What's the most interesting place you've ever traveled?

[sometimeperhaps]

Went to Cuba this past fall. Stayed in Varadero on a resort, and only made it out as far as Matanzas. Never made it to Havana unfortunately. I've never been anywhere hot before, so the heat was next level for someone coming from Canada. I've never sweat that much just sitting. So much respect for anyone that lives in that type of climate. Obviously they're somewhat used to it, but to see people doing physical labour in that heat is impressive. But maybe I'm naive.

Copenhagen was one of my favourite places I've traveled. Didn't get to explore to much as it was a school trip, complete with an intensive workshop type program. But was staying in a hotel 15 minutes from Cristiania, so was obviously enjoying what they offered there. Spent a lot of time walking around at night, just randomly exploring. Girls seem rad there.

Seoul was an interesting experience. That was probably the most exotic place I had been at that point in my life. Thankfully was traveling with people who spoke Korean, so I didn't have to work that hard translating, or figuring out where to go. People are nice, food is great, beer is super cheap. You can bring fried chicken to the baseball games, which is a common thing over there.

[sexualhelon]

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I haven't made it a point to do much research on charities in general but religious one's always seem like they have an ulterior motive to me.

The last time I did volunteer work was for Peace Boat back in the day but I've always wanted to volunteer for a Skateboarding one. I tried to link up with Skatistan the last time I was in Cambodia but it's all handled by the locals. They don't let anyone outside the organization in the park because of the child sex trafficking problems there. It seems like they've generally set everything up and handed it over to the locals so they don't really need foreign volunteers which is great - getting everything to be sustainable is part of the point.

I've emailed with the guys at EthiopiaSkate but they don't seem to have a proper volunteer program set up yet. They told me to just fly out and bring as much product to donate as I can since getting product in is the hardest part. That was over a year ago though so maybe I'll reach back out to them.

I did apply to volunteer at SkatePal for March/May but I'm waiting to get the official confirmation back from them.

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Yea, the religious charities I ran into were super sketchy. I interviewed one dude from a religious charity and he didn't give a shit about anything other than pushing his religion on the locals. It was a huge bummer.

What exactly is SkatePal?

The Ethiopia Skate would be interesting. They recently built a park, right? I wonder if any of the skate dudes from China are doing things out there since China is heavily investing in Ethiopia with their "One Belt One Road" initiative.

Also, that Pushing Boarders conference had a whole panel on skate charity. I think they posted the discussion on youtube.

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going to havana in the end of january with friends who doesn't skate... tempted to bring my board.

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Bring your board and bring some random stuff for the locals. Shoes, bearings, wheels, boards, flash drives with videos on them, whatever.

The main meet-up spot in Havana is 23rd Street and G Street. Also, San Antonio has a super fun little park. I think it is like an hour away from Havana and worth the trip out there. Just don't drink the tap water or any Kool-aid made from tap water.

To quote SkatePal's website:

'We are run by a committed team of local and international volunteers who, through teaching skate classes, building skateparks and providing equipment, are enabling an ever-growing number of Palestinian skaters to empower themselves and inspire the next generation of Palestinian youth.'

So as a volunteer I'd be helping teach skate classes, possibly building skateparks as well, and sort helping manage one of the parks as well by providing equipment to the kids. A lot of the kids don't have boards so SkatePal keeps loaner boards at the parks. The whole operation seems fluid and they seem to be doing really amazing things for the youth/skate community in Palestine.

Ethiopia Skate actually just recently finished a second park in Hawassa. It doesn't seem that any skate dudes from China are helping out with Ethiopia Skate. They seem to be slowly growing and mostly managed by locals. I believe it started as a small crew of dudes in Addis who managed to get skateboards then the co-founder Sean ran into them on a trip to Ethiopia when he went out skating. Those dudes basically asked if he could help them build a park and get product, he said yes, and that's how Ethiopia Skate began.

[eranka]

SkatePal is dope.What they do over there really makes a difference
Do it if you get the chance

[sexualhelon]

SkatePal is dope.What they do over there really makes a difference
Do it if you get the chance

Good to hear. I actually just got the confirmation from them so I'll be headed there to volunteer for a month pretty soon.

