Caracas, Venezuela

Hello from Venezuela! I am going to start off by telling everyone what "Venezuela" means. It means "Little Venice" in English, and was named so after a man named Alonso de Ojeda noted the similarities between the two countries.

The Venezuelan currency is the Bolivar. Locals will commonly call it the ‘Bolo’. You can buy Bolívares before coming to Venezuela, but it can take time for them to be ordered and you will get a better exchange rate in Venezuela. The US dollar is the most commonly accepted foreign currency in Venezuela.

Imagine opening your wallet and seeing THIS....

 
Venezuela is one of the safest South American countries. However, crime is not uncommon and some of the shops that I visited used security guards. Many windows have bars on them. There are a few common precautions, like not using expensive devices in the open, and keeping money hidden underneath clothing.

Well, I am going to rest up before taking off tomorrow. I hate being tired on trips. I have stated before, I hate to miss things. 

Bogota Colombia

Hi from Bogota! Today is going to be my fun trip, but I just HAD to start off and find out what the heck "bogota" means. It turns out, it used to be called Bacata, which is the Muisca term for "planted fields". The name was changed to Bogota in August of 2000.

I went to Laguna de Guatavita. It is a beautiful lake, and is where the legend of Eldorado came to life. The legend is that of a city of gold. Many young men spent their lives looking for it, yet it was never discovered. Many signs pointed to the lake. Many drained it and never found anything.

I next went to Museo Nacional. It is Bogota's oldest museum, and holds a strong history, as it was also a prison. Many of the art galleries were inside old prison cells, which I thought was very cool. Most of it was art, but they had old weapons and stuff there too.

I had a great time in Bogota. I have no idea where I am headed tomorrow. It will be exciting though. Good night.

San Ignatio, Belize

Greetings from Belize! It has such a weird name that I just had to look it up and see what it meant. It is the Spanish pronunciation for Wallace, the name of the pirate who founded Belize and led the first settlements.

I have decided that I will alternate trips. This one is going to be history about Belize, and the next trip I take I will have more fun in. For example: Did you know that Belize is the only country in Central America that uses English language as it's native language? Other languages commonly heard are Mayan and Spanish.

I went out to a museum for a little while just to get out a LITTLE while I was in Belize. One can't just stay in their hotel room all trip. The museum was cool. I ate a late lunch and then walked back to my hotel. By that time it was dark.

I am going to tucker in for the night. I had a good time in Belize, or "Wallace". I enjoyed learning a little about the country. Just for an extra learning:

National Flower: Black Orchid
National Tree: Mahogany tree 
National Bird: Keel Billed Toucan
National Animal: Baird’s Tapir

Granada, Nicaragua

Greeting from Nicaragua! Since my last trip was all history, I am going to try to make this one more  fun. Of course, some historical pieces will be tossed into the mix, but not as many.

I might as well start off telling you where I am staying. Instead of your average hotel, I have rented out a house-cave! Many of them are scattered around Nicaragua, and I rented one for a night. It is really cool to live in basically, a rock! They were hand carved by many hard workers and have housed over 3000 families since.

Tapas

A deep tradition of Granada is to serve someone a 'tapa' when they order a drink in local restaurants. Tapas are usually made out of cheese, sausage, or jam. If you get a hot tapa, it is usually a shell of meat with sauce and some vegetables. It is expected of you to take someone for a tapa if you wish to know them better.

It was very fun to visit Granada. I ended up trying a tapa, and they weren't half bad. I would have hoped for something more bread-like, though. One of my highlights HAD to be staying the stone-house too. I felt like I was a cave man. Better get some sleep before tomorrow.

Guatemala

I went to Guatemala today. I am going to make this trip an all-out history trip. I visited some local museums, and this is what I gathered about the history of Guatemala:

Guatemala was home to the ancient civilization of the Mayas. They were a powerful and advanced civilization that built many pyramids that I have previously visited.The Mayans were at the height of their reign from around 250 AD to 900 AD. When Europeans arrived in the early 14th century, the Mayan civilization was already declining. 
 
Pedro de Alvarado finished off the Mayan's with his trip in 1524, and the area became a Spanish colony. Due to natural disasters, Guatemala has had three different capital cities. In 1821, Guatemala gained independence from Spain and became part of the Mexican Empire. Later it became a member of the United Provinces of Central America for a short time.

