I already mentioned that I'm trying to make more spontaneous decisions in life, and just do stuff for fun, without thinking too much about them. So that is a central theme of this trip, but there are some goals I hope to achieve.
In a sense, this is a solo trip. Yes, I will travel with Felix for 4 or 5 days, and I will see Scrabblers that I know in Prague, as well, but I am doing this journey on my own, and I want to see what happens.
See, traveling alone scares the hell out of me. I've always been convinced that I'd only have fun traveling if it was with my friends. My time in Southeast Asia last year was so amazing in part because I got to experience the whole thing with friends. But I also met lots of cool people in Bangkok, a few of whom I'm still in contact with a year later. So maybe this sentiment is true, or maybe I'm just nervous to travel by myself. I intend to find out what traveling alone is really like.
So with that in mind, I am going to try out two methods of lodging: CouchSurfing and hosteling. I will be CouchSurfing in Vienna this week, and hosteling next week in Prague. They're definitely different ways of traveling, but I am excited to see how they work out. I also plan to CS in Zurich at the end of my trip. I'll be staying with some Austrian dudes this week. Should be cool?
Anyway, I guess there isn't that much deep I hope to get out of this trip - I mostly just want to challenge myself to try taking a trip on my own, especially if I ever want to consider LIVING abroad...
That and I'm trying to envelop this idea of living a spontaneous life. This trip is possibly the most spontaneous thing I have done, so we'll see.
For now I'm just exhausted. I can't wait to be at my host's house in Vienna, so I can get a good night sleep, and start out strong Tuesday. Assuming they are open, I intend to visit Schonbrunn Palace and Haus der Musik. And eat food. That's all I got for now though.
Oh, and I'm talking with Felix right now, and it looks like we are buying tickets to Hamburg, so I'll see two German cities this trip.
OK - enough blogging, time to get ready for the flight. Thanks for following along! :)
Showing posts with label pre-trip. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pre-trip. Show all posts
Sunday, November 25, 2012
So Apparently I'm Going to Europe...
I guess this is my pre-departure post...been kinda busy.
At some point in September, I decided I would take a medium-sized trip to Europe in November/December. I'd sent my friend Felix, an eternal postdoc at the U of Geneva (I think), a message saying I was thinking of coming. After talking for many hours over the next couple of days, I decided to cross the Atlantic for the first time. It's weird - looking back over the last two months, I don't even remember when I decided to take this trip. This realization is a good thing, I feel, because it shows that I'm calming down, and just doing stuff without deep reasoning, just because I can, and I should WHILE I can. So here I am at gate 101 at LAX awaiting a flight to Vienna via Duesseldorf - my first trip to Europe.
My itinerary for now:
11/26-11/30 Vienna, Austria (Bratislava, Slovakia?)
121/30-12-6 Prague, Czech Republic
12/6-12/10 Berlin, Germany (Hamburg?)
12/10-12/13 Geneva + Zurich, Switzerland
Transatlantic flights from LAX were $816. Fantastic. Unfortunately roundtrip flights to LAX proved to be extremely shitty, at almost $200. So in the end I save ~$100, but fly on "airberlin", which seems to be a low cost carrier not offering many perks. So in a sense, it was a colossal failure, as I likely could've flown something like Swiss Air from SFO for not that much more than $1100. Oh well - live and learn!
But on the bright side, I got to see my friend Sandy's new gorgeous Malibu house. This place is seriously cool, with some crazy bathrooms designed by the glassworker who built the house. We also played two games of Collins Scrabble (as a warmup for the Mind Sports Invitational Scrabble Tournament, which we will both be at). I averaged 590, and played words like TAGMEMIC, BURLESK, and BEDLAMS. Sandy then provided me with pork belly, prime rib, duck, and risotto. Consider me sated for the 11 hour long flight ahead.
The sun came out in Malibu as I was headed back to the airport, but the iconic drive down PCH is always fun.
