After getting a little frustrated trying to figure out how to approach Tibet from Nepal during the first 6 months of my backpacking trip around the world, I've come to develop a new and improved route. I had posted my quandary on the RTW branch of the Lonely Planet forum, and received some feedback which sent me in a new direction.
Without further ado…
- New Zealand (fly, Dec 07)
- Australia (fly, Dec-Jan 08)
- Bali, Indonesia (fly, Jan)
- Singapore (fly, Feb)
- Hong Kong (fly, Feb)
- China (overland, Feb-March)
- Tibet (overland, March)
- Nepal (overland, April)
- India (overland, May)
- Thailand (fly, June)
- Cambodia (overland, July)
- Vietnam (overland, July-Aug)
- South Africa (fly via Bangkok, Aug)
The fact that I continue to make major changes to my route with less than 4 months go to underlines my desire to remain flexible. If I had already paid for a ‘Round the World airline ticket and locked in certain cities, I would be hamstrung to them, or paying added fees to make changes.
PS – Counting this week, I have only 3 full weeks of work left before I submit my resignation. The rest of the weeks I have at least one half or full day off, or full-day trainings to attend. I've decided to give 4 weeks notice, as I expect the news will come as a BIG surprise to my boss and coworkers. I imagine my last day will feel something like college graduation. I can't wait!
Dave is the Founder and Editor in Chief of Go Backpacking and Feastio. He's been to 66 countries and lived in Colombia and Peru. Read the full story of how he became a travel blogger.
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Cassie
Monday 6th of August 2007
I saw your post over there. Would you mind summing up whats changed?
I can't believe you are so close!
Dave
Tuesday 7th of August 2007
Hi Cassie -
Good suggestion.
At first, I planned to travel from Bali to Bangkok, and then travel counter-clockwise through Cambodia/Vietnam/China/Tibet/Nepal/India and on to Africa. When I read about the fact that monsoons hit Nepal in Summer months, I realized I needed to ensure I hit Nepal by March/April.
My second route was to try and go from Thailand to Nepal, and then head clockwise to China and SE Asia. Since I ran into warnings about the difficulty of accessing Tibet from Nepal, I came to my third approach (listed in the post).
Words can't describe my excitement - I have tunnel vision at this point, and celebrate each day that passes!
Cassie
Tuesday 7th of August 2007
I saw your post over there. Would you mind summing up whats changed?
I can't believe you are so close!
Dave
Tuesday 7th of August 2007
Hi Cassie -
Good suggestion.
At first, I planned to travel from Bali to Bangkok, and then travel counter-clockwise through Cambodia/Vietnam/China/Tibet/Nepal/India and on to Africa. When I read about the fact that monsoons hit Nepal in Summer months, I realized I needed to ensure I hit Nepal by March/April.
My second route was to try and go from Thailand to Nepal, and then head clockwise to China and SE Asia. Since I ran into warnings about the difficulty of accessing Tibet from Nepal, I came to my third approach (listed in the post).
Words can't describe my excitement - I have tunnel vision at this point, and celebrate each day that passes!
crambox
Monday 6th of August 2007
Love the new plan!! :smile:
crambox
Monday 6th of August 2007
Love the new plan!! :smile: