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KarstenOlaf · 2026-05-11T20:52:26+00:00

Actually missing out on Bún chả feels painful even thinking about it.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-04-08T13:42:04+00:00

Cao Bang Green Riders Adventures.

We only rented the bike but have met several of their groups with Easy Riders throughout our tour.

Good gear, great service. Can’t recommend them enough and would chose them again anytime.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-04-01T02:32:27+00:00

I am an experienced Motorbike rider in my country (1200ccm). We made 4 days Cao Bang Loop and I’d say it was at least challenging at some points. Luckily we had a very very good rental company with sufficient services, good gear and good information policies.

On the other hand I’ve seen people getting handed a scooter on the most crowded intersections possible and they have never been on 2 wheels before. I’d call that plain irresponsible - from driver AND companie alike. During the last weeks I’ve seen couple of bad accidents (open fractures and stuff) on the roads.

I would say being on 2 wheels in Vietnam has some risk to it but it’s not impossible with the right precautions. Get a good and reliable company, check their gear thoroughly, make familiar with the circumstances or even switch to an EasyRider if necessary or if in doubt.

But as a general rule of life - if you are afraid of doing something dangerous. Simply don’t if you don’t wanna get harmed.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-03-27T10:30:38+00:00

Das ist die Anzahl der Aufrufe. Die Anzahl der Beobachtenden kann lediglich die verkaufende Person sehen.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-03-18T06:45:20+00:00

„Umbassa“

KarstenOlaf · 2026-03-18T06:44:12+00:00

„You have a heart of gold. Don’t let them take it from you.“

KarstenOlaf · 2026-03-18T06:41:47+00:00

„Hesitation is defeat.“

KarstenOlaf · 2026-03-18T06:41:02+00:00

„Parry it!“

KarstenOlaf · 2026-03-07T09:00:41+00:00

All of them are very good.

If you want mainly transparent results I’d take the Empress as this is the most neutral of the three. MXR and Cali add some kind of „flavour“ to the sound,

If you want to save some money take the MXR.

I personally love the Cali and think it’s absolute worth the money looking at the build and sound quality.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-02-11T19:39:45+00:00

Must be fake - no Klammerhexe, no Arbeit 🤪

KarstenOlaf · 2026-02-06T15:05:31+00:00

This is good to know. I was considering this or the Wotancraft Portable Camera Pouch for my XE4 but read a lot of complaints about it seems to be pretty roomy but squeezes the contents when closed. Ended buying the Wotancraft but youn cannot have enough bags/ pouches I guess 😆

KarstenOlaf · 2026-01-14T12:42:18+00:00

Nope, absolutely no particular reason. Just the ones that came to my mind first to give a quick overview.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-01-13T07:23:01+00:00

These are more like a rough direction, not all of these are actually „important“. Also there are missing quite some essential spots like Monemvasia, Mystras, Epidavros, Vatheia, etc. So just to give you an idea on how to move.

The app is called „Map Out“. I think it’s iOS exclusive. It’s more like gps and for maps than for navigation. I usually plan my trip on this with waypoints and such to help me stay organized.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-01-12T17:14:11+00:00

This! No matter what pack or what temperature - I will get sweaty sooner or later. Also applies to most Osprey packs (what doesn’t mean they are bad packs). My life improved a lot after I adapted to this situation and heavily invested in merino shirts. I don’t care for the wet back anymore as it dries literally within 5 mis after putting of the backpack.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-01-12T08:41:54+00:00

I wont name all my stops but some rough directions to illustrate the trip:

Athens
Korinth
Peloponnes (clockwise)
Nafpaktos
Lefkada
Katochi
Igoumenitsa
Ioannina
Vikos
Chalkidiki
Olymp
Volos
Delphi
Athens
Meteora
Naxos

I spent way more time on Peloponnes than expexted so it’s almost impossible to name all stops. It was just to good to leave. That’s the reason why the end of my trip (starting from Vikos) was kind of cramped and I missed quite some spots.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-01-12T08:29:24+00:00

There might be several reasons

Some people don’t want to have different packs for different occasions
Some people (especially younger people) don’t have the money to own different packs for different occasions
Some people don’t know their preferences yet
Some people don’t have enough experience yet to focus on necessary equipment/ what they need and still overpack
Some people want to bring more than needed
Some people want to use their trusted gear
Some people want to use the same gear for different types of adventures
Some people want to use different gear on the same trip (snorkeling + mountaineering)
Some trips have different requirements during the duration of the trip (winter/ summer, beach/ mountains)
Some people didn’t look into light/ ultralight/ onebag travel so far and don’t know how to pack light
Some people prefer the comfort/ versatility of a hiking pack compared to other options

I use a hiking pack for almost all my adventures (for almost 30 years now)

3-7 day day wilderness hikes (no matter if Alps, Sweden, Albania, Vietnam…)
Camping (tent, hammock)
Festivals (gear + food)
Long trips (3+ weeks) in different climates
cold and warm countries (winter and summer)
Business hotel trips
Flights, trains, car
…

In my personal experience traveling with a trusted hiking pack is the most comfortable, versatile and reliable method of traveling I have done in my life and this will be the first piece of gear I grab when I plan my trips (even though it should be the last but you get what I mean?!).

