Jab and How I'm Feeling - Part 2

I've been for another jab today - Rabies and Hep B - it really hurt for some reason - but I'm almost there.

I've been thinking a lot about my last post, and my initial thought was to delete it. But then - that's how I was feeling last night. I've been pretty tired since I got back and I think I'm fighting off a bug, so I've been a bit low - plus it has been hard getting back into work. After all - I'm counting the days until I go :>)

But I'm still looking forward to putting the CCA project in. Being the kind of person I am - I'm always looking for the next thing, and I don't have that at work at the moment, given the short time till I leave.

I guess I'm just adjusting to the fact that I won't have a job in three months - and I won't see anyone I know until I get to OZ. And then I won't see anyone for a long time. And then I don't know what'll happen when I get back. Plus the list of things I need to do is still very long.

But I'm going on an adventure. And this is all part of it - because its making me realise what I have - and the things that are really of value.

How I've Been Feeling:

I've really underestimated the impact going on this trip would have on my life. I somehow imagined it would be like going on a long holiday, and that I'd just say goodbye to everyone and get on a plane.

But it's not like that - I''m actually leaving my whole life behind. It's even more complicated because I really don't know what I'll be doing when it's all over. And that makes it hard to talk to people who I've developed close friendships with - everyone knows I won't be around in three months time.

I'm also finding it hard to keep motivated at work. Sure - I'm doing my job and getting everything I need to done - but my heart's really not in it anymore. Having the week off was great - but it's made it even harder to get back into things.

I've started thinking about my "leaving party" which makes everything seem so final. And it's got me thinking even more about all of the people I'm going to miss - and who are going to miss me.

But while all that's going on - I'm really enjoying the prep of a trip like this - which is actually making it all the more difficult somehow. It's like I get home and do my other project - the one I'm really interested in. And then the days just keeps ticking away, and I feel like I'm running out of time.

So I'm trying to make the time drag out so I can spend it with people, while trying to make it rush by so I can quit work and get on with it.

I should have done this when I was 18 - it might have been easier - or maybe it wouldn't have been - who knows?

Shopping

I had a frustrating day today looking around the various outdoor shops in Harrogate. It seems that most of the clothes they stock - while functional - are definitely not fashionable. Where I did find some clothes that looked OK, they didn't have my size. I've decided to try the outdoor super stores and brand shops in Manchester next weekend.

I did buy a trek towel, made of a light weight, highly absorbent material with it's own storage bag. I've bought these before and they always felt like a piece of rubber - the new style towels are all soft fiber, which feels more like a lens cloth.



On the plus point, I did get to sit out in the sun at La Tasca and have tapas :>)

100 Days To Go

It was quite fitting that I'd be on holiday on my 100th day to go. I had an awesome week at Angelsey in North Wales hanging out. It really helped that the weather was fantastic - as was the company.

I'm really starting to look forward to going - although the whole leaving everything behind thing is still there in the background. I was chatting to Bekki the other day about her impending move to Chester, and we were swoping notes on what it's like to be "going away". We came to the conclusion that it was scary exciting!

Well - I'm just heading off to Harrogate on a shopping trip to Cotswolds in the hope of finding some clothes for my trip...

Storage Update - Thanks Paul!

The storage unit is now empty. I managed to get a charity to come and take some of the stuff, and Paul kindly went and disposed of the sofas - which no one seemed to want.

I'm amazed at the small amount of stuff I actually ended up keeping. Just about all of it was given away.

At the end of the day, there is actually very little we actually need to survive. Although when I say survive - I actually mean live, because I'm doing more than just surviving.

The great news is it's saved me some money, which means that I can save some more for the trip.

Top Tip: How To Pick And Dry Clothes!

Here's a top tip I picked up the other day. Traveling light means picking clothes that can be washed and dried easily - and don't look all crinkled when they dry. They also need to dry fast - and be able to be washed by hand (it saves time and money). So - the best approach is to:

1) Wash them by hand.
2) Wring them out.
3) Lay a towel on the ground and roll up the item of clothing into the dry towel.
4) Walk all over the rolled up towel
5) Hang them up and leave them over night.

Step 4 removes most of the water and helps press them a bit, reducing the number of creases. I'm trying the above with some clothes I've bought - and if they pass the test I'll be keeping them. If not - it'll be back to the shop for a refund :>)

Travelling Light: My Pack List

Having done a lot of long distance backpacking, I subscribe to the travel light approach - there's nothing worse than struggling miles with a heavy pack. I've decided to go the same approach for this trip, and will be aiming to keep the things I take to an absolute minimum.

The light weight approach really seems to be taking off, and there are plenty of great web sites out their - here's a particularly good one: Travel Independent.

One of the great advantages of traveling light is - if you can get your pack small enough - you can take it onto planes as carry on luggage. Not only does this mean no hanging around waiting for luggage to arrive, it also means no lost bags.

