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The team at iExplore prides itself in finding once in a lifetime travel experiences for our customers.  The Elephant Experience in Botswana is a perfect example of a unique travel experience iExplore offers for our clients.  Guests on our iExplore Botswana Experience & Moremi Reserve Tour have the option to spend a day with three amazing semi-habituated elephants.  Two of the elephants, Jabu and Thembi, were orphaned in a Kruger National Park culling operation more than 20 years ago.  Doug Groves adopted them back then and has been caring for them ever since.  He adopted a third member of the herd, Morula, after she was orphaned in Zimabwe.  He uses his organization, Living With Elephants, to "foster harmonious relationship between people and elephants".

Your morning starts by meeting Doug and the elephants out in the wild.  Leaving the confines of your 4x4, you walk into the bush to meet these amazing creatures.  Fear not walking freely in the wild floodplains of the Okavango Delta, you have a trained and armed guide with you at all times.  You will be introduced to Jabu, the proud bull who serves as alpha elephant of the herd, Thembi, the baby of the herd and the center of attention, and Morula, a mild-natured and sensitive elephant.

You will watch the elephants graze while Doug tells you all about these magnificent animals. During Doug's talk, the elephants gradually get comfortable with your presence as you gain comfort standing next to such massive creatures.  You will then be invited  closer. As you slowly approach these animals you will see details you have never noticed before about elephants such as the thick hairs protruding from their trunks, the long eyelashes and their massive tongues.  As you get more comfortable you will be given a chance to feel their tusks, peer inside their mouths to see some of the largest teeth you will ever see and even feel the massive weight of their trunks.

Much of the day is spent walking with the elephants as they go about their morning routines. That may mean grazing, bathing in a mud wallow, or drinking from a nearby stream.  In a short amount of time you will begin to see that each of the three elephants has their own distinct personality and place within the herd.  Doug will continue to share his extensive wealth of knowledge on elephants and his life living with them.

At the end of the day you will enjoy a picnic lunch in the wild while your elephant companions enjoy an afternoon snack of their own.  You are guaranteed to walk away from this experience with photos of a lifetime and with a new appreciation for these gentle giants. If you are interested in learning more about the one of a kind Elephant Experience contact, one of iExplore's specialists today.

The Natural World Wonders have always been a popular cornerstone for our clients' adventures and there is no bigger World Wonder than Mt. Everest.  Standing majestically at just over 29,000 feet, it is the world's highest mountain.  Although you may not be ready to reach for the summit you can enjoy trekking the Everest region -  a photographer's paradise and a sportsman's dream.

iExplore has recently increased our product line of adventure and cultural exploration tours to Nepal, focusing specifically the Everest region.  Check out the thoughts of iExplore's Ben McFadden on visiting this breathtaking destination.

After spending several weeks in India I crossed through the wild Himalayan landscape to Nepal's majestic capital--Kathmandu. Kathmandu brings to mind images of temples, markets and a wide array of international travelers. Surrounded on all sides by the ever-present Himalayas, Kathmandu has been a crossroads of adventure seekers for thousands of years, a custom that is very much alive today.

Kathmandu is fascinating at every turn, and some prefer to just wander, seeing where the congested streets will lead them. I found myself drifting aimlessly amongst the locals, markets and one of-a-kind temples. On my third day I met my group and guide that would be with me during my long awaited trek to Everest Base Camp.
 
I had planned to trek to the base of Mt. Everest well over a year in advance and it was hard to believe I was finally at this point. Summiting Everest is the ultimate goal for mountaineers from all over the world. My goal was to reach the mountaineer's base camp, a difficult achievement in itself.  The first step was to board the mountain flight into Lukla ---it was nauseating, though an exhilarating beginning to the trek. The runway is at a slope allowing the planes to slow down faster upon landing and speed up upon take off.
 
After arrival in Lukla we spent the next 3 hours traversing through woods along the Dudh Kosi to Pakding. This was an easy first day, mostly level ground and the weather was perfect. Occasionally I had to step off the trail for the first of many passing yak caravans carrying various equipment and supplies. We spent a night in Pakding and day #2 was a long 6-hour hike to Namche Bazaar. We stopped in Namche, after 2 days of trekking, for an acclimatization day which allowed us to explore this little town tucked away in the Himalayas. Multiple trekking supply stores line the streets; there are even a few Internet cafes and bakeries. This is a town like no other --- every item has been hand carried by either yak or Sherpa.

