Congratulations and good luck! Just thinking about all the cool things you're going to see makes me want to quit too
If you have time and good internet access please consider posting updates from time to time, I think many of us would love to hear about your travel adventures.
The Following User Says Thank You to automaton 3 For This Useful Post:
There are many travelogue websites (mostly dating mid 90's to early 2000's) on the internet that you can find and get advice and inspiration from. The Great Out There (http://www.gonewalkabout.com/got/) is what got me started years ago; Marie's World Tour (http://www.mariesworldtour.com/) was (originally in 2001) done entirely overland; 2 Go Global (http://www.2goglobal.com/) was a massive RTW trip that made me realize it was, indeed, possible to travel for a very long time; Mike Pugh's Vagabonding (http://www.vagabonding.com/), while not a pure RTW, has fantastic videos, photos, and commentary from his travels during the early 2000s. Search around and you'll find plenty of information on how to do your trip. Long term traveling now is--more or less--much easier than it was a decade ago.
That all being said, here's my advice:
Pack so that all of your belongings fit into a carry-on sized backpack (or roller).
Get an ATM card that allows you to withdraw cash worldwide for free (Schwab offers such a card to USA-ers; they might offer a similar one to those outside of the US).
Don't plan any specific part of your trip too far in advance; you may fall in love with a particular area and just feel like settling down there for a few weeks.
Expect to get sick a lot...and expect to get bored at times, wonder why you thought taking off was such a great idea, and decline the opportunity to visit some sight that many have saved months for to see. 9 months of continual around-the-world travel was enough for me. You may have a longer or shorter timespan.
Once you have your list of everywhere you absolutely want to see and everywhere you'd like to see, try to plot a route that takes into account the weather and tourist seasons. Best case is that you visit everywhere during the shoulder seasons. Planning the route to hit that window of time in each place is hard, but can save you money and sanity in the end, since accommodations are usually more expensive during the high seasons (and there are a lot more tourists to deal with too).
If you haven't done a lot of foreign travel before, it might be smart to start off somewhere that is somewhat like home and not too expensive. For that reason (and a few others) New Zealand is a common starting point for long-term travels. That way, you can learn how to deal with extended travelling without language barriers and without it costing too much each day.
Take a journal and write in it every night. I kept a daily record of what I did each day, what I saw, and how much I spent. Over time, the trip will blur together and you'll forget a lot unless you write it down.
In hostels (and elsewhere), you'll likely run into someone who has been to a lot of places but doesn't know much about what they've seen, and who likes to talk about everywhere they have been. Don't be that person. Slow your trip down; it is cheaper to travel slowly and it will likely be more rewarding as well.
Most of all, have fun and learn something about yourself and the world. You will probably return as a different person.
The Following User Says Thank You to HockeyIlliterate For This Useful Post:
http://www.travelfish.org/ is a pretty popular and well thought of site for travel to South East Asia. I have been reading through it as I am pondering a trip there upon my graduation.
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The Following User Says Thank You to OffsideSpecialist For This Useful Post:
If you are looking to travel the road less traveled, don't go to SE asia. That's the most traveled road out there. Korea, Mongolia, China, far less traveled than Vietnam.
If I were you, I would look at a goal on your trip. Perhaps to cross the continent by land? Train travel from Beijing to Morocco? Visit all 7 continents? It may help future employers understand the trip if there is a stated goal that you can have accomplished along the way.
The Following User Says Thank You to Knalus For This Useful Post:
Dammit, now I want to quit my job and travel as well. Why did I have to read this first thing in the morning at the start of a work week. I have a vacation coming up that I am looking forward to but with a leave of absence it could become something spectacular.
Back to pretending to work and dreaming about elsewhere until lunchtime.
The Following User Says Thank You to GP_Matt For This Useful Post:
If you are looking to travel the road less traveled, don't go to SE asia. That's the most traveled road out there. Korea, Mongolia, China, far less traveled than Vietnam.
Don't listen to this travel hipster.
Mongolia and parts of China are certainly less traveled than some parts of Vietnam, but I'd hardly say that SE Asia is the most traveled road out there. Go to Vietnam or Laos outside of the cities and the big backpacker destinations, and it will be as "untraveled" as just about anywhere that you'd ever want to go.
Do you guys recommend a travel agent to help with visas, or just go through one by one and apply where needed? I know some are available on arrival, but others are required in advance.
I would only recommend an agent if you need a bunch in a tighter timeline. The agent can go door to door in Ottawa to get your stamps while you would have to mail them back and forth.
A lot of the get in advance ones can be had pretty easily at the border as well or in the neighboring country. We sent away for our first China visa and it took weeks but when we were in Hong Kong our hotel lined up the visa in an hour.
Cambodia used to insist on visas obtained in advance but if you showed up at the border you just filled out the form and paid less than the advance fee.
Russia on the other hand you need to apply in advance as far as I know. If you make a list of the countries you are hoping to visit I am sure the board can help you out with the easiest way to get each visa.
The Following User Says Thank You to GP_Matt For This Useful Post:
Do you guys recommend a travel agent to help with visas, or just go through one by one and apply where needed? I know some are available on arrival, but others are required in advance.