[ChrisLambe94]

The most interesting place I traveled to was Xel Ha. It's beyond beautiful. https://www.xelha.com/xelha-mexico-attractions.php?sA=977499523282019010813

[tortfeasor]

im updating my entry to this to southern crorsica.  Particularly the cliffs of Bonifacio.  it is just the greatest place i have ever experienced.

[TheLurper]

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SkatePal is dope.What they do over there really makes a difference
Do it if you get the chance

[close]

Good to hear. I actually just got the confirmation from them so I'll be headed there to volunteer for a month pretty soon.

Awesome. Keep us posted on how everything goes out there.

[Lloyd Braun]

Debating on a visit to Manila for a few days or so in march - there's a deal for RT tickets at $450 from NYC and I could give myself a day layover in Seoul. I'm debating on it or just doing Seoul and maybe finding a good layover in Beijing or something for $200 more. What wold you guys say? Is the $450 ticket worth a Manila/Seoul stopover for $450 or would you pay $200 more for Seoul and possibly a China stopover?



Figured I'd ask here since you guys have said some mixed sounding things about Manila haha. For reference though, I'm usually into pretty sketch cities - love Bangkok for instance that a lot of people seem to love/hate.

Ive been to Manila several times but never skated it. If you book with Philippine airlines you can get a direct flight from JFK I paid $650-$700, it’s a very long flight with a layover but sure you already know that. Manila looks like it’s got a lot of spots but it’s kind of rough, side walks and the people. It’s also huge, I believe it’s bigger than NYC. Philippines is nice and super cheap the people are very friendly. I’d pick Seoul over Manila personally it looks like there’s more plaza type spots.

[sexualhelon]

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Debating on a visit to Manila for a few days or so in march - there's a deal for RT tickets at $450 from NYC and I could give myself a day layover in Seoul. I'm debating on it or just doing Seoul and maybe finding a good layover in Beijing or something for $200 more. What wold you guys say? Is the $450 ticket worth a Manila/Seoul stopover for $450 or would you pay $200 more for Seoul and possibly a China stopover?



Figured I'd ask here since you guys have said some mixed sounding things about Manila haha. For reference though, I'm usually into pretty sketch cities - love Bangkok for instance that a lot of people seem to love/hate.

[close]

Ive been to Manila several times but never skated it. If you book with Philippine airlines you can get a direct flight from JFK I paid $650-$700, it’s a very long flight with a layover but sure you already know that. Manila looks like it’s got a lot of spots but it’s kind of rough, side walks and the people. It’s also huge, I believe it’s bigger than NYC. Philippines is nice and super cheap the people are very friendly. I’d pick Seoul over Manila personally it looks like there’s more plaza type spots.

Ha, I don't even remember what I did on that trip. Seoul's definitely better for skating. Skating around Cult Park feels like you're in a THPS 1 level. I'm pretty keen on Seoul in general - it's one of my favorite cities. Although Seoul's not necessarily a budget destination you can get by fairly cheaply. Curious to hear more on what you thought about Manilla. What did you like/dislike?

[Lloyd Braun]

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Debating on a visit to Manila for a few days or so in march - there's a deal for RT tickets at $450 from NYC and I could give myself a day layover in Seoul. I'm debating on it or just doing Seoul and maybe finding a good layover in Beijing or something for $200 more. What wold you guys say? Is the $450 ticket worth a Manila/Seoul stopover for $450 or would you pay $200 more for Seoul and possibly a China stopover?



Figured I'd ask here since you guys have said some mixed sounding things about Manila haha. For reference though, I'm usually into pretty sketch cities - love Bangkok for instance that a lot of people seem to love/hate.

[close]

Ive been to Manila several times but never skated it. If you book with Philippine airlines you can get a direct flight from JFK I paid $650-$700, it’s a very long flight with a layover but sure you already know that. Manila looks like it’s got a lot of spots but it’s kind of rough, side walks and the people. It’s also huge, I believe it’s bigger than NYC. Philippines is nice and super cheap the people are very friendly. I’d pick Seoul over Manila personally it looks like there’s more plaza type spots.

