Yosemite National Park

The natural scenery in Yosemite National Park in California has some of the most breath-taking landscapes I have ever seen with huge granite rock formations, coupled with many waterfalls created by the run off from the snow on the Sierra Nevada mountains

George - Original Traveller

George Kefallinos

Original Travel Expert

I have extensive travel experience throughout USA and South America.

My travels

Travel Things I Want To Do Before I Die

Trek across the stunning mountain ranges and glaciers in Patagonia, Southern Chile and Southern Argentina
Island hop in the Philippines
A foodie (and tequila) adventure across Mexico
Immerse myself in South America (exact spot TBD, but off the tourist trail) for at least 6 months to become more fluent Spanish

Best Moments

Spending a few days staying at a ramshackle shack in Thailand (literally a bamboo box on stilts) right on the edge of the beach and waking to the lapping of the waves against the shore
Being the only person staying on a remote island in Fiji and going night fishing with the owner of the guest house
Seeing and trekking across some of the most amazing granite rock formations and waterfalls in Yosemite National Park, USA
Bungee jumping in New Zealand - what a buzz!

Toughest Travel Moment

On arrival in South America, having flown in to Santiago in Chile, it became immediately apparent it was going to be a long journey when I realized not a lot of people spoke English and the only Spanish words I knew were, "Hola" and "Gracias".Since I was a backpacker on a shoestring at the time, I decided to wait until getting to Peru where the Spanish classes were a lot cheaper.The toughest part of the experience was staying with a local host family, me not speaking a lick of Spanish and them not speaking a lick of English!Trying to converse over dinner with phrasebook in hand was quite a challenge but also the best way to pick up the language.

Weirdest Travel Moment

On my first round the world backpacking trip, my friends and I decided to make a last minute change to the beginning of our trip and instead of going straight to Southeast Asia, we thought we'd touch down in India for a couple of weeks. We were flying over it so we thought we might as well. Since it wasn't originally planned, we hadn't done any research other than deciding we would go to Delhi for the Taj Mahal. On arrival we jumped in to a taxi and on route the driver kindly offered to take us to a tourist information point to get more info. However the 'tourist information' office was his cousin's travel agency, where we were invited in for tea, and half-an-hour later we had booked a ten-day tour of northern India, including the no-go-zone Kashmir region (very good travel sales consultant). The four of us had a brilliant time and none-the-wiser at the time, but only found out it was a no-go zone after watching the news a couple of weeks later and finding out that the area was under military rule. No wonder there was always a load of soldiers on the side of the road!

Explore my blog posts

Livin' La Pura Vida in Costa Rica

'Pura Vida' … or, 'pure life' in English, is the phrase heard everywhere in Costa Rica, but it's not just a motto to describe how to live your life. The Ticos and Ticas (male and female Costa Ricans) use the phrase in many situations. Yes, the underlying meaning is to try and live a 'pure'…