DREAM ADVENTURE 24: Compete in the WSOP Texas Hold'Em Tournmant held in Vegas.
If I ever have an extra 10k around, this is what I'd spend it in.
4.2% of the total entry pool will be withheld for entry fees, and 1.8% of the total entry pool will be withheld for tournament staff.
Last year's winner brought home over 8 million bucks.
Structure of the game: http://www.wsop.com/tournaments/structure.asp?grid=607&tid=7283
The Main Event of the WSOP has been the $10,000 buy-in no-limit Texas Hold 'Em (TXHE) tournament since 1972. (In 1971, the buy-in was $5,000.) Winners of the event not only get the largest prize of the tournament and a gold bracelet, but additionally their picture is placed in the Gallery of Champions at Binion's. The winner of the Main Event has traditionally been given the unofficial title of World Champion.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Khao Sok National Park
DREAM ADVENTURE 23: Visit Khao Sok National Park in Thailand
Khao Sok national park (Thai: เขาสก) is located in Surat Thani province in Thailand. The park comprises the largest area of virgin forest in Southern Thailand and is a remnant of rainforest which is older and more diverse than the Amazon Rainforest. The wild mammals include, Malayan Tapir, Asian Elephant, Tiger, Sambar Deer, Bear, Guar, Banteng, Serow, Wild Boar, Pig Tailed Macaque, Langur, White handed Gibbon, Squirrel, Muntjak and Mouse Deer.It is perhaps most famous for the Bua Phut (Rafflesia kerrii) flower which grows within the park. In addition to its exotic flora, Khao Sok is inhabited by a wide variety of animals, including gibbons and barking deer.
"Khao Sok is connected to two other national parks, Kaeng Krung and Phang-Nga, as well as the Khlong Saen and Khlong Nakha wildlife sanctuaries. Together, these reserves form the largest contiguous nature preserve – around 4000 sq km – on the Thai peninsula. A major watershed for the south, the park is filled with lianas, bamboo, ferns and rattan, including the wǎi tào phráw (giant rattan) with a stem more than 10cm in diameter. A floral rarity in the park is the Rafflesia kerrii Meijer, known to the Thais as bua phút (wild lotus), one of the largest flowers in the world. Found only in Khao Sok and an adjacent wildlife sanctuary (different varieties of the same species are present in Malaysia and Indonesia), mature specimens can reach 80cm in diameter. The flower has no roots or leaves of its own; instead it lives parasitically inside the roots of the liana, a jungle vine. From October to December buds burst forth from the liana root and swell to football size. When the bud blooms in January and February it emits a potent stench resembling rotten meat, which attracts pollinating insects." -LonelyPlanet.com
All the pictures just like stunning. If you want more information, check the park's offical website: http://www.khaosok.com/
There is lots of stuff to do during a short stay here: kayaking, jungle trekking, mountain climbing, rock climbing, caving, birdwatching, swimming and hiking. And zomg! Wild elephants!!!
I've read that the best times to go visit are between December and April but it's a nice spot regardless year round. Just at certain times you're going to have to put up with a lot of rain.
Upon arrival, you'd have to set yourself up with a floating bamboo hut on Cheow Lan Lake.
One interesting excursion was the Nam Thalu cave. You get there by kayak and you have a short walk til you reach the cave and I've read that the cave has absolutely amazing stalactites, stalagmites and limestone formations and an amazing colony of bats and a stream that runs through the middle of it.
Information about their bungalows: http://www.khaosok.net/
Khao Sok national park (Thai: เขาสก) is located in Surat Thani province in Thailand. The park comprises the largest area of virgin forest in Southern Thailand and is a remnant of rainforest which is older and more diverse than the Amazon Rainforest. The wild mammals include, Malayan Tapir, Asian Elephant, Tiger, Sambar Deer, Bear, Guar, Banteng, Serow, Wild Boar, Pig Tailed Macaque, Langur, White handed Gibbon, Squirrel, Muntjak and Mouse Deer.It is perhaps most famous for the Bua Phut (Rafflesia kerrii) flower which grows within the park. In addition to its exotic flora, Khao Sok is inhabited by a wide variety of animals, including gibbons and barking deer.
