i think not

here it is!!!

well it seems dreams do come true.

as promised here is my RTW:

-Paris-Delhi
-surface to Kathmandou
-Kathmandou-Bangkok
-surface to Singapore
-Singapore-Bali
-Bali-Darwin
-Darwin-Sydney
-surface to Brisbane
-Brisbane-Melbourne
-Melbourne-Christchurch
-surface to Auckland
-Auckland-Santiago
-surface to Quito (Ecuador), via Argentina, Bolivia, Peru
-Quito-Panama
-surface to Mexico
-Mexico-Paris

well how's that!!
I am so happy and maybe a little nervous...I'm leaving on January 15th and returning sometime after mid-August
Of course I shall be posting a whole reel if questions very soon!! ;-)

Hope you had a great week-end

-Alaaya

Wow, that sounds great. I was looking to do a very similar trip in the opposite direction. Please let me know how much you have budgeted for, how much were your tickets, etc. Thanks

Nice...Have a great trip as I am sure you will!!
Good luck!!

# 1 .... this trip can be done in the reverse order...like many RTW tickets...i haven't done my whole budget yet as I only got the ticket last week but the ticket itself was bought in France for just over 2000 euros.

have fun

-------------------------
The Music

Travelling Again!

A list of cities. That's nice. Do you plan on seeing anything of the countries involved or just going from MacDonalds to MacDonalds?

My point is that cities are not where you learn about the country, the people or the culture. My advice is that you plan on 6 days outside the city for every day in a city.

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Two roads diverged in a wood, and I - I took the one less travelled by.

Just a question: Why are you going -Darwin-Sydney-surface to Brisbane-Brisbane-Melbourne? Why not go Darwin -Brisbane - Sydney - Melbourne?

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all the separations in time are nothing but an appointment for eternity...

i thought that

-------------------------
The Music

Travelling Again!

# 5... BpGuru I am European and French and as such wouldn't be caught dead inside a Mc Donalds ! Seriously I understand your misgivings however 1) I am going on my own, I am a 20 yrs old female, and using public modes of transportation which means that I pretty much have to go between cities; 2) I unfortunatly only have 7 months available before I go back to school in Britain next fall so my trip will not be more than a taste of the countries I'm going through, except maybe Australia since I plan to spend 2 months there. This can be deplored but is better than nothing and 3) the list of cities listed above is only the list of the cities I arrive in and depart from, my ticket is a set one and does not allow flexibility on this point, but rest assured I do intend to see much more than the cities listed above.

I also tend to disagree with you that cities show nothing of the country...they are not everything obviously but in today's world more people live in cities than elsewhere, for better or worse.

ps: I'm a great fan of Frost and that poem in particular and I deem Scotland to be the most beautiful country I have ever seen.

#6...this does seem a bit odd it know however I'm travelling on a set ticket and that's what it says on the ticket! ;)
I must ask the travel agent next time I talk to them what was the rational behind that.

:-)
Ella

Good to hear it is just the list of your arrival and departure points alaaya. As for my comment that the cities are not where you learn about the country, the people or the culture, I stand by that. London is not England nor is Paris France. It is in a pub in Upper Wherever or a restaurant in Petite Ville that you find the real people, food and culture.

Unfortunately a great many young people set out on their "RTW" adventure and never stray off the same route as everyone else and never go outside their list of cities on their "must see" itinerary. It is nice to hear you plan on giving MacDonalds a miss. :)

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Two roads diverged in a wood, and I - I took the one less travelled by.

10.

BP: I was just sifting through this branch and was wondering when I'd come across a post of yours. I recognised it was you before I saw the name. Nice to see your sharp, slicing, wit still piercing through peoples' confidence and emotions.

Alaaya: I'm envious of your impending journey. The wife and I just recently finished the first leg of our trip (which turned out to be 15 weeks through Africa and the Middle-East). Our second leg will start in the spring and looks relatively similar to yours: India, China, SEA, Australiasia, Pacific region, Easter Island, South America, Galapagos, Mexico, USA & back home to Europe.

I'm also thinking that our trip will last something like 8 months or so. I'm curious to see what your budget looks like? I'm hoping to have about £24,000 to cover this second leg (expecting to spend more time in Oz and NZ so I've increased the budget accordingly).

We spent abut $12,000 for the 15 weeks but this included a splurge of about $2,000 for two nights in the Burg Al-Arab in Dubai (last 2 nights before we flew home) as well as $1,000 for car hire for 5 weeks in South Africa.

BP is absolutely right about the city thing. The farther afield you can get, the better your experience will be. Traveling 'through' a country is infinitely more rewarding than flying from point to point.

It's nice that you have a planned route but I hope you at least have some scope for changing plans en-route. Even if you have to pay for additional changes in destinations (some RTW tickets will allow changes with a small penanlty), I'm sure the rewards reaped will morethan offset the costs. Our 15 week trek ended up looking very different to what we had originally planned. The freedom to go where you want, when you want cannot be expressed in words. Not having an agenda to keep up with or an airport you need to be at at a certain time, for example, is truly liberating.

BP: Does any of this bring back memories of previous exchanges between us? I distinctly remember you lecturing the same to me when I was in my planning stages. Now here I am passing on the same advice. Who'd 'ave thunk it :-)

Good luck Alaaya!

- CDM