I thought I had planned well, but I had not checked the weather. 

There was a typhoon that had decided that it was going to strike a glancing blow at Taiwan.  The Pilot came on and said he would have to change the route, adding an hour to an already long 14 hour flight.  Total flight time-now 15 hours. 

For that long of a flight, I had to continue go to the back of the plane and do deep knee bends just to remain limber.  I was going to need all my strength and flexibility when I landed in Taipei. 

I arrived in Taipei on Saturday, 7 p.m. local time.    It was raining due to the tail end of the typhoon.

 Taipei Airport Immigration and Customs

Taipei Airport-inside the lobby

I had already researched the bus system and was ready to go when I hit the ground.  Within 15 minutes I was on the bus into Taipei.  After a one hour bus ride the bus driver let me out a couple of blocks from the Taipei Hilton where I would be staying.  I walked the last 3 blocks in the rain. 

I quickly checked in and showed my plans to the concierge.  He helped me out by writing instructions on a card in Chinese for each destination where I wanted to go. I could quickly hand them to any taxi driver and maximize use of my time.  Taxi drivers in Taipei generally don’t speak English. 

By this time it was 9 p.m. and the clock was ticking.  I was losing precious time. I better hurry.  I had to leave tomorrow!!

Steve Barrymore

Next-The race is on!

post your comments here or e-mail me at ssb11@prodigy.net

See all my other travel blogs on NewsOk.com:

Travel tips:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/travel-tips/

Colombia:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/

Mexico:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/

Caribbean island of Barbuda:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/

San Juan  with a 5 hour layover:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/

Fly around the U.S. for the day:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/

 When I boarded the American Airlines 777 in San Jose, my seatmate was a Taiwanese woman who asked me how long I was planning to vacation in Taipei.  I told her “only one night”.  She didn’t believe me, so I called Carol on my cell phone and asked her to talk with the lady and tell her my plan.  Carol agreed(reluctantly) to speak with her on the phone.

 Here is my new  best friend from Taiwan-my seatmate

My new friend listened intently to what Carol was telling her.  She finally said “I think your husband must be crazy, but our mayor should give him the key to the city for doing this”.  Whereas Carol replied, “I think he must be crazy too, but just humor him on the 14 hour flight!”. 

After thinking about it for awhile, my new friend volunteered for her family to give me a ride from the airport into the city to my hotel.  I politely declined telling her I needed to master the airport bus system while I was there. 

I then buckled up for the flight.  It was only supposed to take 14 hours, but a typhoon was making its appearance!!  Add 1 hour.

Steve Barrymore

 Next-The flight over the water-

Post your comments here or e-mail me at ssb11@prodigy.net

See all my other travel blogs on NewsOk.com:

Travel tips:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/travel-tips/

Colombia:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/

Mexico:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/

Caribbean island of Barbuda:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/

San Juan  with a 5 hour layover:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/

Fly around the U.S. for the day:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/

Here was the plan: ( Continued) 

I would leave Oklahoma City at 6:00 a.m. on Friday morning, fly to Dallas, then to San Jose, CA and on to Taipei across the international dateline, arriving there at 7 p.m. on Saturday and leaving on Sunday at 2 pm.   I would be back home by 7 p.m. Sunday (total trip time-61 hours) leaving only 19 hours on the ground to see the city!

 I purchased the ticket and for the next two weeks spent every evening laying out a plan to maximize my time in Taipei. 

Due to time restrictions, I decided to concentrate on just seeing everything possible in the Southwest quadrant of the city.  Every night I poured over the map doing my best to memorize the layout of the city.  I planned every minute of the 19 hours in quarter-hour segments. I was energized by the challenge.  

 I booked a room at the Taipei Hilton in the center of the SW quadrant across the street from the Taipei main subway station to maximize my time, and yet still be able to catch a few hours of sleep to avoid total exhaustion. 

I left Oklahoma City with $200, a Chinese phrase book, my rollaboard luggage, and a great sense of adventure!

Next-The 15 hour flight to Taipei

Post you comments here or e-mail me at ssb11@prodigy.net

Steve Barrymore

See all my other travel blogs on NewsOk.com:

Travel tips:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/travel-tips/

Colombia:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/

Mexico:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/

Caribbean island of Barbuda:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/

San Juan  with a 5 hour layover:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/

Fly around the U.S. for the day:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/

I got to thinking about some of the BEST trips I have ever taken and thought I would do a few blogs on one that was not only a challenge, but REALLY fun as well!  So here it is:

A couple of years ago I was surfing the net looking for low air fares. I spotted a new route on AA from Oklahoma City to Taipei through San Jose, California. They were offering some incredible introductory fares for a limited time.  Plus, I could rack up a bunch of frequent flyer miles since they were paving the route with bonuses!  It would be the ultimate mileage run!!

