Travel stories, quotes and fun facts

Seoul's subway has free wifi everywhere

Seoul's metro offers signal in every tunnel, so commuters stream video hundreds of metres underground without a drop.

Investment in yourself

Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer.

Korea counts age differently

Koreans traditionally counted everyone a year old at birth and added a year each New Year, a system officially retired in 2023.

Mud plaster day

Once a year the whole town replasters the mosque. There are teams, there is a race, and there is a great deal of mud. Being clean that day marks you as a visitor.

China's high-speed rail is the longest

China has built more high-speed track than the rest of the world combined, linking most major cities at 300 km/h.

Collect moments

Collect moments, not things.

The Great Wall is not one wall

The Great Wall is a network of walls built by different dynasties over 2,000 years, and long stretches are earth rather than stone.

A sandstorm and a shop

Visibility dropped to about four metres. We took shelter in a shop selling only mattresses and phone credit, and the owner made tea for eleven people until it passed.

China uses one time zone

Despite spanning the width of five, all of China officially runs on Beijing time, so the sun rises after 10 am in western Xinjiang.

The night the desert froze

Nobody warns you that the Sahara gets cold. At three in the morning we wore every item of clothing we had brought and still slept badly, then watched a sunrise that made it fine.

Shanghai's maglev hits 431 km/h

The airport maglev covers 30 kilometres in about seven and a half minutes without touching the track.

Jobs fill your pocket

Jobs fill your pocket, adventures fill your soul.

Terracotta soldiers were once painted

The 8,000 terracotta warriors were originally brightly coloured. Most pigment flakes away within minutes of exposure to dry air.

Table Mountain in cloud

We took the cable car up into total white. Visibility was eight metres. Then the cloth lifted for ninety seconds, the whole city appeared below, and it closed again like a curtain.

Hong Kong has the most skyscrapers

Hong Kong has more buildings over 150 metres than any other city, squeezed onto a narrow strip between mountains and sea.

Fill your life with experiences

Fill your life with experiences, not things. Have stories to tell, not stuff to show.

Macau's economy runs on casinos

Macau's gaming revenue has repeatedly exceeded that of Las Vegas several times over, on a peninsula smaller than most airports.

The penguin commute

African penguins crossed the boardwalk at their own pace and in their own order. A queue of humans waited politely, which felt like the correct arrangement.

Taiwan's tallest tower has a giant ball

Taipei 101 hangs a 660-tonne steel pendulum near the top to counteract typhoon sway, and visitors can watch it move.

Mongolia is the emptiest country

With around two people per square kilometre, Mongolia has the lowest population density of any sovereign nation.

Braai rules

There is one person at the fire and everyone else offers advice. Nobody touches the tongs. The meat is ready when the person at the fire says it is ready, and not before.

Blessed are the curious

Blessed are the curious, for they shall have adventures.

Ulaanbaatar is the coldest capital

Average annual temperatures near freezing make Ulaanbaatar the coldest capital city on Earth.

Waiting for the ferry to Ilha

The ferry was scheduled for nine. It left at two. In between, someone produced a guitar and someone else produced grilled prawns, and by the time it arrived nobody wanted to board.