Roughly a month before we were due to return to Vancouver, we sent out a request to have any questions you might have e-mailed to us.  We’d then do our best to answer these questions and post our responses online… We’d hoped to do this within a week of returning, but here we are, over two months after returning!  Sorry folks, things have been hectic!

Due to the volume of questions received, we’ve split our responses up thematically.  Also, rather than create a huge blog entry, we’ve saved the questions/responses as PDF files, so once you click on the link you might have to click “open” in order to see the document.

So, without further delay, here are your questions answered:

·        Logistics and Realities of On-The-Road Travel (6)

o    Questions from Tony, Dave, Mariëtte, Angela, and Sarah

·        Top Moments, Top Memories (24)

o    Questions from Matt, Darrell, Paul, Angela, Arif, Isabelle, Catherine, Steven, Dave, Belinda, Bev, Mariëtte, Sarah, Darren, and Cheryl

·        Cultural Comparisons and Discoveries about Places (2)

o    Questions from Wilna, Paula, and Steven

·        Traveling With or Without Kids (4)

o    Questions from Darrell, Karen, and Belinda

·        Perspectives on Poverty (3)

o    Questions from Angela, Catherine, and Wilna

·        Next Time: Another Travelling Adventure (11)

o    Questions from Karen, Mariëtte, Catherine, Paul & Isabelle, Sarah, and Steven

·        Ways We’ve Been Changed (10)

o    Questions from Catherine, Steven, Angela, Wilna, Helene, Matt, Doug, and Erin

·        Fun, Random, Fits-No-Box Questions (7)

o    Questions from Darren, Maureen, Steven, Helene, Paula, and Alison

…

P.S. In case you’re wondering, lots of people asked questions, but there were no duplicate names; so if you see your name listed above, it’s your question we’ve answered!

P.P.S. Remember to check out the “Best of 2009” photo gallery as well!

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You also get a say!  Which image(s) did you love?  Which photos “spoke” to you?  Here is the USER-DEFINED “Best of 2009″ Gallery:

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Our “Why We Love it in Vancouver” photo gallery (high-res photos):

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Video: A World Away from Mumbai!

Amsterdam!  We have basically passed the finish line by this point. 

When we first booked the plane tickets for our trip (Vancouver - Johannesburg // Mumbai - Vancouver), we decided to spend a few days in Amsterdam to decompress, to soak in what we could soak in, and to get used to a Western-orientated society. 

The flight to Amsterdam was a measley 10 hours.  Normally, perhaps, this would seem like a long haul, but given that the average duration of any train or bus we’d taken over the last few months was around 16 hours, this flight seemed like a walk in the park. 

It was cold in Amsterdam.  As you can see from the pictures, the canals were partially frozen (though they were thawing by the time we arrived) and it even snowed!  And to think, just a few hours earlier we were battling 90% humidity in 35 degree heat!  It was an adjustment, but one we were ready, eager, and willing to make.

We were fairly familiar with Amsterdam, as we’d been several times before.  This was a visit to stroll around, sip warm hot chocolate, and chat about memories from 2009 and hopes for 2010.  Before we knew it (though we were counting down the hours and minutes), it was time to head back to the airport, board another 10 hour flight, and go home.  HOME.

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P.S.  We’d like to share our thoughts and reflections of our trip with you, but instead of doing so here, we’re going to wait and publish our replies to the various questions you have submitted to us.  Stay tuned for this in a week or two…