Advertisement
Published: February 2nd 2014
little pig little pig
beautiful Asado suckling pig at a mates houseSo just a few short weeks now until we fly out of Australia on our "yet to be named" 12 month trip. We thought of a great name for the trip about 4 months ago and we can't remember for the life of us what it actually was.... So hopefully it will come flooding back sometime soon.
I've got lists upon list upon lists around the house and work at the moment. That would be my anal retentive Virgo gene coming out in me. But hey it pays to be organised when you are packing up your life for 12 months and hitting the road. I've got packing lists, to do lists, and then items on the to do list have sub to do lists. But we are both progressing through them well. It's incredible how much needs to be out in place before you can actually put your life on hold. It's probably a topic for a whole other blog really.
When it hit the 5 week mark we started to get excited. 8, 7, and 6 just didn't feel like it was just around the corner, but for some reason 5 really did. And now
we are down to just 4. I've been trying to recall how long I have been actively planning this trip for now, and I believe I must have started to plant the seed in Suz's head perhaps around 2.5 years ago now. You know what they say.... Well it's what we say anyway, and our recipe for a successful relationship, it’s all about setting expectations with each other! So I guess 30 months or so was certainly appropriate notice.
After our trip got delayed for 2 months due to work commitments, we decided to hit Nepal first and trek Everest base camp. We figured we will probably never be in as great shape as what we are now, as we have been on a pretty solid exercise routine for at least 6 months now, and Suz probably a lot longer than that. So hopefully the heightened fitness will pay off and put us in great stead for the 18 day trek. We are throwing in the side trip over the Cho la pass, hence taking a little longer than the normal EBC trek.
So we fly out on the 2nd march to Kathmandu via Kuala Lumpur.
Then we fly out to Lukla from Kathmandu on the 5th March and commence the trek, with any luck finishing up and flying back to Kathmandu on the 22nd march. We, after a lot of discussion and compromising, have decided to trek independently but we have hired a private guide and a porter. I wanted to do it completely alone, and Suz with an organised trekking group, so we decided that for safety sake, and for the enriched experience we would hire the local guide, and someone to carry our bags. I'm extremely happy with the decision we made so far, so fingers crossed the decision pays off.
After a lot of screening, we contacted 12 trekking agencies and eventually withered our choice to just one, we ended up booking with Nepal Hiking Team. They were one of the best prices and the most organised and professional, so again hopefully this carries through in their delivery. I know how much I appreciate it when people outlay their costs in the blogs so for those playing at home we have paid around $800 USD each for an 18 day trek including return airfares Lukla to Kathmandu for us and
our guide, transfers from Kathmandu airport and Lukla airport, a guide, a porter, all required permits, agency fees, and insurance for our guides safety. So it doesn't include visas, international flights, private travel insurance, any trekking gear, or accommodation and food. So compared to what we have seen this is great value. The accommodation and food, as far as we have researched will expect to set us back around $35 USD each per day on top as well.
So with Nepal being our first month we will than fly back to Bangkok at the end of March, and from there we will likely be after some beach time. So we will probably hit the Thai Islands on the East side. Perhaps either Koh Chang, Koh Phangan, or maybe Koh Tao. Recommendations are welcome?
Following that it's likely to be up to 3 months making our way around Northern Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Then a couple of months in either or a combination of Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, China.
Following our SE Asia leg which will last perhaps until September or October it's over to Latin America where we plan to either make our way
poor bailey after surgery
had a suspicious lump removed from Argentina up to Mexico or perhaps the reverse from north to south. That part of the trip, and really after Nepal is all quite loose at the moment so could change at any time. But it's nice to have a bit of a rough idea of what we want to see.
I guess the top of our lists and the musts for us are really our trek to Everest Base Camp, a month in Vietnam, extended stays at Chang Mai Thailand, Luang Prabang Laos, Penang Malaysia, Bolivia and Mexico and experiences at Angkor Wat Cambodia, Togean Islands Indonesia, Machu Picchu Peru, and Carnavale Brazil. We would also love to do a couple of weeks volunteering, but are unsure just yet exactly where or when, but I'm sure the opportunity will present itself when the time is right.
So that about wraps it up for now. All we have to do is get through the next 20 work days, finalise everything on our many to do lists, and then board the plane!
time's a tickin'.....
Advertisement
Tot: 0.143s; Tpl: 0.014s; cc: 20; qc: 88; dbt: 0.0933s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.3mb
D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
Your journey is just around the corner
We are happy for you and jealous that you are about to take off on an extended trip. We will be following along eager for each new adventure. As for volunteer work you may want to contact one of the travel bloggers who has a foundation in Vietnam. http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Vietna-mum/ I understand it is a very good organization. Also might want to check into http://www.wwoof.net Good luck and have fun.