by Jeffrey Kontur · Published September 9, 2015 · Last modified November 17, 2015
“Are you crazy?!” “You’ll starve to death.” “You’re going to end up mugged or killed.” “Why would you put your daughter in harm’s way like that?” “How are you going to communicate?” I heard all that and more. As my daughter’s 18th birthday approached, I told her that I was...
Adventure / History / Modes of Transport / USA
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published April 16, 2014 · Last modified November 17, 2015
With a great deal of chuffing, 500 tons of steel slowly begins inching along. Not even walking speed. Trees and landmarks creep by the windows. The brass fixtures and polished wooden trim speak of a bygone era. An era most of us have never seen firsthand and yet, one which...
The Berlin Wall was torn down 25 years ago. (Has it really been that long?!) So to have lunch near the Wall seems implausible enough, but to do so in Nova Scotia? Even when the Wall was standing, it wasn’t exactly a lovely, pastoral place for a picnic. You may...
Adventure / Africa / Logistics / Nature
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published April 2, 2014 · Last modified March 17, 2014
Full disclosure: This isn’t my story, it’s my friend Tommy’s. Tommy is a super adventurous traveler. He’s also an absolute train fanatic. He loves trains, especially old steam trains. He travels all over the world just to ride on interesting trains that are still in service. A few years ago...
There are just some things that grab your attention. Driving down a back-country highway on a long road trip, I heard someone in the car say, “Oh look, a slave cemetery.” How can you not stop for something like that? My ex-girlfriend and I (back when we were still dating)...
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published March 19, 2014 · Last modified February 24, 2014
People who have never been to Machu Picchu, and probably even a few who have, don’t really grasp how enormous it is. Machu Picchu is so much more than the ruins of a few stone buildings on some remote mountaintop. It was a whole village. In fact, in its day...
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published March 12, 2014 · Last modified February 24, 2014
Last week I shared my thought process on flying. During our recent trip to Peru, Sydney and I had to choose between a layover in Panama City or one in Bogota. Ultimately, we decided on Panama City. The deciding factor was the fact that 2014 is the 100th anniversary of...
I visited Halifax, Nova Scotia in July 2013 and was surprised to have loved it as much as I did. I’m no fan of cold weather so I went with relatively low expectations, but I found it a quite magical place. Like most seaside towns and cities, Halifax has a...
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published February 19, 2014 · Last modified February 12, 2014
One thing I love about travel is all the firsts. An especially fantastic trip typically has a lot of them. (I even think that’s one of the things that makes a trip especially fantastic.) For her 18th birthday, instead of wrapping up some trinket she didn’t really need I decided...
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published February 12, 2014 · Last modified June 2, 2016
As the nearest large city to Machu Picchu, Cusco Peru is the gateway to the celebrated “Lost City of the Incas”. In reality, Cusco is a modest sized city of only about 300,000 people. It is extremely scenic and picturesque, in that strange way that only third world countries have...