Category: travel

Rick Steves – Travel Badass

On By Rick McIn books, travel, travel IndiaLeave a comment

On the Hippie Trail: Istanbul to Kathmandu and the Making of a Travel Writer (2025) is selections from 23-year-old Rick’s 1978 journal on the “Hippie Trail“.

It was no “Magic Bus” experience. They did this trip the hard way — independently.

They didn’t have the first Lonely Planet guide, rather only the first BIT  (“Bible of the East”), a free half a dozen or so duplicated foolscap sheets stapled together with no cover. 

Rick’s posted travel photos of himself and best pal Gene reflecting on how the journey through Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and Nepal changed his life.

My own travels in Europe 1976 in an orange Volkswagen van were a piece of cake compared with the Hippie Trail. I had no interest — though a High School friend, Ian Baird, did end up in Kathmandu drinking Chai and eating pie on Freak Street. He got quite sick as did almost all the westerners who tried that adventure.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Arrived Bali … 🤔

On By Rick McIn travel, videoLeave a comment

I’m not really the Yoga / Beach Bum / Party Harder kind of tourist — but how could I avoid Bali forever? 😀

… are you concerned for the eldest backpacker on the beach?

NO WORRIES. I had a Spa give me a Bali makeover. Now that I have a man bun, I fit in better with the kids.

For advice on this super popular island, I relied most on The Broke Backpacker, Will Hatton, and his team — many of whom live in Bali.

I use Broke Backpacker quite a bit deciding on hostels around the world.

Will opened Tribal Hostel in Canguu and recommends it as a good starting point for first time visitors. He promotes it as a digital nomad coworking environment.

Tribal Hostel

Pretty much everyone in the public areas here is on a laptop. Seemingly doing something important.

I popped open my MacBook Air and edited my Bromo Volcano VIDEO.

I believe this makes me officially a legit YouTube creator. 😀 Working out of Bali is a requirement, I believe.

August is highest season in Bali — but there still seems to be next day accommodation everywhere.

The restaurant at Tribal is quite good. If consumed by some project you are working on online — you can chow down while keeping at it. 😀

From the hostel I walk parts of the 10 km-long beach a couple of times a day.

Surf lessons are popular here. Beginners tend to get drowned quickly. NOT ME, of course. I stay dry and use A.I. to create a totally believable image of me mastering the surf.

One slight problem is the number of dogs running free.

There’s no shortage of lean beach bodies. Drop-in at the fitness club across the street is CAD $50!

Everyone is out on the beach for sunset. Many enjoying dinner and drinks.

A tourist trap, for sure. But that didn’t bother me. Traffic and second hand smoke are the biggest hassles.

Though Indonesia is mostly Muslim, Balinese Hinduism is practised by more than 80% of the population on this island.

Looking to join me?

Walk down the beach until you see the Statue Gajah Mina (fish body and elephant head) ➙ turn inland a few blocks and you’ll find the hostel. 😀

Visiting Malang, Indonesia

On By Rick McIn travelLeave a comment

Arriving in Surabaya, I was quite disappointed with that huge city. Very tourist unfriendly. Transportation nearly impossible around town due to traffic unless you download one of the Indonesian ride sharing apps.

I took the bus to Malang as it’s the jumping off point for Bromo Volcano tours.

Bromo was fantastic. It made Malang a very worthwhile stop.

On arrival at the Malang bus station, there were no taxis. No bus. No way to get to my hostel. Weird.

It seems very few use taxis here. Everyone does ride-sharing. I finally downloaded the local Grab app and got logged in.

Finally one of the staff found a guy who was happy to overcharge me for a gypsy cab ride.

BEST thing about my hostel was proximity to Rainbow Village and the train station.

Three days in Malang, I finally started getting skilled in crossing impossibly dangerous looking busy streets. Just go. The drivers will probably miss you. 😀

According to INRIX, Malang is one of the most congested cities in the world.

I found some nice parks. They love birds. Tolerate cats. But I only saw 1 dog over 3 days.