Leaving Namche was the first time that I could clearly see Everest in the distance. Picturesque forests, and suspension bridges crossing the river made this a long,  yet peaceful 7-hour walk to Tengboche. By this point we had reached 3810m. The morning view from Tengboche was one of the best I've ever seen-- crystal clear skies and awe-inspiring mountains. Another 6 hours and 600 more meters, we arrived in Dingboche. We spent a day in Dingboche for acclimatization,  as well as time to hike up the nearby Chukung for a view of the surrounding Imja Khola valley.

The following morning we departed Dingboche and got as far as Dukla, where we stopped for lunch. The snow began, and continued for the next several days of our journey. We trekked another two hours to Lobuche, where we stopped for the night. I remember this night vividly as the temperature reached freezing-- and power was no longer an option in our rooms.

We had a  5:00am wake up call for the 5-hour hike from Lobuche to Gorak Shep. The morning was clear but the previous nights fresh snow made the trail more difficult as well as the continually worsening path. Along the route there are monuments to Sherpa who have died in avalanches as well as monuments to past climbers. The affects of altitude began to set in, making the climb all the more difficult. After reaching Gorakshep for a quick early lunch at 10:30 we departed again for the final leg of the expedition, a 3-hour walk to Everest Base Camp along the Khumbu Glacier. The last leg is one of the hardest--trekking over jagged rocks and fighting blistering winds--not to mention altitude induced lethargy made the journey seem endless.
 
This is it, what I have traveled to the other side of the world and hiked for over a week to reach- Everest Base Camp. Experienced climbers spend days here acclimatizing and preparing for the long trek ahead. We enjoyed whatever snacks we had carried as well as apple pie from the, believe it or not, Everest Bakery. After enjoying the views we hurried back towards Gorakshep for the night. Despite the exhaustion from the altitude, the hike back took only 2 hours. A blizzard had set in and icicles began to form around my hooded jacket and I was ready to collapse.
 
There was an option the following morning to get up at 4:30am and hike to a nearby summit. No one could move. I finally managed the strength at 5:30am to get up and venture out on my own into the vast Himalayan scenery. After an hour walk I had climbed an additional 300 meters in time to watch the sunrise over the summit of Mt. Everest. This is still one of the most amazing sites I have ever seen.

If you are considering Everest, you should go for it--it is one of the most unique places and experiences on Earth.
 

One of my favorite spots in the world is Prince William Sound in Alaska.  A few years back, I had the opportunity to spend a few days enjoying the beautiful views and friendly wildlife found there.  Joined by some of my best friends we drove from Anchorage to Whittier where we took a private charter boat ride to Blackstone Bay.  Blackstone Bay was the backdrop for the final scene of the Adam Sandler film 50 First Dates and is worthy of being showcased on the big screen.

After unloading from the charter we set up camp then prepared for a day of paddling through this picturesque setting.  Shortly after settling into our kayaks we saw a tour boat sail by, sharing the beautiful sights with their guests.  When it finally fell of the horizon behind us, we were alone in this breathtaking setting for the next 24 hours, our only company came from the natural inhabitants including otters and harbor seals.  The harbor seals began to poke their heads up from a safe distance then swam under our kayaks, popping up for a view from the other side.  Each time they drew closer and closer, I think they were as entertained as we were.  Also enjoyable to watch were the otters as they floated on their backs keeping a watchful eye on us.

The only real sound was a periodic thunderous crack of ice calving of the Beloit & Blackstone glaciers. Both glaciers are tidewater glaciers, meaning they flow directly into the ocean.  I don't recall looking at a watch but I am sure we spent the better part of an hour or two floating in our kayaks, watching the ice crash into the water.

If you have the opportunity to visit the great state of Alaska. I recommend taking a few days to kayak through the Prince William Sound and highly recommend Blackstone Bay and its feature show, the Beloit & Blackstone Glaciers. I was lucky to have been traveling with an excellent nature photographer who captured some great photos of our trip which I will share below.  Check out more of his great Alaskan photos at Rock36Photography.com.

One of my all-time favorite travel experiences was a 2006 visit to Australia.  I have always had a keen interest in the land "down under" and even spent several years playing the great Australian game of Aussie Rules Football with the Cincinnati Dockers.  So when the opportunity arose for my wife and I to visit Australia, I jumped at it.  Some travelers (often those who have not visited Australia) will tell you that you need two weeks of vacation time to truly enjoy a visit there.  I was confident I could prove them wrong and plan a trip that would allow me to enjoy many of the great treasures of Australia in about a week.