[close]

Ha, I don't even remember what I did on that trip. Seoul's definitely better for skating. Skating around Cult Park feels like you're in a THPS 1 level. I'm pretty keen on Seoul in general - it's one of my favorite cities. Although Seoul's not necessarily a budget destination you can get by fairly cheaply. Curious to hear more on what you thought about Manilla. What did you like/dislike?

Ive been there like 7-8 times but never spent too much time there to be honest. I'd usually stay one night at a hotel near the airport rest up after the 24-30 hour trip there and head out the next day. My Ex is from Olongapo, about 4-7 (pending traffic) hours north west of Manila, so all my time in the Philippines has been spent there. From my little bit of exposure to Manila I can say that the traffic is probably the worst I've ever been in, and its pretty polluted due to all the traffic etc. That being true of most major cities though, I am a bit bummed I never really got the chance to explore it more, I'm sure there are a lot of districts that are great for skating, but I've only really been around the Pasay City/Airport Area. Im contemplating going back in the next year or 2 though.

I love the Philippines over all very beautiful country/beaches, not really a skate destination that I saw outside of Manila but I wasn't there to skate anyway. I'm not a huge fan of Filipino food, but the people are super friendly, its really cheap, and there's tons of beautiful women. Any recommendations on things to check out or skate if I make it back there?

[backinaction]

Sedlic Ossuary in Czech Republic.

I went here in 2001.  It is a church decorated with the bones of about 40,000 people that died in the plague.

Usually it is quite busy, but we were there on the last half hour of the day and had it to ourselves.

This was before the EU and Eastern Europe was stupid cheap to travel in.  I did a 16 day trip from the US for under $1300, including the $450ish airfare from Oregon.

Beer at a show in Pilzen were around $0.38.  Filet Mignon dinners in Slovakia were $6.







http://www.thebohemianblog.com/2014/09/bone-churches-of-bohemia-the-sedlec-ossuary-at-kutna-hora.html

[harperwhite]

Tbilisi, Georgia. The nature there is really fantastic. I was on a 3 day tour package there and visited Okatse Canyon, a place near Kutaisi that is really worth seeing, Bagrati Cathedral (11th-century), cave of Prometheu and it just blowed my mind. Next time going there for a longer time. Tbilisi - Imereti tour is in summer, August or September. I’m going solo this year and looking forward to meet some folks for co-tripping.

[Owen]

Tbilisi, Georgia. The nature there is really fantastic. I was on a 3 day tour package there and visited Okatse Canyon, a place near Kutaisi that is really worth seeing, Bagrati Cathedral (11th-century), cave of Prometheu and it just blowed my mind. Next time going there for a longer time. Tbilisi - Imereti tour is in summer, August or September. I’m going solo this year and looking forward to meet some folks for co-tripping.

Oh man I'm jealous. I was supposed to go there in 2017 but family stuff prevented it from happening. Was thinking about heading there early next year but don't think winter would be a good time to go. I'll get there at some point I hope.

Armenia looks really interesting too

[Cuban_Lynx]

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Tbilisi, Georgia. The nature there is really fantastic. I was on a 3 day tour package there and visited Okatse Canyon, a place near Kutaisi that is really worth seeing, Bagrati Cathedral (11th-century), cave of Prometheu and it just blowed my mind. Next time going there for a longer time. Tbilisi - Imereti tour is in summer, August or September. I’m going solo this year and looking forward to meet some folks for co-tripping.

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Oh man I'm jealous. I was supposed to go there in 2017 but family stuff prevented it from happening. Was thinking about heading there early next year but don't think winter would be a good time to go. I'll get there at some point I hope.

Armenia looks really interesting too

My wife is from Tbilisi, so I’m headed back in a few weeks. All of Georgia is really amazing. We took a trip to Shatili on my first visit in 2009. It’s by far the most interesting place I’ve been. They had just recently gotten electricity up there and it was straight medieval. There’s still a pit where people with diseases were sent during the plague. It’s filled with human remains. Beyond that, it’s breathtakingly gorgeous up in the mountains.