Here's a picture of the rucksack the people at Travel Independent use:



Having looked around at the various choices available - I'm thinking of getting one of these:

The total internal size is 50 liters, made up of a 13 liter day sack, and a 37 liter main travel pack. Which isn't much room - so I'll be trying to cut down the list of things I take to a minimum.

You can see my packing list by clicking here.

The Planned Route

I've had to make some fairly major changes to my planned route to make it line up with reasonably priced airline tickets. This means I won't be going to Africa, because there was no way of linking up all the places I'd like to go. The new planned route is:

- From London to Lima in South America.
- Overland to Santiago in Chile.
- From Chile to Australia.
- And then on to Singapore for a quick stop over.
- And then on to Bangkok in Thailand.

There's no firm plan from Bangkok, and the route will largely depend on the political situation at the time and how easy it is to cross certain borders. The great thing about the RTW ticket I've got (and thanks again to the team at STA Travel for this - and no I'm not on commission :>) is that I can very easily change the flights on the ticket and get straight home from most major airports in Asia.

The aim will be to visit: India, China, Cambodia, Vietnam, Pakistan, and the Karakoram Highway. I may also make it to Kazakhstan, and would really like to get to Kyrgyzstan - but that may not be possible given the visa situation.

There are loads of option for linking these places - the current favorite is:

- Thailand to Cambodia, and then on to Vietnam.
- Vietnam into China and on to Nepal.
- Nepal to India and into Pakistan.
- From Pakistan back to China via the Karakoram Highway.
- Then through China to Almaty in Kazakhstan.
- And then catch the train to Moscow or fly home from Almaty.

Based on an "as the crow flies" that's 34334 miles.

Here's a map showing the current plan:

View Larger Map

Just bought an airline ticket...

Just got back from Leeds, where I've been to STA Travel and put a £75 deposit on a RTW ticket. I just need to confirm exact dates and flights in the next three or four weeks. It'll be around the £1400 mark, which is a bit less than my original target and much cheaper than buying the flights individually. It also gives me some free flights in OZ to take a look around.

The team at STA were extremely helpful, and without them I think I'd still be stuck trying to work out the best way to get around. I had to make some last minute changes (made while sitting in the shop working out what to do) due to problems linking up flights. None of the airlines link Africa with South America, which means that Africa is now off the itinerary. A slight disappointment - but I've been to Africa twice before, and I now have more time to see some places I've never been to. As one of the guide books says - the places you don't see this time, will be there for the next time.

Thanks go to Paul for quickly searching for flights to and from Africa for me following several hurried phone calls.

I'll be posting my route in the next few days - and then begins the task of buying everything I need. I've only about three and half months to go before I leave, which is a scary thought - particularly given the things I need to do before then.

But at least I've got a ticket now...

Jab

I went for the second of three Rabies jabs today. One more to go - plus two more Hep B and one yellow fever.

We started looking at the malaria options, and (as I thought) I'm going to need them. They decided to leave it until next time as I need to nail down the route for definite - which should (and I've been saying this for several months now) be next week.

Cost: £43

More Route Planning.

I've been doing some more route planning.

I've been really busy lately - doing two other peoples jobs at work while they are on hols (which I don't mind but it's pretty draining), arranging a new young adults group, and going on barge trips (see my earlier post) - so I've not been spending the time I should on this.

I don't want to sound like I'm whining, but picking a route is hard - much harder than I'd anticipated. The main difficulties seem to be:

• Deciding where not to go - I just don't seem to have enough time.
  
• Making sure that the weather is at least reasonable.
  
• Working around visa and border problems.

I've done some great trips before - but I've only really had to worry about the first of the obstacles.

On a personal note, I'm also finding that the things that everyone finds frustrating in life are much harder to tolerate. I just keep thinking - I won't have to put up with this in "XX" days time - where as before I'd just get on with it.

As Neil Peart says in the June 2008 update of his excellent blog "Tales From The Trails" (wish I'd thought of that):

"What cannot be altered, must be endured."

Now I've decided to "alter things" - it seems that I'm finding the things I can't alter can't be endured anymore. And so "what cannot be endured, must be altered" - which is exactly what I'm about to do - in 121 days as it happens.

It does make me wonder how I'll adjust back to "normal" life when I get back.

I'm also finding the nature of the conversations I'm having with people is changing. The initial wow factor about my trip has gone, and people either don't talk about it, or talk about more specific things. Like the conversation about kidnapping for ransom I had last night. Bizarrely, on Radio 4 this morning they had an article about the same subject. The official advice is - don't pay - you'll only encourage it. The Radio 4 article also mentioned that people who are "bought" out of these situation often find their life is ruined, when they return home to massive debts.

Well - I'll stop complaining :>) - Although I'm a little worried that people won't find the blog interesting. But I've decided to be honest and record how I feel along the way - and if it's only of value to me - then it will have been worth it.

You can read Neil Peart's excellent blog on his web site, which is here: Neil Peart - Tales From The Trails.