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My name is Kien and I’m an international photographer and filmmaker. Over the last 10 years, I’ve traveled to 70+ countries to find the most wonderful things to check off my bucket list. I hope to share that experience and what I’ve learned to help you do the same.
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Let's Be Adventurers
Bucket List: Lake Titicaca And Who Came Up With That Name?
You can try, but there really isn’t an elegant way of pronouncing the name of this lake that straddles Peru and Bolivia.
Iceland Bucket List: Dry Suit Snorkeling Silfra In The Winter
It was a little hard to wrap my head around it at first, but in the middle of Iceland is a fissure filled with some of the clearest water in the world.
Must Read Guide For The 2024 Holi Festival In Pushkar
The Holi Festival, also known as the Festival of Color, is celebrated throughout India, but the traditions and festivities vary from region to region.
Bucket List: Exploring The Lost City Of Petra
Many of us know of Petra from the scene in “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” where Indy rides through a narrow passageway surrounded by stone only to arrive at an ancient building carved right into the mountains.
The Ultimate Guide To The 2024 World Nomad Games In Kazakhstan
From my personal journal. “In 6 days, I’ll be leaving for Kyrgyzstan, a country I had never heard with a name I can barely pronounce.
Bucket List: Eating Fresh Mutton In Morocco
Usually when a bus takes a break stop, it’s either at some awful restaurant that pays it a commission or a cheap cafe serving sodas, chips, and maybe a sandwich.
Bear Grylls Survival Challenge Review: That Time Bear Grylls Gave Me A Condom
“Sh*t!” Instinctively, I look down at my watch to check for my heart rate. It’s pumping at 164 BPM. This is a bad idea.
Burning Man Is Going Virtual This Year: Everything You Need To Know
At a top of a short list of “festivals” that I highly recommend everyone put on their bucket list is none other than Burning Man, a week long celebration of art, music, and free living.
Travel Thoughts & Tips
Bucket List: Salina Turda Underground Amusement Park in Romania
Close your eyes and imagine a gaping volume of emptiness and darkness deep underground. Now imagine a string of neon lights descending in a geometric spiral down this vast space.
Why Quitting My Six Figure Job Was Easier Than Choosing An Ice Cream Flavor
Growing up, my family didn’t have much money, so we never took any holidays. What I knew of places like Paris, Cairo, New York, or Venice, I learned from hopping from one casino to the next whenever we drove from Los Angeles to Las Vegas.
Why I Hate To Travel Alone
I know it’s a strong statement, but before you make that face, know that this is a companion piece to my other post:
My Travel Photography Gear For 2024
At the end of 2020, I’ve made a complete switch to Fuji’s X-System to cut down size and weight on my travels.
10 Day Annapurna Circuit Trek Itinerary
If you are planning a trip to do the Annapurna Circuit, check out my full companion guide for Annapurna Circuit trek, with information on costs, applying for all the right permits, whether you need a guide, as well as all the teahouses on the trail.
The Perfect 7 Day Iceland South Coast Winter Ring Road Itinerary
NOTE: This was my carefully researched and curated ICELAND WINTER road trip itinerary for our 7 days THERE during the month of February.
How To Get Backcountry Backpacking Permits Yellowstone
The first thing you should know about Yellowstone is that the national park sits on a volcanic caldera. Essentially, the whole place is a giant super-volcano and it’s not one of the happy dormant ones.
My 10 Year Search For The Perfect Camera Brought Me Back To APS-C
In 2015, I fully committed to switching from my Nikon DSLR system to a Sony mirrorless system starting with the Sony A7II.
Top 16 Things To Do In Sayulita
Sayulita is a gem of a town in Mexico known for its surfing, but there’s plenty of other things to do if you are tired of sunbathing and want to burn off some of the calories from all those late night tacos.
Fuji X-T4 vs Fuji X-T3: Why The Older X-T3 Is Still Relevant In 2022
When Fujifilm announced the Fujifilm X-T4, the little grey cells in my head got together and put together a plan that eventually led to my switch from Sony to Fujifilm –
All The Times Things Fell Through And I Never Told Anyone
I’ve had some amazing experiences and projects that have taken me to some grand and odd corners of the world. Quite a few things happened by luck, like my private audience with the Dalai lama, or having my first travel video go viral.
How To Get To Lago di Sorapis In The Dolomites
If you’re looking for a very manageable sunrise hike, without the crowds, while staying in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Lago di Sorapis is an exceptional choice.
27 Essential Things To Pack For Traveling In 2022
I spend 6-10 months out of the year on the road, so while I have the option of buying things when I need them, I generally carry everything I need with me on my travels.
Hiking Cinque Torri and Via Ferrata To Rifugio Nuvolau
Cinque Torri is a gem of a location in the Dolomites and Cortina’s most famous climbing location. It was also the site one some of the fiercest fighting between the Austrians and Italians during World War I.
10 Things I Always Pack For Every Trip
With more than half of my year spent traveling and away from Los Angeles, I’ve learned to live with less. In fact, it’s always a shock when I come home and find that I own things I’ve completely forgot about and don’t need on a day to day basis.
What To Do If You’re Sick Abroad While Traveling
Travel to enough places, and you’ll eventually find yourself writhing in extreme pain from a bout of food poisoning, or some other illness.
33 Things To Pack For Iceland In The Winter 2022
Iceland, in all its isolation, has been one of the countries that has fared pretty well with the pandemic. For those who are looking for a winter adventure in 2022, Iceland should be high on your list.
Why I Love To Travel Alone
I’ll start off by saying that there are two sides to every coin. For all the reasons I love to travel alone, there are just as many reasons why I hate it.
Demystifying The Dolomites: How To Plan A Fall Trip
The first time I heard the word Dolomites in passing, I confused it with the Annamites in Vietnam and then promptly forgot about it for years.
Ultimate Guide To Sayulita 2024: Mexico’s Hidden Gem Surf Town
Update 2024: Sayulita has seen quite a bit of tourism uptick over the last few years. While the charm is still there, one notable thing I’ve found is that accommodations can be booked up much earlier than I expected in the past.