I've arrived plenty early for my flight. I've heard horror stories about the 6kg max weight of carryon baggage, so I've checked my new pack, and brought a Scrabble bag as a carryon. I don't think they weigh tuff at the gate, and my carryon looks smaller than everyone else's anyway. On top of that, I also secured an aisle seat for the transatlantic flight. I'm not sure if it's a control freak tendency, or just a desire not to inconvenience people, but I strongly prefer aisle seats for any flight longer than an hour or two. I just like knowing I can get up whenever I need to - no need to worry about someone sleeping in the way of my ability to get up and walk around. And I'm such a crappy sleeper on planes anyway that it's no trouble if someone next to me needs to get up. I actually asked if I could get a seat in an emptier row towards the back. As of when I got the ticket, I think the lady was able to fulfill my request, but I guess we will see when I board. Unfortunately, there are no outlets on airberlin, so I'll just have one charge worth of laptop to study as many words as I can. I also have a short book to read, my phone full of music, and hopefully SOME rest. I've also heard that personal entertainment systems are only onboard some of airberlin's fleet. I'd think there would be for transatlantic, but we'll have to wait and see.
I effectively pulled an all-nighter last night, trying to pack appropriately. I bought a backpack a few weeks ago designed for, well, backpacking. My goal is to travel lighter, and more efficiently. In Asia last year, having a huge carry bag and a small backpack did NOT work. So yes, my back will get a workout for the next three weeks, but it's a great quality pack with good support, and is quite comfortable. Anyway, I finally had all my stuff packed by about 3 AM (wake up time = 5:40 AM), and then realized I'd overpacked. So I took out a shirt, some socks, a heavy hardback book :(, and some other stuff I deemed unnecessary, and got the weight down to something more reasonable, before finally getting a little rest between 4:30 and 5:30 AM. So I've been kind of a zombie today, and my nonlinear narrative in this post indicates zombification. I don't think I ever realized just how heavy my laptop is, even though it's still lighter than most PCs. There really is something to be said for getting an iPad...
Anyway, I'll stop this post here, but will write a separate second post now before I step on the plane...My intent is to write another travel blog while I'm in Europe. No promises, but I'll try. I finished the entire Asia trip blog...and only three months late! Feel free to bug me...
At some point in September, I decided I would take a medium-sized trip to Europe in November/December. I'd sent my friend Felix, an eternal postdoc at the U of Geneva (I think), a message saying I was thinking of coming. After talking for many hours over the next couple of days, I decided to cross the Atlantic for the first time. It's weird - looking back over the last two months, I don't even remember when I decided to take this trip. This realization is a good thing, I feel, because it shows that I'm calming down, and just doing stuff without deep reasoning, just because I can, and I should WHILE I can. So here I am at gate 101 at LAX awaiting a flight to Vienna via Duesseldorf - my first trip to Europe.
My itinerary for now:
11/26-11/30 Vienna, Austria (Bratislava, Slovakia?)
121/30-12-6 Prague, Czech Republic
12/6-12/10 Berlin, Germany (Hamburg?)
12/10-12/13 Geneva + Zurich, Switzerland
Transatlantic flights from LAX were $816. Fantastic. Unfortunately roundtrip flights to LAX proved to be extremely shitty, at almost $200. So in the end I save ~$100, but fly on "airberlin", which seems to be a low cost carrier not offering many perks. So in a sense, it was a colossal failure, as I likely could've flown something like Swiss Air from SFO for not that much more than $1100. Oh well - live and learn!
But on the bright side, I got to see my friend Sandy's new gorgeous Malibu house. This place is seriously cool, with some crazy bathrooms designed by the glassworker who built the house. We also played two games of Collins Scrabble (as a warmup for the Mind Sports Invitational Scrabble Tournament, which we will both be at). I averaged 590, and played words like TAGMEMIC, BURLESK, and BEDLAMS. Sandy then provided me with pork belly, prime rib, duck, and risotto. Consider me sated for the 11 hour long flight ahead.
The sun came out in Malibu as I was headed back to the airport, but the iconic drive down PCH is always fun.