"Khao Sok is connected to two other national parks, Kaeng Krung and Phang-Nga, as well as the Khlong Saen and Khlong Nakha wildlife sanctuaries. Together, these reserves form the largest contiguous nature preserve – around 4000 sq km – on the Thai peninsula. A major watershed for the south, the park is filled with lianas, bamboo, ferns and rattan, including the wǎi tào phráw (giant rattan) with a stem more than 10cm in diameter. A floral rarity in the park is the Rafflesia kerrii Meijer, known to the Thais as bua phút (wild lotus), one of the largest flowers in the world. Found only in Khao Sok and an adjacent wildlife sanctuary (different varieties of the same species are present in Malaysia and Indonesia), mature specimens can reach 80cm in diameter. The flower has no roots or leaves of its own; instead it lives parasitically inside the roots of the liana, a jungle vine. From October to December buds burst forth from the liana root and swell to football size. When the bud blooms in January and February it emits a potent stench resembling rotten meat, which attracts pollinating insects." -LonelyPlanet.com
All the pictures just like stunning. If you want more information, check the park's offical website: http://www.khaosok.com/
There is lots of stuff to do during a short stay here: kayaking, jungle trekking, mountain climbing, rock climbing, caving, birdwatching, swimming and hiking. And zomg! Wild elephants!!!
I've read that the best times to go visit are between December and April but it's a nice spot regardless year round. Just at certain times you're going to have to put up with a lot of rain.
Upon arrival, you'd have to set yourself up with a floating bamboo hut on Cheow Lan Lake.
One interesting excursion was the Nam Thalu cave. You get there by kayak and you have a short walk til you reach the cave and I've read that the cave has absolutely amazing stalactites, stalagmites and limestone formations and an amazing colony of bats and a stream that runs through the middle of it.
Information about their bungalows: http://www.khaosok.net/
Friday, August 20, 2010
Smack Nightclub
DREAM ADVENTURE NUMBER 22: VISIT SMACK NIGHTCLUB
If I ever go to the United Kingdom, I will definitely have some fun at this place. I do not have the words the explain how awesome epic this nightclub is.
other video
If I ever go to the United Kingdom, I will definitely have some fun at this place. I do not have the words the explain how awesome epic this nightclub is.
other video
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Camel Journey
picking up from my previous Timbuktu dream adventure leads us to...
DREAM ADVENTURE NUMBER 21: Timbuktu to Taoudenni via the Salt Road on camels
WHEN: November to February
HOW LONG: about 2 weeks, some 500 miles
"Join a Touareg caravan leaving from Timbuktu for a journey of a lifetime. There is austere beauty in the desert, and little sound other than the soft shoe shuffle of camels moving over hard sand and sharp stones. Sleeping under the stars (could you even imagine the view?!) in the immense silence of the desert is a profound experience. Days begin before sun up, and the caravan travels doggedly until darkness falls. Strong, sweet mint tea is frequently brewed and beings to taste like nectar from the gods. At night, rice and dried meat is cooked and eaten, with a sprinkling of sand thrown in. Reaching the halfway point of Arouane, a tiny settlement en route, feels like a great achievement. From there on in, the desert is empty -- no grass, no trees, just sand stretching to the horizon. There is little wildlife -- desert rats, lizards, beetles and perhaps gazelles, but you may pass camel bones: bleached by the sun they underline the fact that your life is in the hands of your guide. When the stony desert becomes sand dunes, you know you are within reach of Taoudenni. Here, in a vast basin that was once a sea, a couple hundred men dig for salt, living in primitive, almost Biblical conditions. However, within 24 hours the camels are fully loaded with their heavy cargo, and are ready to being the trek back to Timbuktu and civilization."
*501 Must-Take Journeys. London: Octopus Publishing Group Lmtd, 2008.
You can also rent 4x4s to do the journey and it takes about 3 days but I'd really want the whole experience of being part of a camel caravan. With nothing else to do, think about the realizations and thinking about yourself and life that you can accomplish. To me, after completing that journey, I'd feel like I'd just climb a mountain or something. Plus the temperatures there can reach 120 degrees. Holy shit. It'd be such a savage journey.
You can also arrange with Tuaregs to take you out on tours for relatively cheap if you want to go on one shorter than 2 weeks.
DREAM ADVENTURE NUMBER 21: Timbuktu to Taoudenni via the Salt Road on camels
WHEN: November to February
HOW LONG: about 2 weeks, some 500 miles
"Join a Touareg caravan leaving from Timbuktu for a journey of a lifetime. There is austere beauty in the desert, and little sound other than the soft shoe shuffle of camels moving over hard sand and sharp stones. Sleeping under the stars (could you even imagine the view?!) in the immense silence of the desert is a profound experience. Days begin before sun up, and the caravan travels doggedly until darkness falls. Strong, sweet mint tea is frequently brewed and beings to taste like nectar from the gods. At night, rice and dried meat is cooked and eaten, with a sprinkling of sand thrown in. Reaching the halfway point of Arouane, a tiny settlement en route, feels like a great achievement. From there on in, the desert is empty -- no grass, no trees, just sand stretching to the horizon. There is little wildlife -- desert rats, lizards, beetles and perhaps gazelles, but you may pass camel bones: bleached by the sun they underline the fact that your life is in the hands of your guide. When the stony desert becomes sand dunes, you know you are within reach of Taoudenni. Here, in a vast basin that was once a sea, a couple hundred men dig for salt, living in primitive, almost Biblical conditions. However, within 24 hours the camels are fully loaded with their heavy cargo, and are ready to being the trek back to Timbuktu and civilization."
