Today as I was looking up information for the trip, I came across some more amazing pictures (such as the one to the right, (at the Black Sea in the Ukraine) and I thought to myself, oh my gosh! I will be there. That is so awesome. You know you look at all these places and you think wow, that looks amazing, I wish I could go. And today I realized, I will. So check out this link of the greek isle of Santorini in Greece - and prepare to be jealous! :) Cause this is just one of the gorgeous places I will be.
To think that in a few weeks I will be laying on the beaches in Thailand sipping a pina colada, tubing down a river in Laos, visiting ancient temples in Cambodia, trekking through the pyramids in Egypt on a camel (and maybe getting a marriage offer, I hear the local men are offering foreign women 30 camels for their hand in marriage. And if you are really attractive they might even throw in a few goats, :)) wine tasting in Portugal, traveling the Trans-Siberian railroad through China, Mongolia, and Russia, seeing the cathedrals and castles of Eastern Europe, bathing in the world's deepest lake in Siberia (although I hear it is quite cold), and seeing the great wall of China and the Forbidden Palace in Beijing. Oh what an adventure it will be!
Okay, so for those of you that have been wondering what an adventure like this will cost (dad just stop reading now, you don't want to know) here it is. The grand total for seven months of a fairly budget trip is $13,000.
So, here is the breakdown:
Costs per day (now this is a rough estimate of what I think I will spend per day in each country, I tried to budget high, as I would rather be under then over. When the trip is over, I will let you know what I actually spent):
Food - will be eating breakfast at the hostel or bakeries, lunch will be street food, or other inexpensive items, dinner either made at the hostel, or in inexpensive restaurants.
Lodging - will be staying at hostels (
http://www.hostelbookers.com/booking/index.cfm?fuseaction=hosteldetails&hostel=7485, for an example of the type of place we will be staying at and prices, checkout the link), or at other peoples home's through
www.couchsurfing.com.
Transportation - most of our traveling will be done by bus, or train, overland to save expenses. It will be fairly inexpensive and included in costs per day. (Any major land jumps or flights are included in transportation costs).
$25 a day: Thailand (27 days), Malaysia (8 days), Laos (9days), Cambodia (11 days)
Total: 1,375
$30 a day: China (11 days), Mongolia (4 days), Egypt (17 days), Transiberian Railroad (7 days) Total: $1,170
$40 a day: Singapore (7 days), Lake Irkustk (Siberia (14 days), Ukraine (9 days), Poland (7 days), Hungary (6 days), Czech Republic (5 days)
Total: $1,920
$50 a day: Hong Kong (3 days), Moscow (8 days), Croatia (15 days), Greece (18 days), Spain (20 days) Portugal (12 days)
Total $3,800
Flights/Transportation (we are going mostly overland and booking each leg ourselves, for flights):
South Korea to Hong Kong to Bangkok $500
Malaysia to Bangkok $45
Laos to Cambodia $130
Cambodia to Shanghai $350
Trans-Siberian Railroad $400
Moscow to Yalta, Ukraine $100
Greece to Egypt (either by plane or fly) $350
Egypt to Spain $350
Spain to California $500
Additional Travel Allowance: $500 (for trains, and buses along the way as we go overland, for example we are traveling from Croatia to Greece overland, which will take 2 days.
Total: $3,225
Extras:
Visa Costs for China and Russia $250
Scuba Diving $300
Tours and other adventures $500
Misc. $460 (extra padding to give me room to have fun or splurge along the way)
So, there you have it. I tried to stick to countries that were less expensive, as you can see I spend quite a bit of time in Southeast Asia. I did include Spain/Portugal, which did add quite a bit to my trip. I probably could have kept it around $10,000 without those countries, but I really wanted to go and I will be right there.
As most of you know, I have been saving for this for quite a bit and I figure it is worth it. You only live once after all.
So, the question I hear most often as I plan for this adventure is, so where are you going? Well your wait is over, here is the itinerary (subject to change without notice, depending on whim, weather, proposed adventure, or natural disaster).
We will be leaving March 3, 2008 and heading to:
Hong Kong
Thailand (Bangkok, Beaches, Chaing Mai)
Laos
Cambodia (Siem Reap, Phnom Penh, and Sihanoukville)
Fly to Shanghai, China
Beijing, China
Trans-siberian Railroad from Beijing to Mongolia, to Lake Baikel, to Moscow
Ukraine (Black Sea, Kiev)
Poland (Warsaw, Krakow)
Czech Republic (Prague)
Hungray (Budapest)
Croatia (Split, Dubrovnik)
Greece (Athens)
Egypt (Cairo, Luxor)
Spain (Barcelona, Madrid)
Portugal (Lisbon)
HOME!! (Sometime near the end of September)
So, there you have it. Seven months and 16 countries. My new and improved round the world trip. I have included a couple pictures of my charming and lovely travel companion Robin and myself. As you can see we are sure to have some grand adventures!
For more pictures as I travel you can also check out my facebook site as well.
Well, today I packed my bag for my trip around the world, and much to my relief and slight suprise it did all fit. I am taking one 44L backpack, which at first glance looks pretty darn small to carry all I will need for seven months. But, it fits. So, I am good to go. Here is a look at my packing list:
1 pair convertible pants
1 skirt
1 capri
1 pair black sleeper pants
4 shirts
1 sweatshirt
5 pairs of underwear
2 bras
1 pair of quick dry socks
1 pair of flip flops
1 pair of TEVA sandals
1 pair of trekking shoes
1 bathing suit
1 hat
1 bandana
1 pair of sunglasses
1 pair of extra glasses
1 small quick dry travel towel
mosquito spray
sunscreen
sleepsack
my luxury item -a travel pillow
ipod
camera
Bible
1 bookjournal/pens
created travel pages for each country
deck of cards
toilet paper
money belt
ear plugs
watch
converter
daypack
lock for pack
small calculator
duct tape (wrapped around a pen)
alarm clock
bandaids
headache medicine
Imodium
anti bactical lotion
clippers and nail file
laundry detergent
universal sink plug
zip lock baggies
shampoo
conditioner
lotion
toothbrush/toothpaste
deodorant
hairbrush
hair ties
razor and blades
tampons
soap
lip balm
passport
credit cardATM card
american money
immunization card
international driver's license
contact information
And the final weight is 18 pounds.
