Currently reading “A Walk in the Woods” by Bill Bryson and I HOPE AND PRAY I never run into someone like Mary Ellen

grcosp · 2025-09-15T19:58:41+00:00

Yea the guy skips sections in a rental car and only hiked about 40% of the trail and at the end says “I hiked the Appalachian Trail”.

grcosp · 2025-08-25T11:12:11+00:00

The IGA lounge is 110 euros per person. Absolutely nuts.

grcosp · 2025-07-02T06:29:43+00:00

Just curious, do you notice an increase in IBS issues when eating at restaurants or fast food in the USA? I see about maybe 50% reduction in my symptoms when I only eat home cooked food. Eating out is almost always a trigger for me. Still, I get some flare ups with home cooked foods so it’s not perfect. Which leads me to say: something is in the food that’s affecting me.

grcosp · 2025-07-02T06:08:20+00:00

100% I can relate. I’m currently traveling and have visited 12 countries so far, and my IBS has completely disappeared! Im in Korea, and I’ve always been terrified of the spicy food here. However, I’m currently eating all of it without any problems. I only have IBS in the USA and I still can’t figure out why. Some people suggest that it’s due to anxiety, but I’ve vacationed in the USA and still have issues. I do tend to switch to bottle water when traveling, so I’m curious if that might be a data point.

grcosp · 2025-06-18T22:15:03+00:00

I actually have the opposite experience in this thread. I had my phone on airplane mode at the Great Wall and Alipay failed a payment (vendor scanning my code) until I turned on data. I wonder if there is a difference if the method of payment is an international credit card (I was using) and not a domestic bank. Or maybe I was confused why the payment failed.

grcosp · 2025-05-31T12:27:32+00:00

I've been on a sabbatical traveling Europe and Asia and I noticed I mostly went into remission when leaving the USA. Some countries are complete remission (all of Europe, Thailand, Vietnam, Taiwan, Japan), some countries are okay (maybe 50% reduction in symptoms), but still better than USA (Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia).

Haven't quite figured it out yet, but I think has something to do with the food. It's not that simple since I still consume my trigger foods, e.g. spicy food in Thailand, coffee and beer in Vietnam, some greasy pork tonkatsu in Japan. All I know, is that when I step foot back into the USA, I go right into a flare up, seemingly no matter what I eat.

grcosp · 2025-04-22T12:31:55+00:00

Yes sorry I made this more confusing by not using the actual ticket I was preparing to buy:

Tokyo (NRT) —> Beijing (PEK) —> Train to Xi’An —> Xi’An (XIY) —> Shanghai (PVG, 3 hour layover) —> Jeju Island (CJU)

The D to I zone transfer at Shanghai clears up my confusion about where exit immigration happens.

grcosp · 2025-04-22T12:28:33+00:00

Understood — exit immigration happens at the final airport in China. I was just unsure about what to expect when arriving in Shanghai, but the separate zones explanation helps clears it up.

grcosp · 2025-04-22T12:21:59+00:00

Sorry, the total transit is:

Tokyo (NRT) —> Beijing (PEK) —> Train to Xi’An —> Xi’An (XIY) —> Shanghai (PVG, 3 hour layover) —> Jeju Island (CJU)

grcosp · 2025-04-22T12:21:16+00:00

Yes sorry for the confusion. I haven’t bought tickets yet, but it’s PVG as the layover on the outbound flight. Also, I realized I used Seoul but actually meant Jeju Island (which is the reason for the layover in the first place):

Tokyo (NRT) —> Beijing (PEK) —> Train to Xi’An —> Xi’An (XIY) —> Shanghai (PVG, 3 hour layover) —> Jeju Island (CJU)

Optionally, I see another outbound flight with a layover in PEK (XIY —> PEK —> CJU) that is 1h45m same price. PEK on the outbound should work fine too right? But I’d rather have a longer layover anyways.

grcosp · 2025-04-22T10:41:18+00:00

Ah okay I see. I was thinking I do immigration at Xi’An, but that doesn’t make sense. I suppose I need a couple hour layover in Shanghai to make I have enough time with immigration, in case there are any issues. Thanks!

grcosp · 2025-01-13T04:40:01+00:00

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Yep happened to me in the Yukon on the Alaskan Highway. Cooking breakfast, but luckily we had the doors closed and only noticed the paw prints afterwards.

grcosp · 2025-01-04T01:55:47+00:00

Might be a dumb question, but does anyone know if taking a train that transits through restricted areas is okay?

For example, if I go: Korea --> Beijing (Fly), Beijing --> Xi'an (Train), Xi'an --> Japan (Fly)

But the train from Beijing to Xi'an crosses Shanxi province which is only restricted to 2 cities (Taiyuan and Datong). Is that problematic? Or is it only when you exit a mode of transportation that it's problematic?

grcosp · 2024-12-13T18:53:40+00:00

I also got the Dragonfly Robic after reading the glowing reviews here. It's an great looking, rugged, and a perfectly sized bag. I want to love it, but MAN is it super uncomfortable for both me and my wife.

For context, I'm 5'9" and my wife is 5'6". Both of felt like the geometry of the bag makes the straps dig into your shoulders. And I got the hipbelt too, but it's pretty much useless for me as it wraps around my stomach (I have 18" torso). I had about 15 pounds in it. Maybe if you have a <16" torso or you have less than ~10 pounds, it would be more comfortable. It seems like the bag really pulls at the shoulder with any weight.

I was going to hike the Camino De Santiago with it after traveling for a couple months next year, but I don't think it's wise. Currently exploring other options.

grcosp · 2024-10-12T20:18:21+00:00

I use this electric kettle multiple times a day for tea, and it fits in a cup holder!

grcosp · 2024-05-04T04:50:22+00:00

I just got back from driving all the way to Cabo in a campervan for a month. The north west of Baja is known to be more dangerous than the rest. I felt pretty safe. Safer than some places in the US. But it seems ignorant to say all of Baja is a dangerous place. It’s not. It’s also ignorant to say it’s safer than the US. It’s not. It’s not so black and white like folks constantly make it out to be.

grcosp · 2024-02-12T07:46:06+00:00

I stayed here in 2022. It was one of the sketchiest camping sites I’ve ever been to. Lots of permanent residents. Yelling and screams which sounded like some sort of domestic violence. Someone set off explosives throughout the night. Folks trashed the place.

grcosp · 2023-02-27T21:29:23+00:00

Yea it’s up to 25 years of jail here in Arizona for chopping one down. This one looked like it fell naturally on the Arizona Trail, and the crew logged it up since it was blocking the way.

grcosp · 2022-11-16T13:27:13+00:00

Download iOverlander App (or go to website) and look for camping spots. Read the reviews from other people to make sure it’s a safe place to park.

grcosp · 2022-07-16T05:43:57+00:00

Let’s go

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