Nico and Keiko are grateful to all our friends, new and old, who have helped us out along the way. We really could not have done it without your help. Extra special thanks go to:

Leo and Amy, who gave us a beautiful home base to work from before our trip started. Your generosity helped to ease the chaos of our exodus from California and got the trip off to a perfect start.

All throughout our trip Terry and Nami have faithfully manned "Base Station California" for us. Dealing with the innumerable administrative hassles that inevitably came up while we were away from home would have been impossible without you. We owe you a huge debt of gratitude for all your help. And it was wonderful to see you on Kythera in 2003.

We would like to thank our friend Thomas Han very much for generously providing the server and high-speed Internet connection for the hosting of the Travelog web site.

George and Li generously sheltered Nico during his visit back to California in April 2003. Compared to the wilds of South America which Nico had recently endured, staying at your place was sheer paradise. Thanks for all your help with logistics and transport, and of course, all of Li's great Chinese home cooking!

Our dear friend Radhika provided us with hospitality, great Indian home-cooked meals, companionship, assistance, guidance through the hottest US reality TV shows and tons of love and emotional support as we trotted around the globe. Not to mention managing "Base Station DC" for us. Keiko stayed with Radhika for three weeks while passing through Washington DC and were delighted to meet up with her on the road to spend New Year's Day 2003 at Machu Picchu together. Radhika also joined us on Kythera in the summer of 2003, fond memories we will always treasure. For all the great times we spent together, your help bringing stuff to us, taking our stuff home and storing it, and helping us out of some of our worst pickles, we are forever thankful.

Steve and Yael were wonderful hosts to us as we fleetingly passed through New York City in May 2003. They not only provided a roof over our heads but almost convinced us to end our travels right then and there and remain with them in New York City! We only wished we could have spent more time with you.

Sal and Karyn also extended us warm hospitality in New York City. We had a wonderful time catching up with all your news and a great night out on the town with you in the West Village. Congratulations on your recent wedding!

Steve and Carolyn deserve thanks that simply would not fit on this page. You opened your home to us in London and made us feel like family. Better than family, actually. We certainly could not have planned and executed the latter half of our trip without your generosity, support and friendship. "Base Station London" was our home away from home as we hopped around Africa, Greece, Eastern Europe, Russia and Scandinavia - and your constant support kept us going through the hardships of travel and our occasional mishaps. You also made our time in London memorable too. We will never forget the house parties with your mad friends, the society events, the summer concerts, all that rubbish TV! (Big Brother, 24, Sex and the City) and all the hanging out we did together. Thanks for everything!

To Bill we extend sincere thanks for his invitation to Sierra Leone and warm hospitality. Without you it's pretty safe to say that we would NEVER have visited that part of the world! Thanks for giving us the opportunity to experience West Africa first hand, for your generosity at home, some great evenings at the bar with very interesting individuals, and your support as we toured around Senegal and Mali.

We owe gratitude to our friend Audrey who we met in Puerto Iguazú, Argentina, and her dad Michel. Michel invited us to stay with him at his home in Tarascon, France for a week in October 2003 while we explored the beautiful surrounding countryside. Although our French was as sketchy as your English, we still managed to get by OK and had a lovely home stay. We thank you very much for your hospitality.

Our great friends Richard and Cecile made us feel like royalty as we passed through Basel in November 2003. You were such lovely hosts that we really didn't want to leave. (Luckily for you, we did!) And despite England winning that stupid Rugby Grand Final, you made Nico's birthday a special day.

Thank you Arnoud and Lynsey for opening your home to us in Leiden and for being such great traveling companions. We met you at the very start of our trip in Denali National Park in Alaska, at the very end in Lapland, and a few times in the middle. We seem to meet a lot in those northern latitudes! Thank you for showing us Leiden, Amsterdam, Delft and The Hague, and for all the good times we spent together on the road.

We would like to thank our friend Le for generously inviting us into his home during our stay in Paris. Your impeccable taste in Vietnamese restaurants was such a welcome change for us after having been starved of good Asian food for so many months. Thanks for showing us around Paris, getting us hooked on "Smallville", and being such a generous host.

Our old friend Anatol not only helped to make our visit to Russia possible, but showed us a side to Moscow that we would never have otherwise seen. Thank you so much for letting us stay with you and for showing us a great time around Moscow.

Finally, we want to thank our respective families for their constant support throughout the trip. At times we really needed to hear words of encouragement from them and they were always forthcoming. Thank you Tom, Junko, Rie, George, Diamunda and Dennis for all your help, support and love.