the end of my stay in Thailand, I ferried over to Koh Phangan and was tempted by these signs to buy some handsome gasoline.

Hong Kong!    With only two days to spend in the city, I toured around Kwaloon and Hong Kong island .  I took the tram up 'The Peak', ate a real Chinese restaurant, (<-- interesting decorations)  and saw the Hong Kong art museum With my trip drawing to a close, I took a train to the airport and ran around San Francisco during a layover between my flights home.

Thanks for looking at my big trip review! Please give me feedback - your emails encourage me to put in all this work on my website.

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