With my passion for Australian Rules Football I decided to plan our trip in a way that would bookend the trip with catching a few matches.  We also wanted to see a variety of the country.  Our trip began in Melbourne, which is a beautiful and very walkable city.  We spent most our first day walking throughout Melbourne and admiring its many wonderful parks and riverside walks.  The first night there we visited the Telstra Dome, one of many exceptional sporting facilities in this city that was host to the 1956 Summer Olympic Games and 2006 Commonwealth Games.  At the Telstra Dome we enjoyed a brilliant Aussie Rules match between the visiting Sydney Swans and the Essendon Bombers.  If you choose to drive in Melbourne be prepared in advance for their awkward Hook Turns. I admit went out of my way to avoid these types of turns on my first night in Melbourne.  This animation would have been helpful to view before my trip (See this animation).

The next morning we departed in our rental car out on the Great Ocean Road. This drive is one of the world's most scenic drives, rated as the fourth best drive in the world by Expedia.  This drive offers stops in scenic small towns and quaint beaches.  We made a quick stop at famous Bells Beach to watch in amazement as the surfers rode the waves of the Bells Bowl. Movie fans will remember this as the site of the final scene of Point Break. The drive took longer than expected as we had no idea we would want to stop to take pictures so often.  One stop was unplanned when we noticed several cars on the side of the road. We got out to find all the other travelers 15-20 feet up into the woods where five Koala Bears were relaxing a few feet above ground in some trees.  Time flew by as we watched these great creatures in their natural habitat. We also enjoyed spending time watching the sun set over the Twelve Apostles rock formation.  We concluded the day's drive in the quiet little town of Port Fairy where we enjoyed dinner and a few bottles of Coopers while enjoy conversations with some of the locals.

The next morning we continued our drive heading away from the Great Ocean Road towards the Grampian Mountains and Grampians National Park.  We were excited when we saw our first kangaroo and worried it might be our only wild kangaroo of the trip. A few hours later we had lost count and gave up stopping to take photos at each opportunity.  We did however enjoy hiking through the Grampians and seeing some wild kangaroo and wallabies.

After enjoying a few days exploring the Great Ocean Road and the Grampians we returned for a night in Melbourne which had many wonderful restaurants and bars to choose from.  Before calling it a night we walked through Treasury Park where our concierge said we would find some Australian Possums, a peculiar-looking animal. It is also the site of several movies, including a scene from the Nicholas Cage movie Ghost Rider that had filmed there earlier that year.

From Melbourne we flew to Alice Springs in the center of the country.  Alice Springs was a delightful little town to spend a day and an overnight stay in. We toured the Royal Flying Doctor Service Museum.  The Royal Flying Doctors fly from a base like Alice Springs to destinations only easily accessible by plane to offer medical services to those in the Outback.  At night we enjoyed the nearly complete darkness afforded by being in the Outback to enjoy a night of stargazing.  Those living in the Northern Hemisphere will enjoy checking out star formations only visible from the Southern Hemisphere, including the Southern Cross constellation which is depicted in the Australian flag.

From Alice Springs we drove across the desolate outback to Uluru, also referred to as Ayers Rock, the giant rock formation that is synonymous with Australia.  Many questioned traveling to the Outback solely to see this sight but we found it to be worth the trip.  It is just an amazing sight that we enjoyed learning about from our Aboriginal guide.  Photographers will want to be sure to pick out a great location for sunrise and sunset photos at Uluru.  Not far from Uluru is Kata Tjuta, or  The Olgas, a series of rounded rock formations. We spend an afternoon hiking around the Olgas and to the inside where there are lush valleys of grassy hills.

Our next stop on our Australian adventure was to fly directly from Uluru to Sydney.  Sydney, likely the most recognizable city in Australia, is home to many famous tourist sites including the Sydney Opera House, the Harbour Bridge and Bondi Beach.  Once again we dropped our bags at a hotel and set off on foot to explore this wonderful town.  It was a weekday but the parks were filled with people on their lunch breaks having a kick of a footy, tossing a frisbee or people just out for a jog.  Throughout our journey, it became obvious that Australia is an active country but it seemed magnified in Sydney. We also visited a few attractions within a short train ride of Sydney.  One was Koala Park Sanctuary, a nice little zoo that offers a chance to get up close to  koalas, kangaroo, wallaby and emus.  

We took a short train ride from Sydney to Katoomba so we could enjoy a hike through the beautiful Blue Mountains.  Here we enjoyed hiking underneath the thick canopy of a lush forest then climbing to the summit of one of the mountains where we enjoyed a cable car ride across a valley taking in an amazing view.