The first capital city was Ciudad Vieja which was destroyed by an earthquake and floods. The second was Antigua, which was also destroyed by earthquakes. The third capital was founded in 1776, Guatemala City. It has yet to be disposed of. In 1821, Guatemala gained independence from Spain and became part of the Mexican Empire. Later it became a member of the United Provinces of Central America for a short time.

That was really interesting. I never would have guessed that Guatemala had 3 capital cities over it's time without research! I also had no idea that Mexico was full of so many accidents caused by Mother Nature! It's the last time I visit here. Despite the beautiful sightseeing, I just CAN'T put my life at risk like that.

Later,
Maddie

Mexico City

Hello from Mexico! I am going to Castillo de Chapultepec, an 18th century palace known for it's rich and beautiful gardens.

It housed the Mexican President for awhile, and then became a home for the famous Museo Nacional de Historial. It was so pretty there!

Next I visited the Pyramids. Wait a second! Did I say PYRAMIDS??? I thought those were in Egypt! Think again. Mexico too has it's own pyramids and special tours to walk through them. I took one, and it was really neat.

The Pyramids of Mexico were often used as places of sacrifice. Now, they stand as one of the most religious places in Mexico as some sermons are held inside them. There are some weird rules in the pyramids, like no climbing the structures and no flash photography.

Mexico has been fun. It was great to see some new sights and learn a little about the culture. Good night Mexico. I must rest for tomorrow's journey. I would hate to be tired and miss a bit of a trip.

Austin Texas

Hello from Austin, Texas! For my first activity, I am going rock-climbing! First, I needed to learn how to. I took some classes, and then I was ready to climb! It was super fun. Whenever I go to somewhere new, I try to learn how to do something new.

Next, I went to a museum to find the history of Austin. I found out that in the 17th century, a natural pool was discovered in the middle of Austin called Barton Springs.

 I went to see it, and it was super cool. People were swimming in it, so I decided I would put on my suit and hop in as well. The water has underground springs running through it, so the water was very warm.

All in all, I had a great time in Austin. I learned how to climb rocks, and I went to a naturally made pool. I should get to bed now, as I need rest for tomorrow's excursion.

Lexington, Kentucky

I am back on the road again! I stayed at home for 5 days, then re-packed my bags and headed for Lexington, Kentucky. I just arrived via airplane, and went to my hotel to hit the sack before a long day of touring the city tomorrow.

I wanted to taste some traditional Kentucky food, and by that I don't mean Fried Chicken. I went to the Kentucky Bluegrass Farmers Market. No out-of-state produce is allowed. It is all food grown by local farmers. I bought some broccoli and raspberries. It was very tasty snacking material.

To follow THIS up, I booked myself for a farm tour. It lasted about 3 hours, and it showed how the food was planted and how it grew. It was very interesting, and I learned some things for my garden back home, like how to make food produce more.

After this, it was almost dark. To honor Kentucky, I ate a quick meal at KFC and then got back to my hotel to tucker down for the night. I had a wonderful trip, but need to rest so that I can book my plane tickets for early.

Home At Last

After around 20 days of travel, I have returned home! It is good to sleep in my own comfortable bed again. I never thought I could make it around the world- but I did. AND I made it back before my show off sister did. HAHAHA!

After resting and getting a good nights' sleep, I decided to Facebook my sister to see where she was.
Our Messages:

Me: Hello Ashleigh
Ashleigh: Hi, are you home yet?
Me: Yes. Don't tell me you are home already!?!
Ashleigh: Nope. Not yet.
Me: Ok, see you later. Where are you?
Ashleigh: Canada. Bye.
Me: Bye.

WELL. She had caught up fast. Let me review where I went:
Denver, CO
Death Valley, CA
Las Vegas, CA
Sacramento, CA
San Francisco, CA
Vancouver, Canada
Juneau, AL
Anchorage
Anadyr, Russia
Yakutsk, Russia
Khabarovsk, Russia
Chengde, China
Zhangye, China
Lhasa, Tibet
Kathmandu, Nepal
Muscat, Governorate
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Jerusalem, Israel
Alexandria, Egypt
Tripoli, Libya
Algiers, Algeria
Casablanca, Morocco
Madrid, Spain
Paris, France
Loch Ness, Scotland
Reykjavik, Iceland
Nuuk, Greenland
Quebec, Canada

All totaling out to:
28 days traveling!

