Destination Norway

With the lightning speed that I went from the Caribbean to Canada in i've hardly had time to take a breath. Next up is Norway. with a population of just under 5 million people and internet access running at about 81% I have just under 4 million people that can spirit me on my way to Oslo perhaps, or maybe Trondheim? That is the beauty of this staycation. I have no clue as to where I'm (not) heading next.

So the good people of Norway the onus is on you. Help me and visit this blog!

-Luke Sidewalker

Hello from Calgary

Well in a surprise turn of events I didn't even have time to publish my 'Destination Canada' post before I arrived in Calgary!

It is a fresh 43ºF right now and I'm fortunate enough to snag a deal at The Fairmont Palliser for $150 CAD a night.

Calgary is in the Western province of Alberta, and really started to grow as a city with the arrival of The Canadian-Pacific Railroad
in 1883, with further growth coinciding with the opening of the oilfields in the early 1900's.

I go for a walk around the city only to find I missed the famous Calgary Stampede Rodeo Show that was held in July, and has been an annual event since 1912. Calgary was also the location of the 1988 Winter Olympics and I visit Canada Olympic park to see the impressive ski jump and bobsleigh venues.

In the afternoon I visited the Glenbow Museum, founded by Eric Lafferty Harvie in the mid 1950's. It has 93,000 sq. feet packed with over 1,000,000 objects celebrating the lifestyle and culture of the 'West', I may have to come back after breakfast tomorrow to see them all!

For dinner I head over to the River Cafe in Prince's Island Park overlooking the Bow River, where I enjoyed the highly recommended Mushroom Dusted Olson's Bison Striploin!
I would have gone to see the local NHL team, the Calgary Flames, play; but once again the timing of my trip sunk that idea as they are out of season at the moment.

So it's back to the Fairmont Palliser to figure out how I'm going to get to Norway next...

Savings this leg:
Flights from St. Johns to Calgary: $835
Hotel in Calgary: $139


Savings so far:
Grand Total: $8,587

Countries visited (days taken):
Greenland (2), The Netherlands (8), Antigua & Barbuda (133), Canada (1)

Total days so far:
144

-Luke Sidewalker

Hello from St. Johns

Good morning from sunny St. Johns, Antigua where the temperature is currently a very pleasant 82ºF. Having taken so long to get here I waste no time and dump my bags at The Admirals Inn, then set of to explore the town.

First it's off to the Anglican Cathedral to thank my blessings of finally getting here after being stuck in Utrecht for 108 days! The cathedral is the third incarnation of such on the island, the previous two falling into disrepair.

Then it's off to board the catamaran of Treasure Island Cruises for a trip around the island stopping occasionally to snorkel. The trip also takes us to the historical site of Nelson's Dockyard a facility developed by the infamous Admiral Lord Nelson of the British Royal Navy in the late 1700's.

Returning back to dry land I pick up some conch fritters followed by some local lobster from a street vendor and wash it down with an exotic rum cocktail! I return back to the Inn, all this sea air has made me sleepy.

In the morning I'm off for a tour of the Recreation Ground. This is the cricket stadium in Antigua, unfortunately the season runs from January to July so I have just missed watching a live game. However cricket is a religion here and I witness impromptu games everywhere I go on the island.

Having taken so long to (not) get here it seems a shame to leave so quickly, but I'm heading to Canada next, and my global staycation waits for no man!

Savings this leg:
Flights from Amsterdam to St. Johns: $1,848
Hotel in St.John: $90
Catamaran Day Trip: $120

Savings so far:
Grand Total: $7,613

-Luke Sidewalker

Oh the irony!

My dear friends. Just when all hope had disappeared and I was left lamenting my over ambitious goals of a global staycation I got my hit from Antigua and Barbuda.

As we all know a watched pot never boils and so it was for me waiting for my hit from the A&B. I shall keep it brief tonight as it is late and will do the full post tomorrow.

This hit was laced with irony. It occurred on August 25th while I was actually away on a real vacation (see post: A W(h)ale of a Time), plus the person came to my blog from St. Johns, Antigua & Barbuda via Google. And what was the search they were looking for? Why it was 'Staycation in Antigua' of course!

