- When did you go on your RTW trip?
June 2004-June 2005
- How old were you when you took this trip?
29/36
- Including your air ticket and other expenses (from accommodation to souvenir-buying), about how much did your trip cost?
US$ 35000
- Nationality
USA
- Where do you live now?
USA
- Occupation
Before your trip: lawyer/scientist
Now: looking for similar jobs
- How did your travels affect your career when you got back?
we got back yesterday, so I have not a clue
- What is the route you took/places you visited?
Eastern Europe-North Africa-South America-Easter I-Australia-UAE-India-SE Asia-Japan-cross country drive, USA For more info look up our website on lonelyplanet. search for michelle and charlie
- Why did you decide to take this trip? What got you into this type of travel, and/or influenced you to go?
we met a couple 3 years ago climbing Kilimanjaro. they were on a shorter more luxurious RTW trip.....
- Who is the most memorable person you met on your trip and why?
not one, there were lots of interesting people out there
- How much planning and preparing did you do?
Just Enough
- What was your favorite piece of gear?
none
- What did you bring, that in hindsight you could've left at home?
almost everything.
- How did your round-the-world trip change your life? How did it affect and change you as a person?
too early to say
- If you had to sum up your round-the-world trip in one sentence, what would it be?
- Are you planning more trips and travels for the future? Are you planning another round-the-world trip?
sure. next time we will sail RTW. Most of the upsetting moments are results of looking for a decent place to stay/transportation. The boat is both.
- 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?
I am not sure if they should. Actually I would rather recommend to do longer regional trips, like 4-6 month of South America or SE Asia. It is easy to get burned out on a longer trip and trying to cover all the continents makes the transportation part lot more expensive. Of course if you want to see things at many places, you need a job where you can get away that long every few years.
- What is the most valuable thing you learned?
to think "whatever". there will be another bus or anything that you just missed. Eventually you start thinking, why did I spend 30 min bargaining (and worse, getting mad)over $0.50???
- What is the biggest myth that people have about round-the-world traveling?
It cost less than one would expect. Our 35 000 would have been much less without a few "big ticket items". Galapagos, climbing Elbrus and Aconcagua accounted for 1/3rd of the full price and less than 1/10th of the full time. BTW, do not drop these things, they are some of the best memories that we have.
- Why do you like to travel?
- What is your advice for people planning their own RTW trip?
plan on changing pace. a few weeks of running around, a week on a dive- liveaboard. a few weeks of driving around, a week sitting around in Darjeeling, reading books and eating tibetian bread upstairs in the hotel.
Don't judge people of a country based on the taxi drivers.