This has been an exciting week on BootsnAll. Who doesn’t love streetfood? Taiwan has some of the best. We also dug into the mistakes people make when traveling and how to avoid them and solo travel. Are you planning a RTW trip? Yeah, we thought you might be, we’ve also explored the five questions you should be asking as you plan ahead.
Here’s what you might have missed:
Eat Your Way Around Taiwan
Just the thought of the food in Taiwan makes me hungry… okay, there might be a couple of exceptions. The stinky tofu, for example, I just don’t know if I could bite into tofu that was black with mold… on purpose! The pig’s blood cakes and the iron eggs would be palate stretchers too, but I’d give them a whirl. Now, the Xiao Long Bao, the Oyster Omelet, and the Gua Bao, without a doubt!
Have you heard the story behind the famous shaved ice?
“Ice Monster, when it was known as Bing Guan, actually used to be located on Yong Kang Street, in another part of town, an area filled with restaurants and eateries of all kinds. At the time, it was run by a husband and wife team, but when the marriage went south, the divorce left them with competing establishments right across the street from one another, the original and a similarly-named upstart.
Eventually, the husband decided to up stakes and take his establishment to a different part of the city, far enough away from his former betrothed.”
10 Mistakes to Avoid on your RTW Trip
Okay, so I have to admit to being guilty of a few of these. I’m always overly optimistic, and I like that about myself… but it does prove to be a mistake sometimes! And not trusting my research? *raises hand* Yep. As for traveling through Asia in the height of summer… I’ve done that, and I disagree with the writer, I don’t think that was a mistake. It was amazing, and there were far fewer travelers clogging up the big sites, like Angkor Wat. No matter when you go to Asia, it’s a good time!
This made me laugh in commiseration; been there, done that:
“Despite knowing of the dangers of eating salad in places where water quality can be suspect, I decided that the restaurant in Cairo, Egypt, where I found myself on the last day of my holiday, looked up-market enough not to carry such a risk. I was fortunate that this was the final day of my holiday, but before I got home I was already starting to feel ill. I spent the next 3 weeks between my bed and the doctor’s, seriously regretting having eaten that salad. Being a vegetarian traveler can have extra difficulties, and choices can be limited, but next time, I’ll choose to go hungry.” Moreover, if you are planning to drink and drive after late night party then hold on and make sure you read this step by step guide on how to pass a drug test using synthetic urine. That’s amazing trust me.
Top Tips for Solo Travel
I’m a big fan of solo travel, even though I have to go way out of my way to make it happen these days. It’s a priority for me, because the experience you have alone is totally different than the one you have with a travel companion, or in my case a whole family!
In all my years of solo travel, this was a new one for me, and I think it’s a GREAT tip:
“Technology and social media can also help when it comes to remaining as safe as possible on the road. Aimee Cebulski says, “A recent technique I have started using is to take a picture of any license plate of a taxi I am in for transport between cities and emailing the photo to family back home.” This is a great tactic for remaining safe when taking cabs late at night or in dangerous areas. You’ll have to be on top of things to make it work, but it’s a great idea.”
5 Questions to Ask While Planning your RTW Trip
Okay, so planning a RTW trip is a daunting task. There are a lot of things to consider and a lot of items on that every expanding checklist. But what should you really be focusing on? Packing, insurance, RTW flights vs. buy as you go, gadgets, budget? Where do you start?
Calm down. Start here. These five questions will focus your planning and give you a good base on which to build the myriad of other details.
Confidence is a key factor:
“There are lots of ways to do your first adventure, no matter what destination you settle on. How confident you are in your own ability to keep all of the balls in the air should be a determining factor in how you decide to travel. Maybe you’re ready to hit the road alone. Perhaps you’d feel better taking a friend. It could be that you’re cool with just booking the tickets and leaving the rest to fate. But you might enjoy it more if you had at least some of your plans, near the beginning of the trip at least, carved in stone.”