Why wouldnt you want to travel the world?

I spent a year traveling in 2005 and it was the best thing i ever did. Most of my time was spent martial arts training so Thailand was my location of choice but i did travel to the surrounding country and spent some time in Hong kong also. I also spent some time around Europe with a what was then a very low cost season train ticket and that was just as fun. It really didnt cost me much to travel but i did make some extra money by fighting professional (pocket money to our standards). if you get the chance to travel do it, one of the best life experiences i have ever had.
 
joescrivens said:
Although I have to say the worst part of travelling is the actual travel itself. The 12 hour flights, the 4 hour bus journeys, the walking holding your backpack in the rain - all of that sucks eggs. But the actual exploring the new places when you are there is what makes it special.
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I love that part if you do it right. I look a sleeper train right across Thailand and Laos stopping off on the way and it was simply amazing.
 
asphotographymk said:
I love that part if you do it right. I look a sleeper train right across Thailand and Laos stopping off on the way and it was simply amazing.
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what was amazing about sleeping on the train though? You were asleep. How was it different to you being asleep anywhere else?

My train journeys in thailand were getting shorter train trips from bangkok north and stopping along the way, like sukothai. Trains are my favourite way to travel though, especially in thailand where you get a meal, even on a short journey.

It's the 12 hour flights during the day that suck!!! and walking from koh phi phi dock to your hotel 2 miles away in the p*ssing rain with 30kg of luggage on your body! :LOL:
 
Having watched the 3 video's none would inspire me to travel, in fact I found the flickering images rubbish (as I reach for the paracetamol). I consider that I'm well globally travelled and prefer to stay in good old blighty these days. Had I never travelled, watching the video's would do nothing to inspire me, but hey ho, might do something for someone ;)
 
spaniel said:
Having watched the 3 video's none would inspire me to travel, in fact I found the flickering images rubbish (as I reach for the paracetamol). I consider that I'm well globally travelled and prefer to stay in good old blighty these days. Had I never travelled, watching the video's would do nothing to inspire me, but hey ho, might do something for someone ;)
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perhaps this is more "up your street"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNhv8owSX0I&feature=player_embedded

:D:D:D:LOL::LOL::LOL:
 
joescrivens said:
what was amazing about sleeping on the train though? You were asleep. How was it different to you being asleep anywhere else?

My train journeys in thailand were getting shorter train trips from bangkok north and stopping along the way, like sukothai. Trains are my favourite way to travel though, especially in thailand where you get a meal, even on a short journey.

It's the 12 hour flights during the day that suck!!! and walking from koh phi phi dock to your hotel 2 miles away in the p*ssing rain with 30kg of luggage on your body! :LOL:
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Haha i dindt mean the sleeping part was good. But the experience and the people i met on the train journeys was amazing.

30kg walk... That sounds like good training to me ha. I was doing regular 15kg weighted runs in them days mind you.
 
asphotographymk said:
30kg walk... That sounds like good training to me ha. I was doing regular 15kg weighted runs in them days mind you.
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ah right, i didn't realise you used to train and do martial arts, how come you never mentioned it before? :LOL:
 
I have done a bit of traveling 20 countries and as has been said don't forget your own back yard. I have done 30 of the 50 US states and it is just as good as the trips abroad.
At the moment I am looking into a trip to Africa...if I can afford it, if not it will be another road trip in the US looking forward to either or.
 
joescrivens said:
That makes no sense?

Are there cameras or lenses you don't want because you can't afford them?

Or are there cameras and lenses you would like to have BUT you can't afford them?
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Well it makes sense to me Joe ;) If only I had that education eh! :D But in answer to you. Why should I fill my head with things that I would like or want if I cannot afford it :shrug: I do purchase things now and again, but only things within my budget.
 
cdiver2 said:
I have done a bit of traveling 20 countries and as has been said don't forget your own back yard. I have done 30 of the 50 US states and it is just as good as the trips abroad.