I mentioned to my wife Carol, how much I had always wanted to see Taipei. She replied, “you’re not getting any younger, why don’t you just go”? She couldn’t get away, but didn’t want to prevent me from going.

The only problem was that the cheap fare remaining was for a flight in two weeks, on Mother’s Day weekend, leaving on a Friday and returning Sunday—just for a weekend! Carol said as long as I was home on Sunday, and bought her a Mother’s Day present in Taipei, she would be fine with me going to Taipei just for the weekend.

I would have only 61 hours total to fly across the Pacific to Taipei, see the city, and be home. What a great challenge and with only 2 weeks to plan the entire trip!! Was I up for it?  You bet!

Here was the plan: (to be continued)

Post your comments here or e-mail me at ssb11@prodigy.net

Steve Barrymore

Next-The plan is put into place

See all my other travel blogs on NewsOk.com:

Colombia:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/

Mexico:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/

Caribbean island of Barbuda:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/

San Juan  with a 5 hour layover:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/

Fly around the U.S. for the day:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/

Part 10:                                                                                                                                                                       Stacey recently updated her comments from above with the following:

“I still love my list, though here are some technological updates:”

1) I’ve moved from film cameras to digital with an underwater bag to a new waterproof digital camera – sweet!

2) I also pack a photo memory card reader so I can blog photos on a trip and leave the memory card instead of the camera when I have a CD made of my photos for backup.

3) I carry a small UV water purifier Steripen instead of a water purification pump system.

4) Instead of a clothesline with pins I braid small-gauge surgical tubing which makes a stretchy, easy to tie up clothesline that doesn’t require pins since you can just poke the corners of your clothes into the braid.

5) Instead of packing around guide books I razor out the pages and chapters I need and just pack those. I also make copies of guidebook maps and laminate them so they’re handy and hardy.

6) For travel to really hot areas I’ve grown fond of the neck coolers that have crystals in them that swell when soaked and stay really cool for hours; they’re reusable, but may be confiscated as “gel” if you try to take them in a carry-on or wear them on the way home (but they’re cheap, so no big deal).

Ok, that does it for travel tips.  Thanks to Stacey for her contribution. 

 Next stop is Taipei, Taiwan, across the Pacifc and back in 61 hours!  Can you do it?  It’s a fun blog to read.  Don’t miss it!!

Steve Barrymore ssb11@prodigy.net

Fly around the U.S. for the day:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/

Here are some more of Stacey’s Travel Tips, all written by her:

“Email to yourself anything you might need including airline and hotel reservation numbers and contact information, emergency numbers, email and snail mail addresses, travel websites, and scans of your passports and traveler’s checque numbers in case you somehow lose everything you were carrying.

I’ve traveled “heavy” and now that I’ve experienced travel with only a carry-on, I can’t imagine what anyone would want to take that would be worth lugging around more. Here are 2 helpful websites about packing light, not specific to Latin America:

http://www.onebag.com/

http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/packlight.htm

My own(Stacey’s) Central Am. packing list is #14 here:

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa?threadID=828622&tstart=0
Also, here is the preamble to the 2003 travelogue of our family’s trip to Belize, more philosophical.

~As Mason Williams would say, “Don’t go down to the ocean with a notion of what you will find”. In other words, expect your adventures to be wonderful but don’t expect them to be predictable;

~grab every opportunity to get to know the people as opposed to just seeing places and scenery. Hanging out in small villages and seeking out locals gave us many of our most special memories;

~take advantage of things that are every day experiences for locals, like beans and rice, bus rides and bike rides, and shopping for produce;

~remember the Peace Corp adage: “It’s not right or wrong, it’s just different”;

~stay as long as you can and adventure out from bases; we typically had 3-7 days in each location, and were glad for it;

~when traveling as a family, listen to the kids, plan to enjoy your together times and to spend times exploring on your own, as safety allows; our individual strengths and interests were woven together to make the trip more memorable for all of us;

~see a lot, but allow time to lay around in hammocks or sit and drink a coke with locals;