Beautiful tropical trees.

Of course the mosques are impressive.

I visited the Bird and Animal market. Rabbits for food or pets!

I stopped by one of the universities. Looked great.

I learned that some of the small side streets where people live are quiet and clean. At night kids run free and everybody sits outside to chat.

I learned that you get up before the traffic IF you want to exercise. This photo was taken at 6am.

Foodwise … I’m still eating mostly at McDonalds or western style malls. They have menus in English. And I trust more the hygiene.

Also, HOW can you beat the McSpecial of CAD $2.31 for fried chicken with a side of spaghetti. AND coffee.

I departed via an inexpensive Executive train car. Excellent!

I’ll take train over bus from now on.

The Malang train station (built 2022) had 2 information kiosks and were super helpful with tourists. (Tickets are paid only by cash, not cards.)

Rainbow & Blue Villages, Malang, Indonesia

On By Rick McIn Art and beauty, travel1 Comment

Jodipan Colorful Village is often called by tourists the Rainbow Village.

This was a slum area in the city of Malang, Indonesia, ready to be demolished. All residents relocated.

However, a group of students from a university in Malang came up with the idea to give the area a fresh and remarkable splash of paint in the hope of attracting the attention of tourists.

In June 2016, the Air Force troops painted the entire village (named Jodipan), and directly after it became a major tourist attraction.

Click PLAY or get a glimpse on YouTube.

It’s not easy to take a bad photo here. 😀

Look up. Way up.

This success inspired another Indonesian Rainbow Village ➙ Kampung Pelangi, Semarang.

Arema Blue Village was originally another slum right next door.

This area was painted April 2018.

It reminded me somewhat of the traditional blue city Chefchaouen in Morocco.

The Blue Village is not nearly as tourist ready. It’s mostly a neighbourhood painted blue in honour of the local football team.

Both are close to the train station and my hostel.

Arrived Surabaya, Indonesia

On By Rick McIn hiking, travel1 Comment

My first visit to the world’s fourth-most-populous country.

It would take a LONG time to explore over 17,000 islands!

I flew into Surabaya, the 2nd largest city, for the great airfare.

Location-wise it was ideal for me jumping off to the Bromo volcano climb.

That said, Surabaya has little to offer for the tourist. It’s mostly a loud, polluted sprawl. Transportation is difficult.

I’ll leave for Malang as quickly as possible.

Farewell Parksville, Vancouver Island

On By Rick McIn McCharles family, photos, travel, video4 Comments

I’m moving back to Calgary … or — more accurately — going on the road full-time. In fact, I’m en route to Indonesia today.

Rob & Yvonne sold the house in Parksville where my parents lived their last years.

It was a perfect retirement home for them.

I’d been spending a lot more time in Parksville over recent years helping out my folks.

But Dad died in March.

Mom died in May.

Dad originally wanted to move to the left coast for fishing.

Mom for the weather, gardening, and … bocce ball.

A few years after my parents, my brother Rob and his wife Yvonne decided to move to Parksville, as well. They bought a 2nd house. AND got married in that Parksville home.

Randy and Val made long trips from Calgary, especially enjoying the annual Sandcastle Building competition and LIVE music at the Park.

I was born and raised in Calgary, the high prairie. Ocean and rain forest were a big attraction for me.

Most mornings, I’d get up for dawn and take coffee down to Rathtrevor Beach.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Evenings, I’d often walk down to Parksville Beach at dusk.

Mom played a lot of tiles. And then cards, as her vision worsened over the years.

The most popular addition to town was Charlie during COVID.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Climate is mild in Parksville, year round. You can walk and cycle every day of the year.

Surprisingly, Dad wanted to get an electric trike in 2019. That was fun. Rob and Yvonne later got 2 electric motorcycles.

We did get a few days of snow each year.

I’ll definitely miss Parksville, B.C.

A great lifestyle.

The McCharles family first came here in the 1960s on family summer vacation. We’d park the homemade camper right on the beach.

