BootsnAll Travel Community

ok, so i'm planning this monster trip, and being that i'll b going alone, and have never traveled before i was hopin for some help.
skip to the "=====" if u dont want to know where i'm going.

I'll give you the gen of where i've got to with the planning. I'm flying to Mubai (£150 aprrox-1 way) from bombay i'll get train North to Ahmedabad, on to the lake city of Udaipur, Pushckar and Jodhpur, then snake east thru Jaipur, Agra and over to Varanasi then to kathmandu. From kathmandu i intend to head thru nepal, skirting into China and then towards Kunming then into Hanoi in Vietnam, then thru to Laos and Thailand, perhaps bangkok, then south again into Cambodia (PhnomPenh) b4 again heading thru Thailand and South to Kuala Lumpur and singapore, then for £232 get an open ticket (thru BA, to Austrailia, via Bali, and the travel the coast of Aus (this i have planned well thru "Oz experiance". My trip is reasonable planned, but i'm not sure exactly how realistic it is, having sed that, once at ground zero i'll prob change my ideas completely.

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but anyways, i need help and info on buses/visa/money/places to see on the way that i wont have heard of/what to take in my pack. Basically, all the hard stuff so i have more time to earn the money for this.

CHEERS GUYS, AS MUCH OR AS LITTLE HELP THAT'S RECEIVED IS APPRECIATED.

peace atcha, L8ers....

G'Day,

I think your route sounds reasonable. I know you are going to see amazing sights and have interactions with local people that you'll always remember.
Here's a couple of basic things I would do. Firstly, find a medium sized pack that is comfortable, it doesn't have to cost $400 but you need to be able to walk for a few hours with it. Second, don't bring too much stuff. This is one of the things first time travellers do. My first big trip was to SE Asia in '84 and I brought a ton of stuff,........sweaters, socks, t-shirts, long pants etc. I didn't use 75% of the stuff I brought with me. Take 1 warm item, sweater, jacket etc, 3 t-shirts, 3 underwear, 3 socks, 1 sandles, 1 other footwear, 1 shorts, 1-2 pants. ( some companies, REI, Columbia, for example make convertible cotton pants that can be worn as shorts too.) If you have a few good strong items like this you can always buy a t-shirt if you need one in Thailand for $2 or something. If you're not using your gear frequently you might as well leave it behind.

Also bring a hat, sunscreen, water bottle ( I have a 6 litre foldable bottle )and a knife ( Swiss army is good or even a regular utility knife ).

I wouldn't bring real expensive items, Cd player, camera etc. You always run the risk of getting it damaged, lost or stolen, plus you have to worry about it.

As far as your trip goes make sure you buy some travel insurance. This seems like a pain and waste of money but let me tell you, if you're in Singapore and need an operation it can get expensive.

When you get to Bombay it will take a while to adjust. I remember when I laded there I though I'd landed in hell. It was dusty with potholes in the road and thin people walking around looking like they hadn't eaten for a month. You'll do fine but it can be challenging at first.

Prices in these countries depend on how close you are to other tourists, what you are asking for and how much you haggle. If you are a little bit off the beaten track prices will be lower, if you eat local food instead of pizza prices will be lower, if you are patient and bargain for things, rooms, taxis, buses, boats etc. prices will come down.

That's a little info to chew over.

Have a great trip!

-Nick

Life is like a banana......crooked, tasty and messy at both ends.

your trip sounds really similar to the one i am planning for jan 2002. I am planning to stop in vietnam for a few months tho because i want to teach for a bit. i've been to india before and nepal so am not worried about that, but the rest of it seems daunting as i'm going it alone as well!!
good luck. you must be excited as i am and i'm not going for a whole year yet!!
have fun (i agree with a lot of what nick says from my limited experience - especially the packing!! - we sent half our stuff back from bombay. also agree with the shock you get when you get there. what a shit hole. escape as soon as you can, the rest of india is soooooo much nicer!!)
sima

To help you out with some of your stuff, you might want to check out the Traveller's Toolkit we've got on BootsnAll. We've got a bunch of links to sites that address visa issues, or deal with money, etc.:

toolkit.bootsnall.com

To start checking into your visa stuff, I'd straightaway go to Embassy World so you can check out embassy locations worldwide. They also have an area dedicated to visa requirements.

Be sure to post or email if there's other stuff we can help you with!

Cheers,
Anthony

Please don't take the Oz Experience bus while in Australia ... It's known as the 'big green fuck' bus. There really are better ways to see this beautiful country - without being stuck on a bus with 17-23yo spoilt brats. The bus is usually overbooked so more often than not you're stuck somewhere for days longer than planned. You may also have to stop at places that don't interest you, wasting time and money, when you could be somewhere you want to be.

really? Oz experiance was going to be key to my time in Austrailia, i'll have to look into this a tad more. Any other information about it being "the big green fuck bus" anything would be helpful.

Tycho

peace atcha, L8ers....

Instead of doing the bus tour, instead find yourself a cheap car - which should be pretty easy to do. A lot of travelers go to Oz, buy a used/cheap car, drive it all around the country (insured too, I believe), and then just sell it again when they leave. THat may be the better way to go - Australia's never at a loss for a good time, after all; you don't need a bus tour to have fun!

if you need information about kusadasi and around email me at editor@kusadasi.net well this is if you change your mind and decide to include turkey in your visits.

have fun!

Gizem Gencer
http://www.kusadasi.net
http://www.holiday4u.net