- When did you go on your RTW trip?
- How old were you when you took this trip?
25 - Including your air ticket and other expenses (from accommodation to souvenir-buying), about how much did your trip cost?
$8000 - Nationality
Thailand - Where do you live now?
San Francisco, California, USA - Occupation
- Before your trip: user interface designer
- Now: user interface designer
- How did your travels affect your career when you got back?
It didn’t really. I’m back at the same position in my same company. I was lucky – they held my job for me.- What is the route you took/places you visited?
Morocco, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, China, Tibet, Mongolia.- Why did you decide to take this trip? What got you into this type of travel, and/or influenced you to go?
Interested in the Middle East. Especially interested in spending 3 months in China to get a broad overview of the country and to practise my mandarin (I’d been taking night lessons for 3 months).- Out of all your experiences traveling around the world, what was the:
- Best Moment
- Worst Moment
Walking through the sweltering streets of Beijing (on 2 hours sleep on the overnight train) trying to find the CITS (office tourist dude’s) office. - Biggest Hurdle, Obstacle or Difficulty?
Trying to get visas in the Middle East on a Thai passport. - Biggest surprise?
Realizing that I’ll be happy to travel alone.
Admiring Petra with my love- Who is the most memorable person you met on your trip and why?
Hmmm… too difficult.- How much planning and preparing did you do?
Control Freak- What was your favorite piece of gear?
Packsafe – it’s a metal mesh “cage” that completely encloses your backpack and can be chained to poles, etc. I kept all my money, passports, etc. in the hotel room, packsafed up in my bag and chained it to the bed. You can buy it at REI.
- What did you bring, that in hindsight you could’ve left at home?
We were very lightly packed – had to buy more stuff, so nothing.- How did your round-the-world trip change your life? How did it affect and change you as a person?
Not sure yet. It’s too soon afterwards to tell. I did realize that I would be happy to go for another trip by myself, because it’s a great opportunity to meet new people and hang out.- If you had to sum up your round-the-world trip in one sentence, what would it be?
It’s more work than you might expect, but nothing beats the experience. Or, “Everything will be just fine” (off a Chinese plastic tea canister).- Are you planning more trips and travels for the future? Are you planning another round-the-world trip?
No money. I’d like to do an RTW trip every 5-10 years.- 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?
It’s a different experience to completely immerse yourself in travelling. It becomes your full-time job. You change to have a different mindset. And you get more time to see and experience more.- What is the most valuable thing you learned?
There’s nice people and meanies everywhere. Just look for and really appreciate the really nice ones.- What is the biggest myth that people have about round-the-world traveling?
That it’s too expensive. I spent $8000 in 7 months! That’s less than most people’s rent in San Francisco.- Why do you like to travel?
To meet different people and see different cultures.- What is your advice for people planning their own RTW trip?
Go for it! Know yourself and what level of planning you need to do. If you go without much planning, everything will be just fine. - Before your trip: user interface designer
February – August 2002