Lee Abbamonte
Try to become the youngest person to travel to every country in the world
The Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal
By Lee | July 2nd, 2009 | 
4 Comments » 
Nepal is in many ways a dream destination. It has everything you could ask for and for half the price that’d you’d expect to pay. The world’s only Hindu Kingdom is sort of a subcontinent in and of itself. Its terrain ranges from sea level and searing heat to the absolute top of the world in Mt. Everest and several other 8000 meter plus peaks where the temperatures can get colder than anywhere else on earth. You can do treks from one day to one month and see some of the most spectacular scenery in the world. The thing they say about Nepal is that when you arrive here you start planning your next trip here. I laughed when someone said that but being here only an hour makes you wish you had more time and gets you thinking on your next trip. This is truly Gods country and with only five days here I have had only a sniff of what Nepal has to offer and cannot wait to come back.
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Chaos on the Subcontinent
By Lee | June 28th, 2009 | 4 Comments » 
On the Indian subcontinent, nothing ever really runs smoothly if they run at all. Things that appear to be simple, simply cannot be explained and there is little retribution. I have had 7 flights (including connections) thus far on this trip within the subcontinent and to neighboring islands and every one of them have been late, cancelled or even more annoying-disallowed. This trend continued in the most annoying fashion over the past several hectic and chaotic days that brought me from Chennai to the Andaman Islands to Dhaka, Bangladesh to Sikkim to Kolkata.
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A Maldivian Honeymoon With Myself
By Lee | June 22nd, 2009 | 6 Comments » 
The Maldives are a place that was almost made up to me. I never really thought they really existed. I had seen so many brochures and pictures of this amazing place; a tropical paradise on the other side of the world that seemed so exclusive and alluring. Well it is. It is as gorgeous as the pictures and the brochures do not lie. It is a paradise in all senses of the word. The weather is perfect. The beaches are divine. The people are so nice and accommodating and the resorts are stunning. The only bad thing is the prices (which are astronomical) but at the same time, sometimes you have to pay to play.
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The Lakshadweep Islands
By Lee | June 20th, 2009 | 6 Comments » 
Lakshadweep, from Hindi meaning “100 islands” is actually a string of 36 palm covered islands, of which 10 are inhabited, 200 miles off the coast of Kerala in Southern India. Its inhabitants are mainly Sunni Muslim fisherman wherein fishing and coir production are the islands’ main sources of income. Life on the islands is very traditional and the Indian caste system divides the Islanders in ways that I have never seen in India.
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From the Azores to India
By Lee | June 17th, 2009 | 2 Comments » 
It was a long and tumultuous journey from the Azores to Kochi, India but I have finally made it and spent the day relaxing in Kochi or Cochin at the Le Meridien hotel which is very nice and very cheap. My crazy journey started in the Azores by my first flight to Lisbon being delayed, while I only had a 55 minute layover to begin with to London, I knew something bad would happen with my bags-and it did. They lost my bag which has all my clothes/toiletries type stuff. TAP Portugal may be the worst airline I’ve ever flown and I hope to never use them again if I have a choice. When I did finally get to London I was told I wouldn’t get my stuff back until the next day at the earliest because they wouldn’t send it out until the last flight of the day which landed at Heathrow at 11pm. Ugh!
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Ehh on the Azores
By Lee | June 13th, 2009 | 14 Comments » 
Visiting another island right after Madeira would be tough for any island to live up to, especially when it is another autonomous island of Portugal and has similar roots, origins and location. I have been comparing this to visiting Guadeloupe after visiting fabulous Martinique as it just can’t compare where on its own it would be fine. To the credit of the Azores, in particular Sao Miguel Island and Ponta Delgada where I am staying, there are 9 islands in the Azores Archipelago and I am only seeing one, albeit the biggest and supposedly the best, and it is a very pleasant place to be. It’s just not Madeira although I hate to compare like that.