Details to follow tomorrow.


-Luke Sidewalker

Help I'm Stranded

When I started this adventure I thought I'd have my struggles. I just never imagined it would be this early. Right now I'm thinking a global staycation may have been way too ambitious, perhaps I should have started out with a 50 State domestic staycation instead. I have almost exhausted all avenues to entice one of the many good people of Antigua and Barbuda to visit this site. I have tried a Facebook blitz, I have emailed local radio stations, I have implored you my faithful readers, but all to no avail. I will continue to try and get my hit from the Islands, mainly because it is costing me nothing to try, and right there you begin to see the real beauty and economic viability of a "staycation"!

Meanwhile my other struggles that I chronicle at The Legend of Luke Sidewalker have been moving forward at a delightful pace, and that blog has taken on a life of it's own.

-Luke Sidewalker

Near Miss

Well it is still taking an age to get my hit in Antigua and/or Barbuda. I came close the last couple of days with a hit from Grenada and a hit from Barbados, so I'm closing in on my target. At the start of this journey if you had said it would take me a few days to get a hit in Greenland and an eternity to get a hit from Antigua and Barbuda, I would have said you are crazy Passepartout, but the truth is often stranger than fiction. Lets hope I make it to the sunshine this week.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, please forward this blog address to anyone in Antigua and Barbuda, or anyone you think may know someone in Antigua and Barbuda.If can Antigua and Barbuda done I have Canada and Norway waiting anxiously in the wings! Many thanks.

-Luke Sidewalker

A long wait in Utrecht

The air seems to have been let out of the balloon. I have really been struggling to get my page view from Antigua and Barbuda. It appears I will have to come up with something out of the ordinary to get this location ticked off the list. I'm slightly disconcerted at having such difficulties so high up my list, but the tricks learned from this early set back can only help me at the bottom of my list. So come on Antigua and Barbuda, I know you are out there.

-Luke Sidewalker

Stranded in Utrecht

For those of you that follow The Legend of Luke Sidewalker you will know that it was my birthday two days ago. I was rather hoping to spend it "virtually" in the Caribbean and more specifically in Antigua and Barbuda, but it appears after trying so hard to get to The Netherlands I now find myself stuck here!

So once again, if you know anyone in Antigua and Barbuda, or if you may know someone that knows someone there(six degrees of separation!), please forward the blog to be viewed as there are many eager countries downline waiting for there turn in the spotlight...

-Luke Sidewalker

Destination Antigua and Barbuda

For those of you just joining me, here is a little recap of what I'm aiming to do. I intend to have my blog viewed by at least one person in every country in the world. The itinerary of my trip is dictated by internet users per capita, starting at the highest and ending with the lowest. So far I have been to Greenland and the Netherlands. The 50,000 people of Greenland took 2 days to register a view of this blog, but the approximately 14 million people of the Netherlands took over 8 days. Lets see how long it takes the 74,000 people of Antigua and Barbuda to find their way here, as I virtually find my way there!

As always if you know of anyone in Antigua and Barbuda please forward a link to this blog as all assistance is both needed and welcome.

-Luke Sidewalker

Hello from Utrecht

After much huffing, puffing, and head scratching I have finally landed in Utrecht, the Netherlands. It has taken eight days to make it from Greenland which was longer than I had anticipated.

Well now I'm here, what to do? First off I will go to visit the Dom Tower the oldest and highest church tower in Holland. After catching my breath, because those 465 steps to the top of the tower took their toll it is off for a gentle tour of the local canals. Then it is back to the Hotel Mitland for the evening because tomorrow I'm off to see the local football team FC Utrecht take on Feyenoord. If anybody wants to tell me what it is really like please feel free to leave a comment, or maybe you have a score prediction for the game tomorrow?

So I would like to thank my anonymous friend in Utrecht for clicking the site and being the one I've been searching for all week. There seems to have been a peak in interest from The Netherlands in the last few hours so I would also like to thank my other visitors from Amsterdam and other cities. Sorry you weren't the first but I hope you can join my quest and help me get to my future destinations.