I've arrived plenty early for my flight. I've heard horror stories about the 6kg max weight of carryon baggage, so I've checked my new pack, and brought a Scrabble bag as a carryon. I don't think they weigh tuff at the gate, and my carryon looks smaller than everyone else's anyway. On top of that, I also secured an aisle seat for the transatlantic flight. I'm not sure if it's a control freak tendency, or just a desire not to inconvenience people, but I strongly prefer aisle seats for any flight longer than an hour or two. I just like knowing I can get up whenever I need to - no need to worry about someone sleeping in the way of my ability to get up and walk around. And I'm such a crappy sleeper on planes anyway that it's no trouble if someone next to me needs to get up. I actually asked if I could get a seat in an emptier row towards the back. As of when I got the ticket, I think the lady was able to fulfill my request, but I guess we will see when I board. Unfortunately, there are no outlets on airberlin, so I'll just have one charge worth of laptop to study as many words as I can. I also have a short book to read, my phone full of music, and hopefully SOME rest. I've also heard that personal entertainment systems are only onboard some of airberlin's fleet. I'd think there would be for transatlantic, but we'll have to wait and see.
I effectively pulled an all-nighter last night, trying to pack appropriately. I bought a backpack a few weeks ago designed for, well, backpacking. My goal is to travel lighter, and more efficiently. In Asia last year, having a huge carry bag and a small backpack did NOT work. So yes, my back will get a workout for the next three weeks, but it's a great quality pack with good support, and is quite comfortable. Anyway, I finally had all my stuff packed by about 3 AM (wake up time = 5:40 AM), and then realized I'd overpacked. So I took out a shirt, some socks, a heavy hardback book :(, and some other stuff I deemed unnecessary, and got the weight down to something more reasonable, before finally getting a little rest between 4:30 and 5:30 AM. So I've been kind of a zombie today, and my nonlinear narrative in this post indicates zombification. I don't think I ever realized just how heavy my laptop is, even though it's still lighter than most PCs. There really is something to be said for getting an iPad...
Anyway, I'll stop this post here, but will write a separate second post now before I step on the plane...My intent is to write another travel blog while I'm in Europe. No promises, but I'll try. I finished the entire Asia trip blog...and only three months late! Feel free to bug me...
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Asia here I come...
Well, I'm at the airport. My flight boards in a few minutes. I hope that the in-seat chargers work so I can study thousands and thousands of collins words (lol). Gabe says Cathay does free alcoholic drinks - I hope he isn't lying.
I tried to stream some episodes of Psych, but the internet crapped out and the streams died, so it looks like I'm limited to choosing from like 100 movies that Cathay offers. And studying more words. There's always more words to study!
___
So I just got called up to show my proof of future travel out of Bangkok. Thank GOODNESS I have a flight from BKK-->Luang Prabang in December. Good to be prepared, otherwise I may not have been let on the flight. OK, my flight is boarding! I'm off to Asia! I'll check in when I land in HK!
<3
I tried to stream some episodes of Psych, but the internet crapped out and the streams died, so it looks like I'm limited to choosing from like 100 movies that Cathay offers. And studying more words. There's always more words to study!
___
So I just got called up to show my proof of future travel out of Bangkok. Thank GOODNESS I have a flight from BKK-->Luang Prabang in December. Good to be prepared, otherwise I may not have been let on the flight. OK, my flight is boarding! I'm off to Asia! I'll check in when I land in HK!
<3
Friday, November 11, 2011
Drum roll: Did I manage to get an aisle seat on my first ever transpac flight?
Before I begin this post, I'd like to say that it was a very successful shopping trip, as I got pretty much everything else I need, minus a final trip to the pharmacy on Saturday. I was even able to exchange money at a bank in Berkeley for a nice low fee of $1.50. This way, I've got $80 in baht to last me until we go to Bangkok Bank, which offers much much better rates. A rousing success!
Anyway, onto the real point of this post!
So back in September, I bought these flights
SFO-->HKG
HKG-->BKK
________________
MNL-->HKG (12 hour layover)
HKG-->SFO
(Airport codes: SFO = San Francisco; HKG = Hong Kong; BKK = Bangkok; MNL = Manila)
on one intinerary. Kayak had been quoting me prices of $1,111, and that price seemed outdated, as the best I could find was on Cathay's website for about $1,140. I had almost given up and resigned myself to that price, when I decided to check Travelocity. I found a quote of $1,026! The first time it didn't go through, but the second time, I was successful. As a result though, I was in Cathay's lowest fare class, in which you do not get to pick your seat until 48 hours before the flight. In order to move up a fare class, I would've had to pay about $1,200 for those flights. So I decided to gambit and hope that I could sneak into an aisle seat. I figure worst case scenario, I save about $150 by not being able to pick my seat, and I end up stuck in a middle seat for 14.5 hours. $1,026 seemed like kind of a bargain, to be honest, not that I claim to be any expert on such matters. Would I be successful in this gambit?