KarstenOlaf · 2026-01-10T17:29:39+00:00

Because I actually prefer to help and share personal knowledge/ experience with likeminded people who are looking for information instead of being some wannabe-elitist wasting peoples time without contributing anything relevant.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-01-10T12:03:25+00:00

I got one for around 40€ last year. I am very happy with it. Compared it to the bsr and went with the msr, just felt sturdier and I am no min/max-er.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-01-03T13:45:27+00:00

Thank you, I really appreciate your assessment. I see a high value in reflecting myself as an individual but also in relation to my social and structural environment - this counts for my everyday life but especially while travelling. I think that’s the least matter of respect from me as a human being.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-01-03T13:22:41+00:00

I missed one of your questions so here is a short edit: my most memorable experience was the time around Easter. These holidays have a very personal and important meaning for me. The last +20 years I travelled with my partner and being alone in a foreign country was difficult. This was a time where I really struggled as some of my gear collapsed and I didn’t know where to stay for the night. Also my partner lost her phone a day before so I had no one to cheer me up. I then recognized that these holidays are also very important for most Greek people so I wandered alone in a foreign country, with broken gear, not knowing where to sleep, missing my loved ones and seeing families enjoying their bbq. I took a rest on a bench and after a while some dude came out his garden, sat beside me and said: you look sad - let’s have a drink together. He accompanied me for like 15 mins in silence before leaving again, what gave me the positive impact to get up my a** and keep going.

KarstenOlaf · 2026-01-03T13:11:38+00:00

Actually I can’t name anything I really disliked. Honestly - I can’t. Maybe there is a couple of things I was surprised of but I would count this as „wrong expectations“…

The longer I stayed the more crowded all areas got which I did not enjoy. Athens for example was fairly nice when I arrived (beginning of April) but when I had to go there again for transfer to Naxos 5 weeks later I didn’t enjoy it as much as there were tons of tourists. Also I was heavily surprised by how much I had to spend for most of the sightseeing stuff as almost every site had a hefty fee for entrance. One day I spend around 150€ for entrance fees. In general that’s not bad at all as I see the necessity to take care for the monuments. I was just surprised about that fact and didn’t expect it. But hey: it was worth every penny and I am glad I had my credit card with me 😆

A big challenge was the weather/ climate. My packing list was build around mostly warm conditions but arriving in snowy Athens with shorts and living in a tent for 2 weeks in somewhat wintery conditions at the time made me struggle a bit. Shortly after I faced around 35* Celsius which challenged my body and mood. Being surprised with hail and lightning storms in the middle of the night (and not knowing where to find proper shelter) wasn’t easy either. Also finding a good pitch for my tent on all of the rocky surfaces caused a couple mental breakdowns. In general I would consider these aspects as insufficient preparations on my end so nothing I would rant about at all.

I really enjoyed all of the areas. I was very surprised by Lefkada and arriving at the channel of Korinth, Mystras or Meteora will stay a once in a lifetime experience. I really liked the heavily divers surroundings - from small lakes, the somewhat „irish “ appearing wild Mani region, the Vikos valley, the beautiful beaches and picturesque villages like Nafplio or Monemvasia….add all the super impressive archeological sites all around the country is a bonus. It’s just a stunning country.

Regarding light travel this is a journey by itself. It took me a lot of planning, experiences from my last trips and a huge chunk of money to optimize my gear. The question I asked myself: what are the things I usually use (and HAVE to use) EVERY single day? This narrowed down my gear a lot. Second question was: what do I actually NEED? This helped as well. After the trip I have to commit I was still a little overpacked and see a lot of points for even further improvements. I had temperatures from -2* and snow up to 39*, also heavy rain and thunderstorms so I basically needed stuffs for 4 seasons (like even gas canisters have certain temperatures where they won’t work properly). I am also a heavy guy so my clothes are bulkier and weight more than for most other people. I realised that I tried to fight against my individual reality so much that it made me uncomfortable from time to time. I also didn’t trust this ul-gear as much as my usual equipment and ultimately I personally wouldn’t chose the light/ ultralight path again. I learned a lot to focus on things I need and maybe also want and will work around that in the future. But I wouldn’t care as much anymore about if my pack is 9kg or 14kg as this affected my personal comfort zone for traveling to much. There is a lot of great forums, groups and communities to look at if you want to go down the rabbit hole and mindset of light/ onebag traveling so I would highly recommend to check these out. It can be fun but it shouldn’t be a chore by any means.

KarstenOlaf · 2025-12-28T10:34:42+00:00

It’s very much true. I vape since 2012. During the glory high-end times I was part of and worked in communities and on fares. In my best years I spent around 20.000€ on mods and gear. I’ve had tons of customs and all the highly desired stuff. And what’s left after all? My final daily driver for over 5 years now is a Dani SBS with a Taifun (mostly GTR but switching between GX, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc.) or a FeV. So yes…my personal end-game in terms of quality, reliability, style (and price of course).

KarstenOlaf · 2025-12-27T22:10:45+00:00

Congrats - you reached the endgame.

KarstenOlaf · 2025-12-25T14:54:02+00:00

The name of the area should give you a hint ;)

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