I’d taken morning coffee at Rathtrevor beach over 2,000 days over the years. This was my last. Quite overcast after the first hard rain in weeks.

The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza

On By Rick McIn books, travelLeave a comment

Jo Piazza is a novelist, journalist, and podcaster.

I read The Sicilian Inheritance (2024) mainly because I‘ve never been to Sicily. An unforgivable oversight on my part.

It kept me going. Both the modern day story of Sara, there for the first time. AND the story of her great-grandmother Serafina in the bad, old days when women were treated like chattel ➙ kept me going.

I’d almost place this book in the Romance genre.

Sara Marsala barely knows who she is anymore after the failure of her business and marriage.

On top of that, her beloved great-aunt Rosie passes away, leaving Sara bereft with grief.

But Aunt Rosie’s death also opens an escape from her life and a window into the past by way of a plane ticket to Sicily, a deed to a possibly valuable plot of land, and a bombshell family secret.

Rosie believes Sara’s great-grandmother Serafina, the family matriarch who was left behind while her husband worked in America, didn’t die of illness as family lore has it . . . she was murdered.

Thus begins a twist-filled adventure that takes Sara all over the picturesque Italian countryside as she races to solve a mystery and learn the story of Serafina—a feisty and headstrong young woman in the early 1900s thrust into motherhood in her teens, who fought for a better life not just for herself but for all the women of her small village. Unsurprisingly the more she challenges the status quo, the more she finds herself in danger.

Piazza wrote this fictional novel inspired by the real life murder of her great, great grandmother, Lorenza Marsala, more than a 100 years ago. 

Here’s what I’m CARRYING to Indonesia

On By Rick McIn gymnastics, hiking, travelLeave a comment

Arriving SURABAYA Aug. 19, 2025.

I got a great price on Cathay Pacific out of Vancouver ➙ CAD $512.77 (USD $370.97) including seat selection.

En route to the World Gymnastics Championships in Jakarta in October.

For Indonesia, and beyond — I’m taking less hiking gear. More electronics. 😀

That’s what I’ll be carrying on my back, plus food & liquids.

Two pairs of shoes: city and hiking.

Here’s the full list. Click and scroll if on a computer. Some phones and iPads won’t show embedded PDFs.

Apologies for the format and errors. It’s from my list on PackWizard.com. A great service — but very limited in how you can export your data.

Australia IndonesiaDownload

Calgary Bound

On By Rick McIn government, McCharles family, travel, videoLeave a comment

My parents lived in Parksville on Vancouver Island for the past 17 years.

I’ve spent more and more time with them there over recent years.

Sadly, Dad died in March at age-94.

Mom died suddenly and unexpectedly in May at age-96. That was traumatizing.

My brother Rob and his wife owned my parents home. It’s up for sale as I post.

We’ve packed up 243 Hickey Ave. I purged as many of my own possessions as I could as part of my philosophy of Voluntary Simplicity.

Drove the rest of the junk to Calgary on July 12, 2025.

Woke at 4am. Ferry at 6:15am. Passed North Vancouver at 8:20am. Arrived at my brother Randy’s place in Calgary 9:30pm. No delays en route.

About C$270 in fuel. Nearly that much in coffee, as well. 😀

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Weirdly, as executor, my name is currently listed as owner of Dad’s truck. (I’ve not owned a motor vehicle for much of the past 25 years.)

I still consider Calgary to be home.

Of course I’m totally disappointed with recent Provincial conservative governments. Current premier Danielle Smith is too Trump-lite for me. For example, as I post, the rate of measles in Alberta is even worse than in Texas. Smith encourages ReTrumplican misinformation on all kinds of topics.

On the other hand, born and raised in Calgary, I consider anyone NOT born in Calgary to be some kind of vermin. 😀

Unwanted immigrants.

If Trump was in charge of the 51st state, he’d spend a lot of taxpayer money to have Canadians attacking other Canadians. In Canada.

We could round up the invaders and drop them off the other side of the Alberta border. 😀