On our last day in Sydney we visited the Sydney Cricket Grounds for another Australian Rules Football match.  This is a wonderful little outdoor stadium that if you are a sports fan you would enjoy checking out.  On our last night in Australia we enjoyed dinner and drinks in "The Rocks" a cozy little neighborhood close to the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House.

I realize we did not see all of Australia in our week long trip, but that would have been hard to do even with a month or more.  Our Australia in a week experience gave us a great taste of this wonderful country leaving us with a craving for more.  With competitive airfare offers out there for Australia you should consider it as your next vacation destination even if you only have a week.  iExplore offers many Australian tours that can fit within a seven day visit.  So, I recommend you pick up a copy of "In A Sunburned Country" and start planning your adventure in Australia. Until then enjoy some photos from this trip.

My love for all things English goes back a long ways.  I can't seem to get enough of this wet, vibrantly green isle and every time I return, I find myself experiencing something new.  Sometimes it's a hidden ancient cathedral tucked away in the financial district or sometimes it's the best pub in England, replacing the last best pub found on a previous journey.
 
London is a pretty easy city to navigate if you stick within the realms of public transportation.  If you do, however, decide to take a stroll through the winding streets of this sprawling metropolis, be sure to carry an A-Z Street Atlas.  London, like most cities in Europe, doesn't operate on a grid layout.  But it is an interesting way to spend a free afternoon.  I like to wander aimlessly from Earl's Court to Gloucester Road on to South Kensington, perhaps stopping at the Natural History Museum, and then onto Chelsea and Hyde Park. 

The touristy sites are well worth seeing.  View Westminster's Parliament and Big Ben towering majestically on the banks of the Thames River across from the Eye of London (the largest ferris wheel in the world) and the London Aquarium.  Other notable sites to visit include St. Paul's Cathedral, Spitalfield's Market in the East End, Piccadilly Circus, Covent Garden, and Leicester Square in the West End.

British food has come a long way from the ordinary 'Fish and Chips' its famous for.  Traditional pub food has become quite tasty serving anything from Indian curries to refreshing salads and Sunday roasts with Yorkshire pudding.  Venture outside the pub and you will find most any restaurant to suit your culinary tastes.

London is a magnificent city, packed to the gills with history.  With its fascinating mix of modern and medieval architecture, charming culture, and a vast amount of entertainment available, it is no wonder that this is my favorite city in the world.  iExplore's England Experience is a great trip to begin discovering this exceptional country.

Lemmings are fuzzy little critters that were rumored to commit mass suicide by following one another off the edge of a cliff.  Although Snopes and Wikipedia have proven that behavior to be a myth, I still think of lemmings whenever I travel.  I believe tourists are more prone than most people to behave like Lemmings and whenever I travel I do my best to travel "Lemming Free".

To travel by the Lemming Free mantra does not mean you need to pull out a machete and cut your own path through the jungle. In fact it can be as simple as walking by all the security lines in the airport to find one at the end that most people do not see and saving yourself some extra time.  In essence, it is not following the group but making your own decisions.

I wanted to share a few recent examples from my most recent trip to France.  The first was at the airport where there was a long winding line of travelers waiting in line for security.  I think some people might not have even been traveling but were just compelled to stand in line as there must have been something fun at the end.  I instead walked to the other end of the United terminal in Chicago where there is another security check-in.  Sure enough, there were only a handful of customers and I breezed on through.

If you have ever visited Paris for more than a few days you likely took a day trip out to the Palace of Versailles.  It is easy to get there by train. The morning my wife and I arrived, we were close to the last people off the train which gave us a great vantage point of the tourist migration out of the station where tourists one by one looked at the sign pointing the direction to the Palace, a short walk away.

Every single one of them made the decision to follow the line drawn on the map.  When I looked at the map it was obvious there was a street running nearly parallel to the one selected for the tourist migration and we broke ranks and went that way alone. Surely we were no pioneers, but we did enjoy a quiet, peaceful walk down a beautiful street.  Our photos of that neighborhood were tourist-free and with the lack of crowds we arrived before the mass of tourists.

One of the reasons I love working at iExplore is because we focus on providing privately guided tours.  We believe your best travel experience is not following packs of people on and off buses and listening to a tour guide from the back of the pack.  Instead we believe in a more personalized tour that can be fully customized to your interests.

Wherever you travel next I hope you will go "Lemming Free". Also, leave us a comment and let us know your best "Lemming Free" experience.  In case you needed any motivation check out this video of Lemmings hurtling themselves of cliffs. 