*501 Must-Take Journeys. London: Octopus Publishing Group Lmtd, 2008.
You can also rent 4x4s to do the journey and it takes about 3 days but I'd really want the whole experience of being part of a camel caravan. With nothing else to do, think about the realizations and thinking about yourself and life that you can accomplish. To me, after completing that journey, I'd feel like I'd just climb a mountain or something. Plus the temperatures there can reach 120 degrees. Holy shit. It'd be such a savage journey.
You can also arrange with Tuaregs to take you out on tours for relatively cheap if you want to go on one shorter than 2 weeks.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Raft Trip: Upano River
DREAM ADVENTURE NUMBER 20: Visit Ecuador and raft the Upano River
WHEN: November to January. However from May to August, water levels fluctuate due to rain and it can change Upano's usual class III rapids into IV or V.
HOW LONG: 5 days, including put in and take out.
WITH WHO: there are many rafting agencies who will provide all raft and safety equipment. 1 backpack is allowed per person.
HIGHLIGHTS:
"On its swift-flowing path from the Andes to the Ecuadorian Amazon, the Upano River becomes broad jungle waterway spun with thrilling rapids. Occasional clearings in the dense forest on its banks are home to the indigenous Shuar people, whose frail balsa rafts are the only river traffic. The descending river powers through canyons trialed with vines and foliage, then twists into a narrow gorge chocked by massive boulders. A dozen waterfalls crash hundreds of feet from the high canyon walls, adding their sparkle to the drenching spume of contorted water. It's spectacular, ecstatic, breathtaking -- one of the best white-water rafting adventures in the whole world.
Everything about the legendary five-day Upano raft trip is perfect. You join the river at the frontier town of Macas, where it runs broad, , a flight path for egrets, parrots, raptors and the darting brightness of songbirds galore. Shuar guides share their knowledge of the forest and of culture in the headwaters of the Amazon. After the Patuca Bridge, the Upano enters a series of rocky gorges, culminating in the Canyon of Sacred Waterfalls. These are grade IV and V rapids, and all the more exciting because you have been well prepared for them. Better still, there are lots of them, they come in groups, so you won't get completely battered or exhausted. By the time you leave the river at Santiago, 65 miles downstream, you fell exhilarated not jut by the speed thrills of distance rafting, but by the the feeling of having learned a bit about the Shuar and the Amazon rain forest from the amazing side-trips and the evenings in camp."
*501 Must-Take Journeys. London: Octopus Publishing Group Lmtd, 2008.
Also quickly found this website for trips on the river and it's relatively cheap at a little over $600 a person.
http://www.detourdestinations.com/products/The_Upano_River_Expedition__6_Days_16248.html
WHEN: November to January. However from May to August, water levels fluctuate due to rain and it can change Upano's usual class III rapids into IV or V.
HOW LONG: 5 days, including put in and take out.
WITH WHO: there are many rafting agencies who will provide all raft and safety equipment. 1 backpack is allowed per person.
HIGHLIGHTS:
"On its swift-flowing path from the Andes to the Ecuadorian Amazon, the Upano River becomes broad jungle waterway spun with thrilling rapids. Occasional clearings in the dense forest on its banks are home to the indigenous Shuar people, whose frail balsa rafts are the only river traffic. The descending river powers through canyons trialed with vines and foliage, then twists into a narrow gorge chocked by massive boulders. A dozen waterfalls crash hundreds of feet from the high canyon walls, adding their sparkle to the drenching spume of contorted water. It's spectacular, ecstatic, breathtaking -- one of the best white-water rafting adventures in the whole world.
Everything about the legendary five-day Upano raft trip is perfect. You join the river at the frontier town of Macas, where it runs broad, , a flight path for egrets, parrots, raptors and the darting brightness of songbirds galore. Shuar guides share their knowledge of the forest and of culture in the headwaters of the Amazon. After the Patuca Bridge, the Upano enters a series of rocky gorges, culminating in the Canyon of Sacred Waterfalls. These are grade IV and V rapids, and all the more exciting because you have been well prepared for them. Better still, there are lots of them, they come in groups, so you won't get completely battered or exhausted. By the time you leave the river at Santiago, 65 miles downstream, you fell exhilarated not jut by the speed thrills of distance rafting, but by the the feeling of having learned a bit about the Shuar and the Amazon rain forest from the amazing side-trips and the evenings in camp."
*501 Must-Take Journeys. London: Octopus Publishing Group Lmtd, 2008.
Also quickly found this website for trips on the river and it's relatively cheap at a little over $600 a person.
http://www.detourdestinations.com/products/The_Upano_River_Expedition__6_Days_16248.html
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