I’m so Excited (and I Just Can’t Hide It) I was excited to see Vanuatu just for the name itself. “Vahn-ooh-ahh-too.” So exotic right? Flying a new carrier (for me), Vanuatu Airlines, was also a bonus. The three-hour flight from Auckland to Port Vila in business was nice. The food was solid, complete with carrot…
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Amateur Hour on The Ramblin’ Randy Show “May I see your visa please?” I fought back any hint of smugness, as I answered with shortness: “No visa required.” I’d approached many an airline counter where the agent mistakenly told me I’d need a visa for flights into countries where there was indeed no visa required…
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Randy Votes Best Fish Taco from New Zealand – Taco World in Outrage I actually live in what many call the fish taco capital of the world: San Diego, California. And if San Diego isn’t ground zero for fish tacos, then Baja California, just minutes away, certainly is. So how the heck can I claim…
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What’s the Last One??? What’s 193??? I’ve thoroughly enjoyed sharing my recent visits to countries 184 through 192 on social media. If I had a nickel for every time someone asked, “What’s the last country?” or “What’s number 193?” I would be rich! It is definitely a great question, especially for those who’ve been following…
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“The continent is too large to describe. It is a veritable ocean, a separate planet, a varied, immensely rich cosmos. Only with the greatest simplification, for the sake of convenience, can we say ‘Africa’. In reality, except as a geographical appellation, Africa does not exist.” ― Ryszard Kapuściński Over the past six years, I’ve come…
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It’s About Damn Time Was Madagascar really happening this time? Finally? I’d been so close on my last three trips to Africa, but no dice. Madagascar was one of the very last (if not the last) African countries to open back up after the pandemic. It absolutely tore me to pieces to be in Mauritius…
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Cutting Corners I’ll admit up front, my overnight stay in Zimbabwe barely counts as a country visit. We’d spent the last day just on the other side of Victoria Falls, in Zambia, where we enjoyed four excursions in less than 36 hours. Perhaps I should have saved at least one tour for Zimbabwe, but I…
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The Z’s Have It Zambia and Zimbabwe would be my final two mainland African countries. There was no particular reason why I saved this southern cluster of countries for last – it just worked out that way. Botswana, Angola, Zambia and Zimbabwe would all be visited on this trip. Breaking my usual solo-travel m.o., this…
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