Trip Photos

[CPMaverick]

For those with a lot of time to kill, I have posted about 600 photos from my 2.5 month trip around the world.

Here are the albums

England and Wales (http://picasaweb.google.com/cpmaverick/NWEnglandAndWales)

Dubai (http://picasaweb.google.com/cpmaverick/Dubai)

Hong Kong (http://picasaweb.google.com/cpmaverick/HongKong)

Vietnam (http://picasaweb.google.com/cpmaverick/Vietnam)

Malaysia (http://picasaweb.google.com/cpmaverick/Malaysia)

Sydney and East Australia (http://picasaweb.google.com/cpmaverick/SydneyAndEastCoastAustralia)

Victoria and Tasmania (http://picasaweb.google.com/cpmaverick/VictoriaAndTasmania)

Western Australia (http://picasaweb.google.com/cpmaverick/WesternAustralia)

Amsterdam and Antwerp (http://picasaweb.google.com/cpmaverick/AmsterdamAndAntwerp)

[1.8t]

Looking forward to checking these out when I get home. Where are you located these days btw?

[CPMaverick]

Basically I am homeless, I moved out when I went on my trip so I wouldn't have to pay rent when I'm gone for so long.

Now I am back in Alabama, been staying at my folks house in Anniston until I find a new job. It's good because I can save a lot of money, but I need to get back to a normal life pretty soon!

[Obike]

Amazing photos :)

[easy2speed]

Looks awesome. Who did you go with? I admire you for going off the beaten trail everywhere you went. That was really cool.

[CPMaverick]

I went solo, though I met up with some friends in a couple places. Funny thing, nobody I know could get over 2 months off work :P. But I enjoy travelling solo most of the time, and it gets you outside your comfort zone, makes you meet people.

[Veedubtrek]

it gets you outside your comfort zone, makes you meet people.
this

[easy2speed]

this


Definite props - I couldn't have done that solo.

[CPMaverick]

Here's a video from Hanoi traffic. Not nearly the worst we saw but the only stuff I got on video.

(This is in the picture photos but in case you missed it)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cb4C3IitMBs

[1.8t]

Of all of the places you have been, which was your favorite? If you had to choose another place to live outside of the US, where would it be? And lastly, any news on job prospects? Staying in the racing/automotive field or trying something different?

[CPMaverick]

Hard to pick a favorite, depends on what you want to do. But Vietnam was a blast, super cheap, nice people, but also very edgy, crazy, and different. Hong Kong was much better than I expected, I would love to go back there, but totally different than Vietnam, more western, like an Asian NYC (but waaaay cheaper).

Place to live, that's easy, Australia in a heartbeat.

Not much to report on jobs, still pounding the pavement, I want to stay in motorsport or else I may end up down under ;)

[VR4Dani]

Haven't looked through them all but it looks amazing. Honk Kong looks like it would have been very cool- and Dubai looks posh compared to other places. Congrats on the life experience most will never have!

[ActiveAero]

I went solo, though I met up with some friends in a couple places. Funny thing, nobody I know could get over 2 months off work :P. But I enjoy travelling solo most of the time, and it gets you outside your comfort zone, makes you meet people.

Awesome that you did this. Traveling solo really is the only way to go from my own personal experience and from that of the seasoned world travelers I've talked with. Doing it in an "unplanned" manner is something everyone should do at least once in their life. I've been to other countries on "trips" with friends and family, as I'm sure most people have, and it just isn't the same. When you do that it is often little different than spending spring break at gulf shores, except with some foreign scenery. My first true trip was to Japan (no friends, no language ability, no luggage, and no hotel reservation) and as a result it was an infinitely more rewarding experience that truly changed my outlook on things.

I can't wait until I've hit the places you have. I'm definitely jealous.

BTW I can't view the pics. Do I need to sign up for the site first?

[CPMaverick]

You shouldn't have to sign up for anything. Try picasaweb.com/cpmaverick

If that doesn't work, what do you see?

[ActiveAero]

You shouldn't have to sign up for anything. Try picasaweb.com/cpmaverick

If that doesn't work, what do you see?

I run a script blocker in Firefox and had it disabled for the main page of Picasa only. I can see them all now. Awesome stuff.

Now for the questions:

So have you been planning this trip for a while or was it something you just recently decided to do?

Did you rent the camper in Australia? If it is a rental how was it? Seems like a great idea.

How long did you stay in each place? Are there any places that would have liked more time to explore? I know some places you can get the jist of things in a few days while others really need a few good weeks of exploring.