So there I was, refreshing the check-in button constantly, and sure enough, I ended up with seat 35G! Near the front of the plane, and more importantly, an AISLE SEAT!!!! Keep in mind, this is a 747-400 plane, so the seating is 3/4/3. Seatguru suggests that the only downside to this seat is that there is no row 35 window. So needless to say, I am just thrilled. I check in for the HKG-->BKK leg at 5:10 PM tomorrow. Since it is "only" a 3 hour-ish flight, I'm thinking about maybe getting a window seat. If not, I'll do that on MNL-->HKG leg on the way back.
The next obstacle is the bag checking situation. I'll probably update that from the airport.
48 hours from now, I'll be out over the Pacific Ocean.
Anyway, onto the real point of this post!
So back in September, I bought these flights
SFO-->HKG
HKG-->BKK
________________
MNL-->HKG (12 hour layover)
HKG-->SFO
(Airport codes: SFO = San Francisco; HKG = Hong Kong; BKK = Bangkok; MNL = Manila)
on one intinerary. Kayak had been quoting me prices of $1,111, and that price seemed outdated, as the best I could find was on Cathay's website for about $1,140. I had almost given up and resigned myself to that price, when I decided to check Travelocity. I found a quote of $1,026! The first time it didn't go through, but the second time, I was successful. As a result though, I was in Cathay's lowest fare class, in which you do not get to pick your seat until 48 hours before the flight. In order to move up a fare class, I would've had to pay about $1,200 for those flights. So I decided to gambit and hope that I could sneak into an aisle seat. I figure worst case scenario, I save about $150 by not being able to pick my seat, and I end up stuck in a middle seat for 14.5 hours. $1,026 seemed like kind of a bargain, to be honest, not that I claim to be any expert on such matters. Would I be successful in this gambit?
So there I was, refreshing the check-in button constantly, and sure enough, I ended up with seat 35G! Near the front of the plane, and more importantly, an AISLE SEAT!!!! Keep in mind, this is a 747-400 plane, so the seating is 3/4/3. Seatguru suggests that the only downside to this seat is that there is no row 35 window. So needless to say, I am just thrilled. I check in for the HKG-->BKK leg at 5:10 PM tomorrow. Since it is "only" a 3 hour-ish flight, I'm thinking about maybe getting a window seat. If not, I'll do that on MNL-->HKG leg on the way back.
The next obstacle is the bag checking situation. I'll probably update that from the airport.
48 hours from now, I'll be out over the Pacific Ocean.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Packing list
So I'm about to go do what is hopefully my final shopping excursion before the trip. Here's what I'm bringing:
I know this isn't the most exciting post ever, but I do encourage you to chime in with anything I might be missing, or telling me that I am overpacking like crazy.
- 5 shirts + 1 long sleeve + 1 sweatshirt
- 5 shorts + 1 gym shorts + 1 pair jeans + 1 pair lounge pants + board shorts
- socks, boxers, sandals
- first aid kid (very light)
- steripen + batteries (more on this another time)
- towel (hosteling for a lot of the trip)
- mom's netbook she doesnt use + charger cord - much lighter and cheaper than my macbook pro.
- electric shaver + charger cord
- medicines/pain relievers/bug spray
- sundries (pretty sure I have these all covered)
- water bottle
- camera
- folder with pens/paper + flight information. doctor information, travel clinic information, etc.
- passport/wallet
- universal power adapter*** (forgot to add this before)
Things I have to get today:
- $400-$500 US or so
- $50-$100 in baht (exchange rate in Bangkok is much better, but I'll get some just incase)
- Masterlock (again, may need it for hosteling)
- Suntan lotion - I'm sure they have it there, may as well bring some though, since I have very sensitive skin
- Cheap headphones - not bringing my Bose QCs
- Neck pillow - essential
- sunglasses/hat - get once I'm there? I don't like sunglasses, but they may be helpful.