~read before and during your trip: guide books, identification books, the Belize Forum, and books set in Belize and written by Belizean authors, both fiction and non-fiction;

~pack a comprehensive medical kit that includes an antibiotic like cipro and a good quality water filter;

~take school supplies or books to donate along the way and gifts for kids and hosts (we took little rubber frog finger puppets and photo magnets showing a view of the wildflowers, mountains and Columbia River Gorge from our house);

~for bugs we preferred Sawyer’s Time Release Deet bug repellent, which worked wonderfully and allows less deet to be absorbed into your skin than most formulas. We took hefty doses of B vitamins and garlic pills starting weeks before we left in an effort to smell repugnant to those smallest of pests, and found that it worked perfectly in areas where there really weren’t any mosquitoes, but failed miserably where there were (hence, the Sawyer’s).

~other things we were glad we had: headlamps, plant and animal identification cards, copies of our lodging reservation and payment emails, sun hats, sunblock and aloe, sarongs (for the females) and bandanas, blank journals, a variety of cameras (including underwater ones) and lots of film, good quality waterproof binoculars, clothes line and pins, cable ties, our own fishing equipment, including a great collection of hand-tied flies, open minds, a desire for adventure, and our senses of humor.

Thanks to Stacey for those.

Stay tuned for “Part C” of Stacey’s travel tips–

post your comments here or e-mail me at ssb11@prodigy.net

Here is what she has to say when she travels to Central America:

“Sometimes I travel alone, sometimes with one or more of my kids and/or my husband, sometimes with a group in tow.  I don’t feel overly paranoid but have never had a problem and would like to keep it that way.  Here are my concessions to safety when I travel in Central America:”
:: I avoid the big cities as much as possible
:: I don’t “party”
:: Where recommended I take specific transportation (Hedman Alas in Honduras, for example, or avoiding chicken buses on the mountain runs in Guatemala, taxis after dark)
:: I know where I am and where I’m headed
:: I don’t wear jewelry (not even my wedding band) and try not to flash camera equipment or money around
:: Some trips I carry a “throw down wallet” with an expired card or 2 and the day’s cash in it
:: I keep important documents and cash under my clothes (except what I need for shopping, buses, etc. for that time period)
:: I ask locals about safety in an area – evenings, hiking, etc.
:: I travel really light so I don’t feel vulnerable getting my bag off and on buses, shuttles, etc.
:: I continue to build skills in Spanish

Here is her trip report when she went to Honduras:  http://sidewalkmystic.com/CopanRuinas.htm#Stacey

And some links to some of her other blogs:

MY PHOTOS ON FLICKR:  http://flickr.com/photos/staceyholeman/collections
LIVE AND LEARN IN HONDURAS:  http://liveandlearninca.blogspot.com/
LIVE AND LEARN IN GUATEMALA:  http://liveandlearninguatemala.blogspot.com/
BLOG FROM 3 WEEKS ON THE BAY ISLANDS LAST SUMMER:  http://holemansinhonduras.blogspot.com/

Next week-I will post some more of Stacey’s travel tips and philosophies–

If you have an travel tips, post a comment here or e-mail me at ssb11@prodigy.net.

–Steve Barrymore

Here are some more travel tips I have learned:

31.  Hope you like my photos, you thief!-Those valuable photos are priceless-Cameras get stolen all the time and with them the photos.   Keep your memory cards in a separate place when possible or download them to a CD or flash drive whenever you can.  You spent too much money to lose the memories.

32.  Microfiber towels-You can buy these at Backwoods in Oklahoma City.  They take up very little space and can really come in handy. They are easy to fit in a backpack when you are at the beach.  Of course, if you are staying at the Four Seasons you can just call the desk and tell them you need another towel!!

33.  Some favorite products-here are a couple of products some people have told me about.  One woman really likes this travel purse with a steel cable in the strap:  www.daymakers.com. 

34.  Another lady told my wife she likes the skirts from www.macabiskirt.com/  My wife likes to buy travel clothes from www.travelsmith.com

35.  Stick it- Since most hotels have the plastic room cards now in lieu of keys, it means you have to remember your room number.  Just carry a supply of those colored stick-on dots with you and put one on your outside door handle or at the top of the outside of your hotel room door.  You can always find your room—unless your next door neighbor is doing the same!!  This also works well to help the kids remember your room. 

In my next couple of posts- I will share some travel tips from my friend Stacey.  She has traveled frequently to Central America and will share some good advice. 