Quebec, Canada

Hello from Canada! I am almost around the world. I cannot believe it! The first thing I want to do in Quebec was visit the famous Shrine of Saint Anne de Beaupre. It is well known for the many miracles that have occurred, such as lame people being able to walk again. In memory of these miracles, people often leave crutches by the door.

I wanted to walk along the wall that protects Quebec. Quebec is the only fortified city in North America. Quebec is a really calm, quiet, old-fashioned town, and it was wonderful to take a walk along the wall as the sun slowly set in the distance.

As I was walking back to my hotel, I passed by the plains of Abraham. It was here that the 1759 battle between general Wolfe and Montcalm occurred.

Before I went to bed, I booked my plane tickets to go back to Boston. My trip is over, and I did it in less than 30 days. I only went 1000 miles or less a day, and I made it.

Nuuk, Greenland

Hello from Nuuk! I decided that whoever names these countries is obviously crazy. What's so green about Greenland? Really? And Iceland. ICELAND, for goodness sake. I saw a VOLCANO IN ICELAND!!!! Stupid country namer.

I decided to go diving in Greenland. I think the only green I am going to see is the algae growing on old shipwrecks that I will hopefully get to see. People have gone down and came up telling stories of seeing different shipwrecks. I didn't need to waste time and money on diving lessons, as I already knew how. I dove right in and guess what? I saw a shipwreck! It was super cool, like an oversized fishtank ship.

I decided I wanted to try something new, and I found it: Trophy Hunting. And no, it isn't a game where someone hides trophies and says find them. I mean shooting down reindeer and oxen. I went out with a teacher, and attempted to kill a reindeer. On the first shot, I didn't hit him, and it took me to the 5th shot to finally nail him. Killing him made me realize that I hated hunting. I took off super fast after that.

I decided to spend the rest of my time in the hotel. It is very hard to drill out the picture of a dying animal that YOU killed. I felt terrible for the rest of my stay, and went to bed sad. I had a horrible nightmare of the reindeer picking up a gun and shooting ME. How terrible.

Reykjavik, Iceland

Hello from Reykjavik, Iceland, the city that never sleeps! Reykjavik is a small, vibrant town bursting with color and culture and wonderful sounds, smells and sights to see. No matter what season, this town can handle it. In the summer, the sun seems to never set and people stay out late in pools. In the fall and winter, romance takes over.

One of the things I want to do in Iceland was take a volcano tour. These volcanoes have been silenced and no longer erupt, but are still open for touring. I took the tour, and it was really cool. At the souvenir shop, I got a piece of rock from the volcano. It was good memorabilia.

To finish up my trip, I went on a tour of the Northern Lights. The Northern Lights are lights that appear in the sky by natural phenomenon. It was beautiful, but it made me very sleepy. Time to head back.

My trip to Iceland was wonderful. I fell asleep right when I got to the hotel. I needed some good sleep, because I needed to get up early to board my plane to Nuuk, Greenland tomorrow. Later.

Loch Ness, Highlands, Scotland

Hello from Scotland! I came to Loch Ness for one specific reason- to see the infamous Loch Ness Monster! I am staying at a hotel right on the loch (a Scottish term for lake), and it should be fun. I took a tour on the loch today. I didn't see anything but regular old fish, but I did learn some things about Nessie, the supposed lake monster.

Nessie is a type of underwater dinosaur that survived, from what I gathered. She resembles a plesiosaur, and rarely appears. She has been described differently by each person, but the most common description is a long neck, a huge body, and the face of a horse. Most say she stays in the water, but there have been a few incidents out of water too.
Enough on Nessie. Next, I went to the Scottish Highland Art studio and gallery. Some of the paintings were terrible, but others! They were beautiful! There was a lot of landscape paintings. I came in and watched one of the artists working on a portrait. It was great.

To finish up my stay in Scotland, I visited Urquhart Castle. The largest in Scotland, an abandoned guard tower looks out on Loch Ness, giving a wonderful view for passersby like myself. I then headed back to my hotel. What a wonderful time.