I prefer to get them in advance where possible at consulate and visa centers in Calgary (like the Chinese VISA for example). It might cost a little more but this will save you the valuable time you will spend standing in lines, dealing with bureaucracy, red tape, officials, borders, unfamiliar customs, intimidating security, and foreign language barriers.
The Following User Says Thank You to Hack&Lube For This Useful Post:
I have 4 main adventures on this trip that I have come up with so far. If anyone has any other suggestions, please post them.
1) Hike to Everest Base Camp
2) Travel the Silk Road from Xi'an to Kashgar and then cross the border into Kyrgyzstan
3) Buy a bike in Hanoi and ride it 2000km to Ho Chi Minh City
4) Cross an ocean on a Cargo Ship, possibly from India to Africa
The Following 11 Users Say Thank You to worth For This Useful Post:
I have 4 main adventures on this trip that I have come up with so far. If anyone has any other suggestions, please post them.
1) Hike to Everest Base Camp
2) Travel the Silk Road from Xi'an to Kashgar and then cross the border into Kyrgyzstan
3) Buy a bike in Hanoi and ride it 2000km to Ho Chi Minh City
4) Cross an ocean on a Cargo Ship, possibly from India to Africa
This is adventure - go make some memories!
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The Following User Says Thank You to surferguy For This Useful Post:
I have 4 main adventures on this trip that I have come up with so far. If anyone has any other suggestions, please post them.
1) Hike to Everest Base Camp
2) Travel the Silk Road from Xi'an to Kashgar and then cross the border into Kyrgyzstan
3) Buy a bike in Hanoi and ride it 2000km to Ho Chi Minh City
4) Cross an ocean on a Cargo Ship, possibly from India to Africa
I am not sure if it is an adventure compared to your list, but I would put safari on the list. There are a number of different options beyond sitting in a land crusier.
I might know a fella that could help you with contacts.
PM if you are interested, I can hook you up.
Another one that just jumped into my mind, is act as a crew on a yacht delivery. A buddy in Cape Town SA makes part of his living doing this. The list of places he goes is pretty awesome, and they often are 3-6 weeks trips.
Again PM my if you want his info.
Finally, have a great time.
The Following User Says Thank You to undercoverbrother For This Useful Post:
Wait...let me get this straight:
1. They're going to pay for you to go to Rice in Houston for a year?
2. Do you have to work during this period?
If you have money saved, and are going to be around University aged girls all day at Rice you're going to hate yourself for missing that.
1. You're screwing your career you worked 9yrs for...I literally just met a female/male that "took a year off" from a mining company here in Australia. The mining industry turned and now both of them can't find jobs. They're both engineers too, so it should be easy. Anyway they wanted to switch to O&G, but the first thing I thought was you screwed your co-workers by just quitting one day, so what's stopping you from doing that to us. No thanks. I didn't recommend either. Nice people, but I wish them luck.
2. You're missing a MAJOR opportunity to meet the girl of your dreams. You're going to be around young (18-30yr old) girls that are smart enough to get into Rice and are low on emotional baggage. You're still close enough to home that they're a definite long term option as well.
3. Finding those girls will be more fullfilling then talking to other backpackers that just came out of Uni and are interested in "travel". Haha. I'm sure since you're 30 you've figured out some more interests. Trust me you won't be talking about politics, business, or even interesting things about the places you're seeing. You'll be taking selfies next to world landmarks then getting wasted...which is fun, but not life changing.
4. You can just go work/live in a new place too. If your company is that big they'll transfer you. You'll get a WAY better experience if you can spend more than a month in some place and make some real friends, not just meet other backpackers/travellers.
Anyway your call...
My background...I moved from Calgary O&G when I was 28 to Australia. It was a great move, but I also had dreams of just quitting and doing the same thing. Having a real job and a comfortable place to live down here is WAY better than working at the hostel bar. Trust me...since I still frequent the backpacker bars.
Wow, good thing you didn't listen to this guys' advice. Invert every single thing he told you and that would've been my advice.
Congrats, man. Gonna be a life-defining trip. Don't sweat the job at the end of it. What's the worst that can happen?
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Don't think I would have had the courage to make the choice you eventually did. definitely would have taken the schooling, regardless of my future plans.
I hope it all works out for you, and you enjoy the ride. maybe update the board with your travels/debaucheries
Good luck!
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The Following User Says Thank You to Keselke For This Useful Post:
Safari should definitely be on the list and will be if I make it to Africa. I just don't know how long I will be in Asia for, so that is my problem. I may run out of money before reaching Africa.
I have a few more visas to get before I leave and 1 or 2 more rounds of vaccines and I am good to go. I've got my yellow card so I can actually get into Africa if I end up there.
I can provide nothing of worth outside of perhaps this video, which I saw on Reddit and thought was awesome and may help you if you need to pack a lot in small pack.
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Jayems For This Useful Post:
Good luck and enjoy the world, Worth. I look forward to following your journey on tubmlr so be sure to post photos and blog often.
If it was me, I would for sure have taken the money, education and chances of meeting members of the opposite sex over travel. You're a brave man, godspeed and have fun.
The Following User Says Thank You to darklord700 For This Useful Post:
Yep, I wouldn't have done it. Hate traveling to start, love routine and security. Without it I have major anxiety.
But I got married and often have people tell me they would NEVER get married and hate the idea of it. Everyone is different with what they value. Good on you for figuring out what's important to you.
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