If you have any tips you would like to share, you can add a comment here or e-mail me at ssb11@prodigy.net

 See some of my other posts here:

 Colombia:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/

Mexico:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/

Caribbean island of Barbuda:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/

San Juan  with a 5 hour layover:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/

Fly around the U.S. for the day:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/

Ok, here we go with more travel tips:————

26.  Oh, Stop it!-Whatever you do, don’t forget to stop the newspaper while you are gone.  Usually there is an opportunity to donate your copies to an education program with the local newspaper.

 27.  Tell me where you’re going-E mail someone back home a copy of all your hotel reservations, airline reservations, copy of your passport, emergency contact info., etc..  In other words, anything you think your relatives might need in case they need to get in contact with you should be e-mailed to them. 

28.  Wet stuff-pack plastic bags for wet swim suits.  Sometimes you want to swim the last day of vacation and you didn’t think about what to do with the wet swim suit.

29.  Keep it clean–Been to many places where soap was not available.  Best to pack hand sanitizing wipes and constantly keep your hands washed. One of the best ways to keep yourself from getting sick is to wash your hands frequently. Not all bathrooms always have paper towels.  Also spray pumps of hand sanitizer can work well.

30.  What do I do now or how do you say toilet paper in Russian?-A good idea to get one of those little travel rolls of toilet paper at and drugstore or discount store and keep it in your purse or backpack.  I just returned from Quito and over half the public restrooms did not have paper towels or toilet paper. 

Stay tuned for more travel tips!

You can post your comments here or e-mail me at ssb11@prodigy.net

See all my other travel blogs on NewsOk.com:

 Colombia:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/

Mexico:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/

Caribbean island of Barbuda:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/

San Juan  with a 5 hour layover:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/

Fly around the U.S. for the day:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/

BTW-if you want to subscribe to receive my blogs everytime I update, just click the ”subscribe” button above.  It is free and easy.  We don’t spam you. 

21.  Put your suitcase on a diet-Whenever possible, I only travel with carry-on luggage.  If you do have to check luggage it is a good idea to buy a luggage scale and weigh your luggage at home.  This is especially important with all the new, increased over-weight charges.  It is a lot easier to try to re-balance your suitcases in your living room than trying to do it in the airport with 50 people standing behind you in line and looking into your suitcase.  Pack the luggage scale in your suitcase so you can weigh your luggage on your return trip after you have purchased all those extra souvenirs. You can buy these luggage scales at Kambers or The Travelers Pack in Oklahoma City.

Some people use a system where they pack their suitcase then go back and pull out one-half of everything.  I’ve never been on a trip yet where I thought, “gee, I wish I had packed more stuff!”  How many pairs of shoes do you need, really?

22.  Map it out first-Before I leave on a trip, I always like to have a map of the countries and cities that I am going to visit.  Suggest you study the maps before you leave so when you get there you will already have an idea of distances, transportation systems, etc.  You can hit the ground running when you arrive at your destination. Great place to buy maps in Oklahoma City is at the Travelers Pack.  If they don’t have them in stock, they will order them for you.  Give them a little advance notice. 

23.  Tour books-Everyone has their favorites.  I prefer the Lonely Planet series of books.  They seem to be complete and packed with info.    I also like the Fodor’s travel books as well.  A trick I recently learned from other travelers was to buy the tour books and then razor out and carry with you only the pages that pertain to the places you plan to visit.  A couple of things happen when you do this:  #1: you don’t have to pack a thick book that will add to the weight, #2: you don’t look so much like a tourist sitting in a café reading a big, thick, tour book.  Most of the books are out of date the following year anyway, so no need to worry about destroying a good travel book. 

24.  Protect the liquids or suffer the consequences-some liquids don’t survive well under pressure on an airplane.  Suggest you double bag your liquids in your suitcase.  Ever had suntan lotion explode on your clothes?  I have!

25.  Toiletries-Often times it is just easier to buy your toiletries when you get to your destination.  Why haul a big 99 cent can of shaving cream around when you can buy it there?

Stay tuned for some additional travel tips from other travelers-

What’s your favorite travel tip to share?

I am sure that many other people have additional ideas as well. It would be helpful if you would add your comments and suggestions here so other people may benefit from them.  You can also e-mail me at ssb11@prodigy.net        

See all my other travel blogs on NewsOk.com:

Colombia:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/

Mexico:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/

Caribbean island of Barbuda:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/

San Juan  with a 5 hour layover:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/

Fly around the U.S. for the day:

http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/