Paris France

Bonjour! I am in Paris, France, and I know exactly what I want to do. Who can go to Paris and NOT visit the Eiffel Tower???!? 200,000,000 have visited it since it's construction in 1889, and it has become the most visited monument in the world.

Next, I went to Notre Dame Cathedral. I took a tour of the building and I got shown the highest tower, with Quasimodo quality. This was the cathedral that was famous in Walt Disney's movie The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and also a main part of Victor Hugo's book of the same name. The construction was started in the 12th century and completed in the 14th. YIKES!!!

Finally, I went to visit Pere Lechaise. Most cemeteries in France have famous people buried in them, but this one tops them all. The French playwright Moliere, Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf, and Richard Wright are all buried here. But they are just minor names compared to their tombstone neighbor. James Morrison, the lead singer of the Doors, is buried here as well! I visited his grave, and then went to my hotel.

France was pretty amazing. I don't know where to go from here though. I am thinking of London, England. Better rest up. But first..... Let's check up on my sister dearest.

My email to Ashleigh:

Hello sis. Just wanted to let you know that today I visited JIM MORRISON'S grave. Beat that. Now I can finally say that I met someone famous- just not necessarily alive. Email me back and tell me about your trip.

Are Voir, 

 Maddie

What Ashleigh wrote back:

Hello Maddie. My trip is going more wonderful than yours, just to let you know. I have not been to any cemeteries, and still ran into a celebrity. An alive one. And one of your favorite singers when you were younger too. I ran into Taylor Swift as I left Tennessee! I forgot to tell you in my last email. Sorry!

Your sis, the grand explorer.

Well, what nerve! I'd show her... 

Madrid, Spain

Ola! I am in Madrid Spain, and thankfully, I don't have to talk in Spanish. Instead of talking, whatever the Spanish person says, I nod along and smile. It works pretty well. No one suspects that I don't know Spanish at all! (Meanwhile.....)
Person #1- "I don't think that person knows Spanish at all!"
Person #2- "I think your right, she just nods her head and smiles!"
Person #3- "Maybe she just can't talk!"
Ok, so maybe I am a tiny bit wrong.

Now, on to sightseeing! Since Casablanca had rotten shopping, I decided to make up for it by going to the well known tourist trap known as El Rastro. El Rastro is a large market that sells everything from clothing to kitchen appliances. I decided to buy a colorful Mexican rug that was just small enough to be tucked into my luggage.

The Inquisition

I decided to do some research on the history of Madrid. One of the most important tid-bits I found was on the Inquisition. The Inquisition was a trial for people against the church, and it was strongest in Spain. This happened under the reign of Phillip II.

Finally, I went to the Reina Sofia art museum. It is a very popular museum, featuring many works by Miro and Dali, and the famous Guernica by Picasso. After touring the art museum to my heart's delight, I ate a quick dinner at the cafe and got to my hotel for a good night's sleep.

Casablanca, Morocco

Hello from Morocco! The first thing I want to do is see the place with the tallest minaret in the world. I had read about it online and couldn't wait to see it. It is on top of the King Hassan 2 Mosque, a worshiping place built for the king. It can fit a whopping 25000 worshipers, minimum. It is the third largest Mosque in the world, and the only one that non-Muslims can enter and visit.
While I was in the area, I took a walk from the Mosque to The Corniche, a short walk to the west. The Corniche was once a wonderful hotel and resort place. Now, it houses many western food chains and worn down nightclubs, while the beautiful, tourist-packed hotels line the Boulevard de l'Ocean Atlantique.

Guess what I found out. Casablanca is the WORST place to shop in all of Morocco. I found that out the hard way, by trying to souvenir-shop at night before bed. It was terrible! There were barely any shops at all. I went online when I got back to my hotel, and discovered that Casablanca WAS INDEED rated worst place to shop. What a day. If there is one thing I hate, it's bad shopping.

Time to hit the sack. I am traveling to Madrid, Spain tomorrow, and I need to read up on my Spanish before bed. It's the hardest language for me to speak because I never learned it, unless you count Dora the Explorer when I was 3. Come on vaminos..... Oh forget it.

