4-June-2010 As you might guess planning a 10-month long trip is no minute task. Having made the decision embark on this adventure, the first question we had to answer was, "Where do we go?" Since both Rachel and I pretty much want to go everywhere, we went through a long process of narrowing down possible destinations. Considering the fact that traveling can be quite expensive we took into account costs, logistics, and places and regions that both of us wanted explore. Although our plan is by no means set in stone, we have decided to focus on southern Asia. This vast and varied region ranked very high on both of our to-see lists and neither of us have visited this part of the world. One added bonus is that the region is probably the cheapest places on earth to travel...lucky us!
2010
July: On July 5th we arrive in Kuala Lumpur (KL for short), Malaysia on the steamy southern Peninsula of SE Asia. After KL we will head up for fun in the sun, sand, and sea on the Perhentian Islands (off the east coast of Malaysia), where we will learn to scuba dive. Other potential destinations on the Malaysian Peninsula include the hill station of the Cameron Highlands and the west coast island of Penang, which is home to, reputedly, some of the best and most diverse food in all of Asia. The last half of the month will find us in a biologist's paradise of the island of Borneo. Exploring the Malaysian Borneo states of Sabah and Sarawak, we hope to get a taste of some of the most-diverse rainforest in the world. If we are lucky we will get to see numerous pitcher plants, orchids galore, the the giant flower of Rafflesia arnoldii , loads of birds and butterflies, proboscis monkeys, a mosquito or two, and, crossing fingers, orangutans.
August: Finishing up mid-month in Borneo, we will head to Yogyakarta on the Indonesian island of Java. For the rest of the month we will visit Hindu and Buddist temples, experience Javan culture and bathe in the surreal views in Gunung (volcano in Bahasa Indonesia) Bromo National Park.
September: We will continue exploring the diverse cultures and nature of the land of 17,000 islands (Indonesia) with visits to Flores (and surrounding islands) to see komodo dragons, deserted islands, and techni-colored lakes and Sulawesi to experience world-class diving at Bunaken Island and tarsiers in the Tangoko Nature Reserve. That scuba diving certification sure will come in handy.
October: After a couple of weeks of relaxation and experiencing Balinese culture (on Bali, of course) and a brief stop to gorge ourselves in Singapore it is off to Indian sub-continent: destination Nepal. In Nepal we will meet our friend, Betsy, and spend nearly a month trekking to Mt. Everest Base Camp-what a way to get high!
November: Returning exhausted mid-month to Kathmandu we will spend the remainder of the month recuperating, with possible trips to search for tigers in Chitwan National Park and, money and time-permitting, a foray into Tibet.
December: We will spend December experiencing culture (and probably digestive) shock in norther India. Among the things in the works are a couple weeks of yoga and the Taj Mahal!
2011
January-February: Will find us in mainland SE Asia. Since this part of the trip is still somewhat far away, our plans are far from definite. Tops on are list of places to see are Burma (Myanmar), Laos, and Thailand. The current idea is to finish our time in Asia with a visit to the surreal temples of Angkor Wat in Cambodia.
March-April: As part of our plan of assimilation back into western culture we will rent a campervan and spend about 2 months traversing the north and south islands of New Zealand.
Early-May: The last stop of our adventure will be 1-2 weeks of relaxation in the Pacific. The current front-runner is the island-paradise of the Cook Islands. From there it is back home to California.
So, there it is, our plan, 10 months, a little more than 300 days. The start of our adventure is just 1 month away. I hope you enjoy following us along the way...cheers!
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2010
July: On July 5th we arrive in Kuala Lumpur (KL for short), Malaysia on the steamy southern Peninsula of SE Asia. After KL we will head up for fun in the sun, sand, and sea on the Perhentian Islands (off the east coast of Malaysia), where we will learn to scuba dive. Other potential destinations on the Malaysian Peninsula include the hill station of the Cameron Highlands and the west coast island of Penang, which is home to, reputedly, some of the best and most diverse food in all of Asia. The last half of the month will find us in a biologist's paradise of the island of Borneo. Exploring the Malaysian Borneo states of Sabah and Sarawak, we hope to get a taste of some of the most-diverse rainforest in the world. If we are lucky we will get to see numerous pitcher plants, orchids galore, the the giant flower of Rafflesia arnoldii , loads of birds and butterflies, proboscis monkeys, a mosquito or two, and, crossing fingers, orangutans.
August: Finishing up mid-month in Borneo, we will head to Yogyakarta on the Indonesian island of Java. For the rest of the month we will visit Hindu and Buddist temples, experience Javan culture and bathe in the surreal views in Gunung (volcano in Bahasa Indonesia) Bromo National Park.
September: We will continue exploring the diverse cultures and nature of the land of 17,000 islands (Indonesia) with visits to Flores (and surrounding islands) to see komodo dragons, deserted islands, and techni-colored lakes and Sulawesi to experience world-class diving at Bunaken Island and tarsiers in the Tangoko Nature Reserve. That scuba diving certification sure will come in handy.
October: After a couple of weeks of relaxation and experiencing Balinese culture (on Bali, of course) and a brief stop to gorge ourselves in Singapore it is off to Indian sub-continent: destination Nepal. In Nepal we will meet our friend, Betsy, and spend nearly a month trekking to Mt. Everest Base Camp-what a way to get high!
November: Returning exhausted mid-month to Kathmandu we will spend the remainder of the month recuperating, with possible trips to search for tigers in Chitwan National Park and, money and time-permitting, a foray into Tibet.
December: We will spend December experiencing culture (and probably digestive) shock in norther India. Among the things in the works are a couple weeks of yoga and the Taj Mahal!
2011
January-February: Will find us in mainland SE Asia. Since this part of the trip is still somewhat far away, our plans are far from definite. Tops on are list of places to see are Burma (Myanmar), Laos, and Thailand. The current idea is to finish our time in Asia with a visit to the surreal temples of Angkor Wat in Cambodia.
March-April: As part of our plan of assimilation back into western culture we will rent a campervan and spend about 2 months traversing the north and south islands of New Zealand.
Early-May: The last stop of our adventure will be 1-2 weeks of relaxation in the Pacific. The current front-runner is the island-paradise of the Cook Islands. From there it is back home to California.
So, there it is, our plan, 10 months, a little more than 300 days. The start of our adventure is just 1 month away. I hope you enjoy following us along the way...cheers!
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