(Edit: all of the above have been purchased, minus the sunglasses and hat, which I'll decide on soon.)
As I think about it, I still have a few unsureties on stuff to bring, so maybe I'll have to make a second trip to the store at some point. But I can get most of the big stuff done now :)
So tell me: what am I missing? I probably forgot to add a couple things to this list, and I'll probably remember something after I take off, but impart the wisdom of crowds on me please! :)
OK I'd better get shopping! Val's for birthday dinner tonight! I'm 22 today! That mean's I'm old!
I know this isn't the most exciting post ever, but I do encourage you to chime in with anything I might be missing, or telling me that I am overpacking like crazy.
- 5 shirts + 1 long sleeve + 1 sweatshirt
- 5 shorts + 1 gym shorts + 1 pair jeans + 1 pair lounge pants + board shorts
- socks, boxers, sandals
- first aid kid (very light)
- steripen + batteries (more on this another time)
- towel (hosteling for a lot of the trip)
- mom's netbook she doesnt use + charger cord - much lighter and cheaper than my macbook pro.
- electric shaver + charger cord
- medicines/pain relievers/bug spray
- sundries (pretty sure I have these all covered)
- water bottle
- camera
- folder with pens/paper + flight information. doctor information, travel clinic information, etc.
- passport/wallet
- universal power adapter*** (forgot to add this before)
Things I have to get today:
- $400-$500 US or so
- $50-$100 in baht (exchange rate in Bangkok is much better, but I'll get some just incase)
- Masterlock (again, may need it for hosteling)
- Suntan lotion - I'm sure they have it there, may as well bring some though, since I have very sensitive skin
- Cheap headphones - not bringing my Bose QCs
- Neck pillow - essential
- sunglasses/hat - get once I'm there? I don't like sunglasses, but they may be helpful.
(Edit: all of the above have been purchased, minus the sunglasses and hat, which I'll decide on soon.)
As I think about it, I still have a few unsureties on stuff to bring, so maybe I'll have to make a second trip to the store at some point. But I can get most of the big stuff done now :)
So tell me: what am I missing? I probably forgot to add a couple things to this list, and I'll probably remember something after I take off, but impart the wisdom of crowds on me please! :)
OK I'd better get shopping! Val's for birthday dinner tonight! I'm 22 today! That mean's I'm old!
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
96 hours and counting...
Hey readers! Welcome to my travel blog! In just 4 days, I will be on a Cathay Pacific flight bound for Bangkok, Thailand (connecting in Hong Kong)!
In case you didn't know, I have never traveled outside of the USA, with the exceptions of the BC way to the north of California, and the BC to the south of California. So this will be my first trip abroad, and I feel like I'm really throwing myself out there. I don't have the entire trip planned, which I think is a good thing, but this is what I do know:
November 14th: Arrive Bangkok
November 15-18: Bangkok????
November 19-20: Adult Division of Princess Cup Scrabble tournament (Bangkok)
November 21-29: ?????
November 30-December 4: Johor Bahru, Malaysia for the Causeway Challenge Scrabble Tournament
December 4-5: Singapore
December 6-14ish: Laos (Luang Prabang, Phonsavan/Plain of Jars, Vientiane)
December 15-16: Manila
December 17: 12 hour layover in Hong Kong
December 18: Return home. Maybe. :)
As I have said above, this is my first time traveling, and as such, I made it very clear to myself that this would be a trip with friends. It's pretty intimidating to plan my first five week trip, and I think I will get a lot more out of it being with experienced travelers through the duration of the trip. So who are my companions?
Well let's think of the trip in two halves - the pre-Causeway and post-Causeway halves (see schedule above - 5 day long Scrabble event in Malaysia). I'll have a number of friends at the tournament, but have different travelmates before and after.
The first part of the trip is with the fearless Saldanha sisters. Dielle and I both arrive on the 14th, if all goes as planned, and Dion arrives the 15th. We will proceed to take on mainland Southeast Asia. Dion leaves the 28th; then, Dielle and I will head south to Johor forway too much scrabble.