At the moment I am looking into a trip to Africa...if I can afford it, if not it will be another road trip in the US looking forward to either or.
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I do think alot of americans are rather unjustify called insular for sticking to their home turf, in terms of landscapes if not culture its closer to a western european never leaving the area.

Personally I find the UK generally more interesting that most of the nearby destinations in Europe(Northern France, Holland, Belgium, Western Germany etc) so I tend to stick to holidays here or much longer haul trips.

I'v never been too keen on the backpacker lifestyle either that seems to consist of hanging around in bars in tourist traps 90% of the time.
 
Moreorless said:
I'v never been too keen on the backpacker lifestyle either that seems to consist of hanging around in bars in tourist traps 90% of the time.
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That is down to the individual. The great thing about traveling is you go to the places you want to. If thats bars and tourist areas great if not then you dont.
 
u8myufo said:
Well it makes sense to me Joe ;) If only I had that education eh! :D But in answer to you. Why should I fill my head with things that I would like or want if I cannot afford it :shrug: I do purchase things now and again, but only things within my budget.
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I think it's healthy to want things that are out of your reach within reason, it helps you to stretch yourself to try and achieve them. That's not to say you should spend your life wanting everything you can't have, but a good balance in between is healthy.
 
I liked the videos all though I got fed up with the loading time through Vimeo and my patience ran out through the start of the food Vid. I’m not sure there is enough inspiration in them to make someone want to travel on just them, but the vids could certainly help toward the whole. Funnily enough it was my wife’s extensive travel stories through SEA in her young days and talking to other friends that was my main inspiration for me to get out there. Like so many others I sold everything I owned, borrowed from those closest (thanks mum ;)) and travelled Peru for a month. When I returned to the UK reality hit. We had nothing, were skint and it took an age to pull it all back. And it wasn’t cheap even back then (1998). Was it worth it? You bet your arse it was. Those memories are instilled in me more than many in my life.

And to anyone who thinks it’s not expensive it is. There’s nothing cheap about traveling the world. If you’re off to the other side of the world, then the flight cost alone is a kick in the arse not to mention popping over to other countries. The cost of living in particular in SEA is skyrocketing due to tourism and industry and so on and I’m guessing it’s the same on all the continents. And may I just add that if you budget to such books as Lonely Planet , Rough guide or Traveling on a Shoe String ect then make sure you have tons of spare cash because these books are so inaccurate in places that it beggars belief. I’m sure it’s not their fault but being a tourist in many far away countries will double, triple and even in some cases quadruple what was originally a 10 buck hotel.

If you really, really want to travel though, you will. You’ll find a way. It’s not for everyone and I totally respect that. For those that do and are worried about the budget traveling, as we are, it comes down to a Leap of Faith, a moment where you just say F’it. That is the word I used when we planned on moving to Vietnam and here we are! And yet when we get back to ol’ Blighty we will have absolutely nothing again. (y)
 
Vantage said:
And to anyone who thinks it’s not expensive it is. There’s nothing cheap about traveling the world. If you’re off to the other side of the world, then the flight cost alone is a kick in the arse not to mention popping over to other countries. The cost of living in particular in SEA is skyrocketing due to tourism and industry and so on and I’m guessing it’s the same on all the continents. And may I just add that if you budget to such books as Lonely Planet , Rough guide or Traveling on a Shoe String ect then make sure you have tons of spare cash because these books are so inaccurate in places that it beggars belief. I’m sure it’s not their fault but being a tourist in many far away countries will double, triple and even in some cases quadruple what was originally a 10 buck hotel.
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i disagree, my two trips round the world did not cost a lot of money, the flights themselves were the most expensive outlay, but if you cook you own food and don't spend all your money on eating out and drinking you can get by very easily on a tiny budget, especially in SEA, public transport is also key to saving money, don't be getting in taxi's and first class train rides etc. My trips were in 2002 and 2004 so not too long after your own trip.

In my first trip after my flight cost I had £2000 which easily lasted me 4 months which is a budget of £16 a day.
 