I recently purchased the AMOD AGL3080 GPS Data Logger, a GPS-based device designed to provide location information for digital photos. I originally purchased it for one of my other hobbies, flying.  I take the device with me whenever I go flying and use it to track my flightpath so I can create a visual track of my flights (see example).  This past week I finally used the device for its intended use, geo-tagging photographs.  

Prior to setting off for France I reached out to iKangaroo through Twitter for advice on places to check out during my brief visit.  He suggested a walk along the Canal St. Martin which was featured in Amilee and also walking through The Marais district including a pass by St. Paul's.  I decided to add a visit to Montmartre and Sacre Coeur to the itinerary and figured this long walk would be a great opportunity to test out the GPS Data Logger.

The device is small and easily strapped to the front of my daypack.  After turning it on I reset it so it would reacquire satellites on this side of the world.  As soon as the satellite was acquired it began tracking every step we took.  

Whenever I would stop to take a picture I simply clicked the waypoint button on the device and it would log the time and location of the photo.  After an enjoyable day of walking my wife and I returned to the hotel where I downloaded both the GPS logs and my digital photos.  The program provided with the hardware synced the photos and data logs and in a matter of minutes we were able to see a track of our walk and click on each spot where we took a photo.  

This is an invaluable tool for those jam packed trips where you see so many sites that you start to question which site was which, especially helpful for trips like Paris where I must have photographed 20 churches.  Now that my photos are geo-tagged I can simply layer them over a Google map and find the specific spot where the photo was taken.  Instead of manually identifying the location of each photo I can now easily publish my photos on a Panoramio or Flickr maps sharing with others the exact spot each photo was taken.

For any traveler that fancies themselves as part time photographer I cannot recommend this device enough.

If you're looking for a city with an amazing vibe, Mexico City is the place to be.  This city is packed with the sounds of salsa music, fascinating history, and delicious smells from street-side food vendors.  I recently visited here during the Dia de Los Muertos celebrations and discovered a rich, traditional culture still thriving upon the ancient Aztec city of Tenochtitlan.

Mexican life is busy and exciting in the city.  The markets stretch on for several streets where you are sure to find interesting and cheap bargains.  From Halloween costumes to jewelry, I was lost in a maze of authentic goods.  Food is sold practically everywhere.  Stalls are set up next to each other in the marketplace and if you're hankering for an ear of corn slathered in spicy chili mayo, you only have to look in front of you. 

The history of Mexico City goes back centuries.  I was suitably awed by the Catedral Metropolitana, which is set in the city's main plaza, the Zocalo, upon Aztec temple ruins.  This massive cathedral took almost two and a half centuries to complete and it was well worth the wait.  Its architectural style built over the years includes renaissance, baroque, and neo-classic.  Scaffolding, however, is prominent due to the cathedral sinking lower and lower.  All of Mexico City is sinking, due to being built upon a lake and these scaffoldings are necessary to keep older buildings in place.

The Zocalo is at the center of the Centro Historico and official government buildings surround the perimeter like silent guards.  It is also where Dia de Los Muertos celebrations take place, an annual celebration of loved ones who have passed on from this life and return for one night only, November 1, to reunite with family still living.  At this time of year, death is not to be taken sadly.  Skeletons are featured in a most artistic way and are made out of everything, such as paper mache to actual human remains.  A costumed character called Mictecacihuatl, or 'The Lady of the Dead' walks through the throngs of people, pausing for photos in her ostentatious black veils.  Everywhere there are respectful displays of skeletons with statues of the Virgin Mary praying.  Marigold petals, the official Day of the Dead flower, are strewn generously over these displays.  This square is an especially fantastic place to visit during nighttime festivities when concerts and fireworks entertain thousands of people, both alive and otherwise.

I managed to venture outside the city limits for a day exploring pyramids at Teotihuacan.  About a 50-minute drive north from Mexico City, this ancient place holds gorgeous ruins from an unknown civilization.  Even the Aztecs were impressed enough to adopt their building techniques.  You can climb the Pyramid of the Moon and Sun as long as you're careful not to fall down the steep steps.  But once at the top, the view of fellow ruins and surrounding mountains is a magical site.

Traveling to Mexico City really opened my eyes to what a rich and warm culture Mexicans enjoy.  I highly recommend this iExplore's Southern Mexico and Yucatan Peninsula tour to anyone looking for excitement, great food, amazing history, and a glimpse of what the real Mexico is all about.