[CPMaverick]

I had thought about this trip a lot but it only took me a couple months to do the hardest part which was book my flights. I used American Airlines miles to book business class flights on One World airlines. Since it was a 'free' ticket I had to find flight availability for all the flights. This was not easy, but I finally found a routing I liked. The nice thing is that this ticket was free to change dates (but not routing) so I could stay in anyplace longer if I could find miles ticket availability.

Some of the places I went were just random, like Hong Kong. To get from Dubai to Vietnam, I had to connect in Hong Kong. So I figured, why just connect, I might as well see the place.

The rest of the planning was pretty minor, I just sort of figured things out as I went along. For example, I was in Dubai before I got my Vietnam Visa sorted. It was just too big a trip to plan out 100% and sometimes it's more fun to arrive in a city with no plans ;)

I used http://www.standbyrelocs.com/ to find cheap one-way camper rentals. Basically all it cost me was fuel to rent these campers, but I had a limited amount of time to get from point A to point B. I used more American Airlines miles within Australia to get 1-way flights. So I would find a camper deal, end up somewhere else, then if I wanted to get across the country I got a one-way ticket. The campers were nice, I didn't like the big one, too much of a pain on narrow Tasmania roads, but it's what they needed relocated. The 4x4 was sweet, perfect for what I needed.

I didn't stay anywhere long enough. I came back when I did because I thought I had a couple solid job leads. I wish I had stayed longer because I am still unemployed, but oh well. Dubai was the only place I felt like I was ready to move on, 3 days was enough. Hong Kong, I wish I stayed way longer than 2 days. North Vietnam was a week and that was about right, I would have liked to spend a lot more time in south Vietnam and Malaysia.

I spent to most time in Australia but I saw a ton of the country, more time would have been great, it's a vast place.

[Alex]

Thanks for sharing! Lots of cool pics in there. I'm stoked to start my trip in a few weeks!

[I want something fast]

Damn...just damn...those pics are amazing. Estimated cost of your travels?

[CPMaverick]

The trip cost about $8500 all-inclusive. Originally I budgeted $100/day but I managed to go over that. Still, it was a pretty decent trip for the price IMO. Frequent flyer miles and hotel points helped a lot.

I didn't have any other bills; it was only about twice as expensive as when I was living in LA so it worked out pretty well.

[I want something fast]

it was only about twice as expensive as when I was living in LA so it worked out pretty well.


Yeah...and that was real livin ...damn man wish I could have joined. Looks like you stopped off and saw Jason for a spell.

[CPMaverick]

Jason in St Croix? Not this trip, some of those photo albums are old. Just the direct links in the original post are from my recent trip.

[Alex]

The trip cost about $8500 all-inclusive. Originally I budgeted $100/day but I managed to go over that. Still, it was a pretty decent trip for the price IMO. Frequent flyer miles and hotel points helped a lot.

I didn't have any other bills; it was only about twice as expensive as when I was living in LA so it worked out pretty well.
I'm shooting for about $11k for seven months (http://www.savageclimbing.com/2010/01/08/the-cost-of-a-trip-around-the-world/) but I'll be a climbing bum so I won't get to enjoy a lot of fancy meals, just a lot of rocks. :)

[CPMaverick]

Good luck, let me know how your budget goes. I tried to be as cheap as possible 90% of the time and I still went over budget. I rarely had fancy meals, many days of cup 'o noodles and sandwiches. Since I was in business class I would get a lot of my meals on planes or in airline lounges (and stealing some extra snacks from the lounges too ;) )

It is expensive the more places you go and it is cheaper to travel with a group, so keeping it down to two countries helps a lot.

$25 a day including travel and rental car expenses seems awfully optimistic (how much will fuel and campsite rental cost you?), but your trip will be a lot different than mine, so good luck! I would love to go on a long surfing trip, like climbing it is basically free but also like climbing, you really need a partner.

And it's great that you are doing this. I am a firm believer in spending money on experiences and not on plastic shit from china that will be gathering dust in 2 years. :)

[IronMonkey]

They probably charged you 5x what things are worth when you were in Vietnam lol....great adventure man!

[AlmosN8kd]

How did you adjust to the currency changes? Did you just keep your debit card on you and use it as needed? In about 8 weeks I'm going to be heading to China and S. Korea for about 10 days and I know from my limited past experiences the best exchange rates I saw were through the electronic scans of debit/credit purchases; however, I doubt the little rinky dink shops on the street really are able to do that. I am just curious of what you did when you needed cash and how you kept it secure.