There's plenty more inspiration in this thread than the videos to be honest (y)
 
joescrivens said:
i disagree, my two trips round the world did not cost a lot of money, the flights themselves were the most expensive outlay, but if you cook you own food and don't spend all your money on eating out and drinking you can get by very easily on a tiny budget, especially in SEA, public transport is also key to saving money, don't be getting in taxi's and first class train rides etc. My trips were in 2002 and 2004 so not too long after your own trip.

In my first trip after my flight cost I had £2000 which easily lasted me 4 months which is a budget of £16 a day.
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So your four month trip cost you around £3000 in 2002-4. I think now you could add one or two more to that price for a four month trek. I think thats quite expensive for any individual let alone what the cost to a family would be.
 
Vantage said:
So your four month trip cost you around £3000 in 2002-4. I think now you could add one or two more to that price for a four month trek. I think thats quite expensive for any individual let alone what the cost to a family would be.
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Hardly expensive when you consider what normal life costs you. I mean £16 a day for eating, accommodation and entertainment. My normal life costs me much more than that and thats much less fun.

but i guess expensive is all up for interpretation. I went 20,000 miles in flights. You could easily travel overground from europe to asia for a hell of a lot less.
 
joescrivens said:
Hardly expensive when you consider what normal life costs you. I mean £16 a day for eating, accommodation and entertainment. My normal life costs me much more than that and thats much less fun.

but i guess expensive is all up for interpretation. I went 20,000 miles in flights. You could easily travel overground from europe to asia for a hell of a lot less.
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Valid point taken, Joe. (y) And if you get the bug for travel, somehow, you'll find a way to do it.:)
 
Moreorless said:
I do think alot of americans are rather unjustify called insular for sticking to their home turf, in terms of landscapes if not culture its closer to a western european never leaving the area.

Personally I find the UK generally more interesting that most of the nearby destinations in Europe(Northern France, Holland, Belgium, Western Germany etc) so I tend to stick to holidays here or much longer haul trips.

I'v never been too keen on the backpacker lifestyle either that seems to consist of hanging around in bars in tourist traps 90% of the time.
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On how you look at it
insular
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Yes to an extent, mostly blue collar and that comes back to money. I think the divide between the have's and have nots is greater in the US than the UK. above blue collar they travel extensively.


Culture
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You would be surprised at the differences, go from NY to the mid west... what a difference.

My travel in the US is road trips, fly somewhere rent a car and go on a pre planed route, all secondary roads no freeways and no big city's. Accommodations is not booked we get AAA books withe motels listed for each state we go through, that way we can dilly dally as long as we wish and where ever we end up at the end of the day we then call around for accommodations.
This works well as it is the end of the day and rooms are not sold so they will wheel and deal. I have had some great upgrades for a regular room price.

For European travel I would like to do Yugoslavia-Bulgaria- Croatia area I believe there is some great scenic and wild life there.

Backpacking...to old,fat and lazy
 
Just found this thread when searching for something else, but feel compelled to comment.

I actually worked for STA when those videos were launched and we agents in the stores thought they were pretty average at best for encouraging new travellers to get out there into the world ;)

Surely though one great thing about travel for members of this forum is the opportunity to take photos of different places/cultures/food/people as well as experiencing all of that first hand. I'm currently living abroad, but my contract ends in 4 months and I'm off travelling, but this time with a decent camera and more knowledge of how to take/edit a decent photo than last time I travelled.

Excited would be understatement of the century :)
 
Moving wholesale abroad to work really isn't as big a deal as it seems. When you actually do it, it is surprisingly painless, I would highly recommend it!

Apart from living in a different culture...being here means Thailand, Bali, Phillipines, Vietnam, Laos, China, Taiwan, Japan, Singapore etc...are all doable in a weekend. Took the sleeper train up to Shanghai for the F1 a couple of weeks ago, great experience.

Only trouble with leaving the UK is that you really see all the things that are wrong with the place. I won't be back for a loooong time.
 
I have to agree, Chris.
I'm in Korea at the moment and have travelled a lot in Asia with more planned for this year.
I'll be back in the UK to see friends/family, but I can't see it being a permanent home for a looooong time again!
 