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Marvelous Madeira
By Lee | June 12th, 2009 | 8 Comments » 
To say that Madeira is a nice place to be would be an insult. To say the weather here is great would be an insult. To say the people are nice here would be an insult. To say that the Madeira sweet wine is good would be an insult. Are you sensing a pattern here? Madeira is a spectacular island and I have had the most perfect weather imaginable and have met and dealt with the nicest people around. This is an island that all islands should strive to be like.
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Meandering around Madrid
By Lee | June 10th, 2009 | 9 Comments » 
Madrid to me is kind of the forgotten capital of Europe. You know it’s there but you always prefer to go elsewhere in Europe and especially in Spain. Barcelona, anywhere in Andalucia or anywhere along any of the coasts all seem more appealing. The are no beaches, the weather is so so and other than art, it’s not really known for anything of note except for its nightlife. The city isn’t as attractive as some of the other great capitals of Europe and it is certainly not as easy to navigate. But Madrid does have a positive vibe to it and the only way to get to know this massive city is to walk around and stop in the shops and eat in the cafes. I had three days in Madrid which was two more than the only other time I was here and I have to say I really enjoyed the city that loves jamon (ham) and especially its charming cafes and outdoor culture.
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Força Barça!!!
By Lee | June 7th, 2009 | 5 Comments » 
When I rank my favorite cities on Earth, Barcelona is always at the top of the list. What other city in the Northern Hemisphere combines the beauty, history, food, nightlife and beaches that Barca does? It is also the home of the newly crowned European Champions, FC Barcelona, who rocked Manchester United last week 2-0 and completed their league, cup and Champions League trebel sweep. We are staying for free in an amazing suite above storied Las Ramblas (see the view out our balcony window below) at the Le Meridien complements of Starwood Preferred Guest and it is a lot of fun. The vibe in this city is second to none and it’s a fast paced and exciting place to be and today it was the place where I watched Roger Federer finally win at Roland Garros and complete his career grand slam!
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Agrigento and the Valley of the Temples
By Lee | June 5th, 2009 | 3 Comments » 
The ferry from Lampedusa brings you to a place called Porto Empedocle which is the port town to Agrigento, a fairly large gorgeous city perched on a hill on Sicily’s Mediterranean Coast and the gateway to the Valley of the Temples. This is a very important UNESCO World Heritage Site and a very cool place to visit. Not to be outdone, Agrigento has a few reasons to stay a night as well with great restaurants, cafes and an old world charm that is unmistakably Sicilian.
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Lee Abbamonte is a global adventurer and worldwide travel expert based in New York City. Lee is attempting to become the youngest person to travel to every country in the world. He has currently been to over 215 countries and is only 30 years old. From this site you can relive his past travels, read his current trip blog and interract with him, while following his adventures in pursuit of the record. The record is visiting all 319 countries and unique destinations in the world per the Travelers Century Club list. The current record is 37 years, 9 months, 17 days and Lee hopes to beat it.- Africa
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- Steph on The Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal
That bungee picture looks amazing and scary! - Michael on The Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal
We're at opposite ends of the globe -- I'm in Turk ... [read more] - Lee on Liverpool Humiliates Real Madrid
Jajaja, Madrid, as we say in America is overrated. - Ana Gomariz on Liverpool Humiliates Real Madrid
I can't believe... eres muy muy anti-madridista!!! ... [read more] - Eddie on The Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal
I love Nepal...nice pics. Too bad its monsoon sea ... [read more] - Tom on The Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal
Hey Lee, nice meeting you yesterday at the jump. ... [read more] - Lee on Chaos on the Subcontinent
Haha, definitely Sheffield like pull, always have ... [read more] - Baumer on Chaos on the Subcontinent
I feel bad for the houses on the left and your She ... [read more] - Louis on Chaos on the Subcontinent
That's really funny and made me laugh because anyo ... [read more] - Mitchell on Chaos on the Subcontinent
LOL, I have been in India for months and am here n ... [read more]
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