[Alex]

Good luck, let me know how your budget goes. I tried to be as cheap as possible 90% of the time and I still went over budget. I rarely had fancy meals, many days of cup 'o noodles and sandwiches. Since I was in business class I would get a lot of my meals on planes or in airline lounges (and stealing some extra snacks from the lounges too ;) )

It is expensive the more places you go and it is cheaper to travel with a group, so keeping it down to two countries helps a lot.

$25 a day including travel and rental car expenses seems awfully optimistic (how much will fuel and campsite rental cost you?), but your trip will be a lot different than mine, so good luck! I would love to go on a long surfing trip, like climbing it is basically free but also like climbing, you really need a partner.

And it's great that you are doing this. I am a firm believer in spending money on experiences and not on plastic shit from china that will be gathering dust in 2 years. :)
I think camping in Europe is about 5 euros a night and if we find enough people we could split a house for maybe 10-20 euros a night (probably sleeping on the floor). I think the price of diesel in France is about $6.50 per gallon right now but our Peugeot is rated at 60 mpg on the freeway.

For money I'll be using my Schwab bank card. Schwab reimburses for all ATM fees, even international. Schwab doesn't charge any extra fees for international use but Visa charges a 1% currency exchange fee for making purchases or withdrawing from an ATM. I called Amex and they said they charge a 2.75% international fee.

[Veedubtrek]

Badass trip

I almost bought a one way ticket to Tokyo a few months ago... At some point I'm just gonna disappear for a couple years. I just need to save up enough money to cover my student loan payments for that time and I'll be set. I don't really plan on bringing much money with me... I'll probably bum it, maybe shack up with families, do random side-jobs/chores for money and then fly somewhere else. I believe when you need to survive you find a way, comfort and planning be damned. It would be nice to afford a trip like that though, props to you for going through with it... I think people would be a lot less narrow-minded if they traveled more, it really opens your eyes to the beauty of the world and it's inhabitants.

[Swine]

Badass trip

I almost bought a one way ticket to Tokyo a few months ago... At some point I'm just gonna disappear for a couple years. I just need to save up enough money to cover my student loan payments for that time and I'll be set. I don't really plan on bringing much money with me... I'll probably bum it, maybe shack up with families, do random side-jobs/chores for money and then fly somewhere else. I believe when you need to survive you find a way, comfort and planning be damned. It would be nice to afford a trip like that though, props to you for going through with it... I think people would be a lot less narrow-minded if they traveled more, it really opens your eyes to the beauty of the world and it's inhabitants.

faggot.

[Veedubtrek]

faggot.
Your mother's a retarded teacher

[1.8t]

do random blow-jobs/chores for money and then fly somewhere else. I believe when you need to survive you find a way, penis and balls be damned.

Faggot.

[Veedubtrek]

Faggot.
Does this mean you're not gonna let me piitb anymore?

[ActiveAero]

Badass trip

I almost bought a one way ticket to Tokyo a few months ago... At some point I'm just gonna disappear for a couple years. I just need to save up enough money to cover my student loan payments for that time and I'll be set. I don't really plan on bringing much money with me... I'll probably bum it, maybe shack up with families, do random side-jobs/chores for money and then fly somewhere else. I believe when you need to survive you find a way, comfort and planning be damned. It would be nice to afford a trip like that though, props to you for going through with it... I think people would be a lot less narrow-minded if they traveled more, it really opens your eyes to the beauty of the world and it's inhabitants.

Sorry but it doesn't work that way in Japan. You can't just show up to "bum it" by working side jobs unless you want to risk getting ass raped by the Japanese police. Japanese tourist visa's do not allow you to work and if you get caught you will most likely be detained for almost a month and then permanently banned from Japan.

There is no reason not to save up a bit of cash and you should have all of your debts paid off in full BEFORE going. The amount I spent on cars in just a few years I could have traveled the world for a year and had 10x the experiences. This is in fact the main reason I don't have a "cool" car any more. I'm stashing away that money for something that is far more valuable and exciting. If you really want to travel the world think about it the next time you buy something for your car, home, etc.

[Veedubtrek]

Sorry but it doesn't work that way in Japan. You can't just show up to "bum it" by working side jobs unless you want to risk getting ass raped by the Japanese police. Japanese tourist visa's do not allow you to work and if you get caught you will most likely be detained for almost a month and then permanently banned from Japan.
You talk as if everyone obeys rules/laws

[Veedubtrek]

There is no reason not to save up a bit of cash and you should have all of your debts paid off in full BEFORE going. The amount I spent on cars in just a few years I could have traveled the world for a year and had 10x the experiences. This is in fact the main reason I don't have a "cool" car any more. I'm stashing away that money for something that is far more valuable and exciting. If you really want to travel the world think about it the next time you buy something for your car, home, etc.
A) I'm not waiting 10-15 years to pay off my student loans (that's optimistic as half of the amount is from a 25-year term loan)
B) blah blah blah I enjoy spending the money I do and don't regret a single penny even if it could have enabled me to have less debt... everything in my life is an experience, everything I do is worth my time and money.
C) My sense of adventure is probably different than yours... roughing it with $25,000 might be a luxury for another person.