If you look above you will see a picture of Dom Tower with me once again nowhere in sight!

Next stop Antigua and Barbuda.

Savings this leg:
Flights from Nuuk to Amsterdam: $2540
Hotel in Utrecht: $199

Savings so far:
Grand Total: $5555

-Luke Sidewalker

Sleepless in Nuuk

I had high hopes to be in Holland within 24 hours but as you can see my hopes have been dashed. I can only assume the good people of the Netherlands have had one hard partying weekend because it appears none of them were at their computers. I would never have thought this destination would cause me so much trouble. Please pass my plight on to all your friends as they may know someone in Holland, plus it is cold here in Nuuk and I only brought a light jacket.

Maybe this might help:
Kan iedereen in Nederland dit blog klikken

-Luke Sidewalker

Destination The Netherlands

So now my aim is to get a registered page view from the Netherlands.

To my future Dutch friends, the 50,000 or so people of Greenland got the job done in two days so the gauntlet has been laid down. By my calculations I have an approximate target of 14.9 million people. I hope to be in Holland by this evening. Do you know someone in Holland that can help me?

UPDATE: Thank you for all the interest shown from the good people of The Netherlands. I managed to get a hit from Utrecht and my Staycation has now moved on to Antigua and Barbuda, feel free to follow my journey.

-Luke Sidewalker

Hello from Greenland

I can't believe it I got my visit from Greenland. It only took me two days to get here, so thanks to my new friend(s) in Greenland for getting me off to a flying start.I'd still love to get a comment from someone in Greenland, to give us all an idea of what it is really like, but in the meantime here is the first entry in my travel journal.

I'm imagining myself in Nuuk (Godthåb) the capital of Greenland, there are some light showers and it's currently 33F. If I came here I'd stay in the center of town at the Hotel Hans Egede. The hotel is named after the missionary Hans Egede who founded the town in 1728. Later on I would go on a tour of the city. After dinner I'd get a ticket to watch the local handball team. Up above you will see a picture of Nuuk, and if you look very closely you will notice I'm not in it.


Savings so far:
Flight From New York to Nuuk $2647
Hotel in Nuuk $169

Grand Total: $2816

-Luke Sidewalker

Destination Greenland

First stop on my trip is Greenland. It is a tough one to start with but I'm up for the challenge. According to my research 922 people out of every 1,000 in Greenland use the internet; that is the good news. The bad news; the population is only around 57,000. Meaning my target is just around 52,500 people, but I'm only looking for one of those people, are you the person that knows one of them?

I will check my Google Analytics periodically throughout the day so that I know when it is time to move on. Also on my sidebar to the right there are some widgets that may indicate a visit from Greenland, so you may be able to witness it in real time.

So Mr. or Mrs. Greenland dweller I'm excited to make your acquaintance and I hope you can help me get to my first destination soon. I would welcome a comment or factoid about Greenland to start my travel journal off with a bang!

-Luke Sidewalker

Pack your bags we're going nowhere

For those of you not familiar with Luke Sidewalker his story can be found here or by clicking the link to the right.

Before we don't go anywhere I should start by setting out the mission parameters of my staycation.
1)It is my intent with your help to get this blog to every country in the world, a visit is qualified by a page view as determined by Google Analytics.
2)However you can't go globetrotting willy-nilly all over the place there has to be some structure and order, so with this in mind my itinerary has been set by the following metric. I will go to the countries in the order of their ranking of Internet users per capita from highest to lowest as published on Nationmaster.com
3)I may use traffic exchanges to promote the blog, but a valid hit must come from outside of the exchanges.

For those of you too lazy to check out the itinerary (that would be me if I wasn't writing this blog) I can tell you the first three stops will be Greenland, followed by the Netherlands and then a little sunshine in Antigua and Barbuda.


With your help, yes that does actually mean you, let's get started to test the possibilities in this electronic era. It took Phileas Fogg eighty days, he had a balloon, Passepartout and no computer. I have a computer, a hungry goldfish and no balloon, how long do you think it will take me?

So without further ado get yourself comfortable in your favorite chair and stay put with me...

-Luke Sidewalker