Alan Baldwin - Around-the-World Traveler

1. When did you go on your RTW trip?
   May 2003-April 2004

2. How old were you when you took this trip?
   28

3. Including your air ticket and other expenses (from accommodation to souvenir-buying), about how much did your trip cost?
   US$8000

4. Nationality
   USA

5. Where do you live now?
   St. Louis, USA

6. Occupation
   
   Before your trip: mechanical engineer
   
   Now: unemployed mechanical engineer :-)
   

   How did your travels affect your career when you got back?
   Getting a foot back in the door of employment has proven difficult, made harder by the technology downturn. The two year gap in the resume requires explaining, but people are impressed/jealous when I explain the details.

   What is the route you took/places you visited?
   Okay, so it wasn't really around the world: Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, China, Tibet, Nepal, India, Sri Lanka. Still a nice route!

   Why did you decide to take this trip? What got you into this type of travel, and/or influenced you to go?
   Big job cuts were several months in coming at my old company, and I started thinking, "If I'm laid off tomorrow, what would I do? Why not take a trip?" So I did.

   Out of all your experiences traveling around the world, what was the:
   

   • Best Moment
     Exploring rural Tibet with new friends

   • Worst Moment
     Stuck overnight in a dodgy Chinese town after the last bus had gone

   • Biggest Hurdle, Obstacle or Difficulty?
     loneliness

   • Biggest surprise?
     Third world travel is easy!

   Who is the most memorable person you met on your trip and why?
   A guy who was cycling from England to Australia. Long distance cyclists are hardcore!

   How much planning and preparing did you do?
   Control Freak

   What was your favorite piece of gear?
   Keychain with calculator watch, compass, and mini-LED light that clips onto a loop in my pocket.

   What did you bring, that in hindsight you could've left at home?
   Gaiters, sewing kit, most of the travelers' checks

   How did your round-the-world trip change your life? How did it affect and change you as a person?
   It totally slowed me down and chilled me out. I used to be high strung and speed on the freeway; now I'm almost pathologically mellow.

   If you had to sum up your round-the-world trip in one sentence, what would it be?
   Drifting along like a tumbling tumbleweed...

   Are you planning more trips and travels for the future? Are you planning another round-the-world trip?
   Not yet. Maybe after I've worked a year or two.

   Why do you think people should go on round-the-world trips? Why not just take a regular old one- or two-week vacation instead?
   Long trips are cheaper per day, and you get to know the places you visit more intimately. It builds independence.

   What is the most valuable thing you learned?
   You have to create the life you love from scratch, and it may look very different than accepted norms.

   What is the biggest myth that people have about round-the-world traveling?
   That, "I couldn't do that." You just decide to do it, then do it!

   Why do you like to travel?
   To look at pretty mountains and rivers. To meet people very different from myself and see how they live. To sit on the roofs of buses and otherwise imperil myself.

   What is your advice for people planning their own RTW trip?
   Go to the cheap countries first so you don't blow your budget on beer in Sydney. (I met so many people who did that!) Travel overland as much as possible. Avoid having to be in City X on Date Y. Consider buying air tickets as you go instead of a RTW package that expires in one year.