Hiring a Skiff to See the Giant Dragons of Komodo Island and Walking Through a Snake Cave in Waist High Bat Excrement in Search of Reticulated Pythons 

by Matthew Allison | May 7, 2013 | Asia

May 2013: This trip to the Komodo and Flores Islands, East Timor-A Few Days in One of the World’s Newest Countries, Timorleste | Venture The Planet, and Australia’s Northern Territories-The Australian Outback-Exploring Kakadu National Park in the Northern...

Lava Lakes, Bubbling Acid Pools and Nomadic Camel Caravans Carrying Salt Across the Lowest and Hottest Desert in Africa

by Matthew Allison | Dec 5, 2012 | Africa

Into the Inferno: The Danakil Desert December 2012 – Earth’s Most Alien Landscape Quite simply, the Danakil Desert is one of the most incredible places I have ever been. Tucked into the northeastern corner of Ethiopia, near the borders of Eritrea and Djibouti,...

Traveling Overnight Through the Somaliland Desert in a Bush Taxi and Being Detained in a Remote Village for a Day During an Election

by Matthew Allison | Nov 24, 2012 | Africa

A Visit to the De-Facto State of Somaliland November 2012: A Last-Minute Adventure into Somaliland As a backup plan after my failed attempt to visit Socotra Island in Yemen, I decided to travel to Somaliland from Djibouti-Swimming With Whale Sharks and the Bizarre...

Swimming With Whale Sharks and the Bizarre Desert World of Lake Assale

by Matthew Allison | Nov 23, 2012 | Africa

Djibouti: The Backup Plan That Became an Adventure November 2012: As part of a larger Middle East-Middle East | Venture The Planet and East Africa-East Africa | Venture The Planet trip, my friend Evan and I ended up in Djibouti for four days—a destination that,...

Kayaking and Hiking In Greenland’s Unknown Fjords and Mountains in the World’s Largest National Park-Northeast Greenland National Park

by Matthew Allison | Sep 22, 2012 | Europe, North America

September 2012: As part of a three-week journey, I embarked from Svalbard, traveling along the northeastern coast of Greenland before finishing in Iceland. The adventure was aboard an impressive icebreaker operated by G-Adventures, with a Norwegian crew. Alongside...

Exploring the High Arctic and Abandoned Soviet Era Mining Towns-Svalbard Arctic Islands

by Matthew Allison | Sep 13, 2012 | Europe

September 2012: As part of a nearly three-week icebreaker adventure through northeastern Greenland-Kayaking and Hiking In Greenland’s Unknown Fjords and Mountains in the World’s Largest National Park-Northeast Greenland National Park | Venture The Planet and...

Driving through the Surreal Volcanic Arctic Wilderness of Iceland Trying to Avoid the Crowds, Iceland

by Matthew Allison | Sep 3, 2012 | Europe

2012/2018: I visited iceland on two separate occasions for a total of 4 days. The first trip in 2012 was via an adventure boat from greenland. Iceland was my disembarking point and I took advantage of this to hire a car with a few friends from the boat and explore...

Being Brought Back to Life by a Family of Nomads in a Yurt After a Terrible Bout of Food Sickness and Exploring Abandoned Silk Road Caravanserais, Kyrgyzstan

by Matthew Allison | May 20, 2012 | Asia

Into the Mountains of Kyrgyzstan May 2012: As part of a 12-day journey through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, I traveled to Kyrgyzstan with one goal in mind—to venture into its rugged mountainous interior and meet the semi-nomadic Kyrgyz people. I wanted to experience...

I’ll Never Forget Waking Up Early and Walking Among the Ancient Silk Road Buildings of Bukhara and Samarkand during Sunrise, Uzbekistan

by Matthew Allison | May 3, 2012 | Asia

Uzbekistan: A Silk Road Dream Realized May 2012: Uzbekistan—an oil-rich desert nation—is a land of ancient trade routes, weathered caravanserais abandoned in the sands, and Silk Road-era cities adorned with some of the most awe-inspiring architecture in the world. For...

My Uncle’s Return to His Beloved Okinawa After 50 years and Our Self Driving Trip Around the Island

by Matthew Allison | Mar 25, 2012 | Asia

March 2012: I’ll be honest, I first learned about Okinawa from watching the movie Karate Kid II. The romantic scenery, ancient honor code system, enchanting flute music and powerful Karate scenes left me filled with wonder about Okinawa. There is also World War...