Same here, I miss NOTHING about the UK and only ever return to visit family. The place seem so dark (literally), unfriendly and depressing.
 
I think it's down to who you are. Spent lots of time travelling, working in Japan and India and never thought I would have said this before hand but I always miss home. I used to love travelling alone spent many an hour lost walking the streets on Tokyo. I do agree though the place is going down hill you notice that especially when you come back I moved to the midlands about 8 years ago and have to go back down south to visit my mother and even in that small distance of travel you notice the differences.
 
Well, the videos just seem like some American guys documenting their backpacking gap year or something.
As for inspiring? Well they didn't offer anything other than the tinyest glimpse of wherever they were.
If by inspiring you mean "wow look at all the cool places these dudes went" i find it no more inspirational than gettin on a bus, gettin off at your stop then gettin back on and repeating whilst reading the lonely planet. What absorption did they get? Very little i guess. I prefer to explore one place a little more, get to know better, so i can say more about my travels than for instance "got to France, played boules, ate some boudin noir then left"
 
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I love travelling too we go as often as we can afford :)
Am into wildlife tho ,not into beach holidays dont see the point of travelling a long way to sit by a pool for 2 weeks:D
We went to India last year to see Tigers was an amazing experience had to save for a long time but was worth it
Next trip is to Africa probably Zambia, to see Lions and Leopards :)
 
To be frank, the biggest reason that I don't want to travel the world is cause travelling really hurts me! (I have an aquired neuro disability.) If it wasn't for that, I would've been to a great deal of places that I want to see in the UK and several abroad by now. Nevermind. :)
 
Travelling is amazing, I've not read every single post so forgive me if I have repeated something, but travelling does not have to be abroad. I love flying out to far off lands, I've been lucky enough to visit some amazing places, but we now have to tighten our belts a little. I now travel around England and I have to say we have some of the most beautiful sights in the World right at our door step. We have the beautiful South West coast which on a good day could rival any in the World. We have a brilliant and vibrant Capital City, one which millions visit each year. We have a Lake District with some some stunning scenery and we also have the Cotswolds and Peak District, I've not even mentioned Wales or Scotland yet.

I think there is so much to see, life would be a bit boring if we all sat around the same place......

Enjoy our planet, it is here for all to see and snap! :)
 
By all means travel, if you can afford it, but please be very careful not to become a travel bore. :nono:

You know the type of people who always try to trump whatever you’re doing with a yawn inspiring story from their travels….zzz zzz zzz
A bit like uncle Albert with his “during war stores” in Only Fools and Horses.

Continuing in the tongue in cheek, negative vein in which I began. I’m seriously not interested in foreign holiday snaps, be they of people, wildlife, or scenery.
 
Mitch38 said:
By all means travel, if you can afford it, but please be very careful not to become a travel bore. :nono:

You know the type of people who always try to trump whatever you’re doing with a yawn inspiring story from their travels….zzz zzz zzz
A bit like uncle Albert with his “during war stores” in Only Fools and Horses.

Continuing in the tongue in cheek, negative vein in which I began. I’m seriously not interested in foreign holiday snaps, be they of people, wildlife, or scenery.
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Uk holiday snaps though are fine?
 
that guy certainly went to a lot of places in a pretty short time frame! Not sure I'd want to do it quite like that. Im heading to vietnam in a couple months for 4 weeks which should be a decent amount of time to see whats there. Never really been travelling outside of Europe/ Skandanavia before but really cannot wait!
My advice is get yourself hyped up to do it on pay day and just go ahead and buy the tickets before you have time to talk yourself out of the idea.
 
Great stuff. I'm off to Northern India for the whole of September to get my fix of mountains and travel photography. My head says I can't afford it, my heart says I have no intention of being the richest man in the graveyard.
 
Jack Field said:
Great stuff. I'm off to Northern India for the whole of September to get my fix of mountains and travel photography. My head says I can't afford it, my heart says I have no intention of being the richest man in the graveyard.
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Great attitude!
 
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