Algiers, Algeria

Hello from beautiful Algiers! I had trouble looking for things to do here, but I found something that I DEFINITELY want to do. I want to visit Notre Dome d'Afrique, or Basilica of Our Lady of Africa. It is an ancient and beautiful Roman-Catholic church, and was wonderful. It was a memorable visit.

Next, I went to see the War Monument. It is a monument dedicated the 130 years Algeria fought against France for freedom. I also visited the small museum near it, dedicated to the same thing. I learned tiny bits of information as I went along. When I left, I learned a valuable lesson about the streets of Algiers: Always take a taxi, and do it late or early, not in the noontime, or you will get caught up in traffic.
I decided that before bed, I would look up some facts about Algeria. Did you know that 90% of Algeria is the Sahara desert, and that Algiers is the main city? I also found out that 98% of Algeria's exports were oil and natural gas.

I better get to bed, I have a long trip to Casablanca, Morocco tomorrow. I don't want to miss out on one second of every trip I take, so I had better be well rested. It's getting kind of late anyway, and my bed looks inviting......ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..

Tripoli Libya

Hello Tripoli! I decided I would first and foremost visit the Arch of Marcus Aurelius, an arch built in 165AD by the ruling emperor at that time, in honor of his brother, Lucius Verus. Lucius had overcome the Parthian Empire and had taken over their city, Ctesiphon. It was a very pretty sight.

Next, I decided I would go to the Jamahiriya museum. It is a popular art museum with a lot of cultural statues, stone carvings, and paintings. "Jamahiriya" means "the masses" in Arabic, and let me tell you, that beautiful museum does draw masses! There was only one downside: Arabic signs with no American translator!

When I got back to my hotel, I looked Tripoli up online and found some horrifying facts, such as: In 1986, Libya was bombed by the US for suspected terrorism and part of the city got destroyed! Also, I found out it's estimated number of citizens as of 2012- 1775000!!! The oil boom of the 1950's brought population to the sea town, and brought in a lot of money too.
Tripoli was a really cool place to be. Out of everywhere I have been, I still think Egypt is my favorite though. I had better get to sleep now, for I do not want to be tired when I arrive in Algiers, Algeria, tomorrow.

Alexandria Egypt

Hello Egypt! I have found many interesting places to visit, including my first stop: Pompey's Pillar.  Often mistaken for a memorial to someone, this is actually a remaining piece from an old worshipping temple, taken down by the Christians when Paganism was driven out. Only one pillar was left standing, and the catacombs underneath were left in decent shape. Once I found out that they gave tours, I was all over it.

I decided I would go to a museum and do some research on Alexandria. Not only did the museum house over 1000 beautiful Egyptian artifacts, it gave me just the things I wanted to know. Alexandria was founded in 331 B.C. by Alexander the Great (hence the name). It's most famous attraction, Lighthouse of Pharos, was one of the original 7 wonders of the world.

The Alexandria Library was an old, historic library that stood since the third century B.C. until 2002. It was torn down by the government and replaced with a more modern library, and all the valuable historic pieces were moved into a secure area. The new library includes conference rooms, a planetarium, and a theater, so it was a fair trade.

I had a great time in Egypt. There was so much more to do than some of the other places I have been on my travels. Next I head to Tripoli, Libya, so I had better get some sleep.

Jerusalem, Israel

Hello Jerusalem! I have been doing a lot of history work on this town, since it appears in the Bible AND in the Great Crusades. Did you know that the Crusades were between the Mongols and the crusaders (trying to take Jerusalem) and the Mamluks (Ruled the city from 1250-1517)? Also, did you know that Jerusalem suffered from the black plague? I also found out that it still suffers from earthquakes.

Jerusalem has a wonderful biblical history. It is the town where Jesus works many of his miracles, and where he gets baptized in the Jordan River. I plan on making a stop there later today. The Jordan was beautiful! Did you know that it flows right into the Black Sea? I didn't.

I decided I would pay a visit to the Dome of Rock, one of the greatest Muslim monuments ever. It is a beautiful white and blue building with a gold covered dome. It is very pretty.

Now I am going back to my hotel. I had a great time in Israel. Now it is time for me to catch some sleep so I can fly to the land of sand tomorrow- Egypt.