Before you ask, yes, we have decided to brave the floods in Bangkok. If it should turn out to be too much, then we can always go somewhere else for a few days!
After the tournament,eternal grad student Jesse and I will head to Singapore to meet up with our good friend, The Great Wang. (Don't worry if the sentence means nothing to you) Also known as James Leong, Yak Attack, James Wong, and, ironically, Gabriel Wong, some think he is a former national champion, but others are less sure. From Singapore, I'll be traveling with these two deep into the depths of Laos, throughout the rest of the trip.
My intent is to keep a blog throughout this trip. I will have a laptop, but I have no idea about Internet. I want to be fairly off the grid, but keeping a blog is a fun idea. And yes, the only reason I am bringing a laptop is to study words. The tournaments outside of North America usually use a different lexicon - the Collins dictionary. It is a larger dictionary than the hybrid book we use in the states, including lots of words unique to other English speaking countries, and the slang, borrowed words, and foreign words relevant to those areas.
I'll probably post in the next couple days about my continued worrying and fretting as the last few days before I depart come to an end. I have some pre-trip thoughts, and I'm sure people want to read about my freaking out about packing :)
Great time to have a birthday - right? I'm turning 22 on Thursday!
You'll hear more from me soon. Please leave comments, travel suggestions, questions, anything at all you have to say, but if you don't have an account, do leave your name, so I know who I'm talking to you.
Thanks for being a part of what I hope will be a truly amazing experience!
So nervous! So excited!
In case you didn't know, I have never traveled outside of the USA, with the exceptions of the BC way to the north of California, and the BC to the south of California. So this will be my first trip abroad, and I feel like I'm really throwing myself out there. I don't have the entire trip planned, which I think is a good thing, but this is what I do know:
November 14th: Arrive Bangkok
November 15-18: Bangkok????
November 19-20: Adult Division of Princess Cup Scrabble tournament (Bangkok)
November 21-29: ?????
November 30-December 4: Johor Bahru, Malaysia for the Causeway Challenge Scrabble Tournament
December 4-5: Singapore
December 6-14ish: Laos (Luang Prabang, Phonsavan/Plain of Jars, Vientiane)
December 15-16: Manila
December 17: 12 hour layover in Hong Kong
December 18: Return home. Maybe. :)
As I have said above, this is my first time traveling, and as such, I made it very clear to myself that this would be a trip with friends. It's pretty intimidating to plan my first five week trip, and I think I will get a lot more out of it being with experienced travelers through the duration of the trip. So who are my companions?
Well let's think of the trip in two halves - the pre-Causeway and post-Causeway halves (see schedule above - 5 day long Scrabble event in Malaysia). I'll have a number of friends at the tournament, but have different travelmates before and after.
The first part of the trip is with the fearless Saldanha sisters. Dielle and I both arrive on the 14th, if all goes as planned, and Dion arrives the 15th. We will proceed to take on mainland Southeast Asia. Dion leaves the 28th; then, Dielle and I will head south to Johor for
Before you ask, yes, we have decided to brave the floods in Bangkok. If it should turn out to be too much, then we can always go somewhere else for a few days!
After the tournament,
My intent is to keep a blog throughout this trip. I will have a laptop, but I have no idea about Internet. I want to be fairly off the grid, but keeping a blog is a fun idea. And yes, the only reason I am bringing a laptop is to study words. The tournaments outside of North America usually use a different lexicon - the Collins dictionary. It is a larger dictionary than the hybrid book we use in the states, including lots of words unique to other English speaking countries, and the slang, borrowed words, and foreign words relevant to those areas.
I'll probably post in the next couple days about my continued worrying and fretting as the last few days before I depart come to an end. I have some pre-trip thoughts, and I'm sure people want to read about my freaking out about packing :)
Great time to have a birthday - right? I'm turning 22 on Thursday!
You'll hear more from me soon. Please leave comments, travel suggestions, questions, anything at all you have to say, but if you don't have an account, do leave your name, so I know who I'm talking to you.
Thanks for being a part of what I hope will be a truly amazing experience!
So nervous! So excited!
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