I don't know if you were specifically speaking to me or everyone in general, but you quoted me so I'm responding to you.

[ActiveAero]

You talk as if everyone obeys rules/laws

And you talk like a typical idiot foreigner who thinks anyone will give a rats a$$ about how you've planned to do things.

Japanese police don't screw around with visa violations. If you are stopped on the street or while working, which happens all of the time in Japan (especially to foreigners), and are found to be in violation you will be treated like a hardened criminal. You could be interrograted for nearly a month by tag teams of cops, potentially beaten into signing a confession (Japanese police have a near 100% conviction rate in this area for a reason), given a $3,000 fine, and then deported as a criminal. This isn't a rarity. It's the norm.

Do people work/live illegally on tourist Visas? Of course. People also use drugs in Dubai but it doesn't make it very smart.

[ActiveAero]

B) blah blah blah I enjoy spending the money I do and don't regret a single penny even if it could have enabled me to have less debt... everything in my life is an experience, everything I do is worth my time and money.


If you think a shiny exhaust or whatever mindless crap we ALL have bought is some sort of worthy life "experience" then your life is freaking fail lol. This crap argument is always given by debt ridden morons who think toys = living life. I know because I use to be one of them.

And BTW I never said "don't buy anything" or that buying stuff is bad. I was simply saying if you are serious about traveling then there is no reason to not have money saved up. If you are spending that money on other BS you don't need then you are obviously NOT serious about traveling.

[Veedubtrek]

If you think a shiny exhaust or whatever mindless crap we ALL have bought is some sort of worthy life "experience" then your life is freaking fail lol. This crap argument is always given by debt ridden morons who think toys = living life. I know because I use to be one of them.

And BTW I never said "don't buy anything" or that buying stuff is bad. I was simply saying if you are serious about traveling then there is no reason to not have money saved up. If you are spending that money on other BS you don't need then you are obviously NOT serious about traveling.
*sigh*

I knew it was gonna go this way...
1) When I said "everything" in my life is an experience I was not talking about every "thing." I was referring to my life in general and all of the events that fill it. All of them, good and bad, cheap and expensive, have been worth every penny I've spent and every penny I've borrowed to spend.
2) I don't think toys = living life. On the contrary, experiences (familiar and new) = living life. I buy used cars and motorcycles. My wheels are used. My "shiny exhaust" is used. My suspension is used. I shop at thrift stores, outlets, and second-hand stores for half of my clothes. I go on craigslist for tickets to almost any event/concert/amusement park/whatever. I hate accumulating crap, especially crap that will depreciate too much by the time I sell it.
3) Saving money... I'm saving money for my student loan payments during that time and in case of an emergency. I'm not going to attempt to save enough money to cover my living expenses abroad for 2-3 years. It really doesn't matter what I say. I used to have different beliefs about how I could/would/should do it and recently they've changed. I'm sure you once thought differently as well. I'm not gonna change your mind and you're not gonna change mine. End of story.

[Veedubtrek]

And you talk like a typical idiot foreigner who thinks anyone will give a rats a$$ about how you've planned to do things.

Japanese police don't screw around with visa violations. If you are stopped on the street or while working, which happens all of the time in Japan (especially to foreigners), and are found to be in violation you will be treated like a hardened criminal. You could be interrograted for nearly a month by tag teams of cops, potentially beaten into signing a confession (Japanese police have a near 100% conviction rate in this area for a reason), given a $3,000 fine, and then deported as a criminal. This isn't a rarity. It's the norm.

Do people work/live illegally on tourist Visas? Of course. People also use drugs in Dubai but it doesn't make it very smart.
Your warning has been noted... if i get arrested overseas, detained, and deported then it'll happen and I'll learn from it. Or I won't. Or maybe I'll get on tv! Maybe I'll survive. Or maybe I won't. Life goes on.

Sincerely,
-Idiot Foreigner

[CPMaverick]

In Japan everyone does follow the law... seriously. Not 100% but close as you could possibly imagine.

Without a work visa good luck getting a job (you won't in Japan), but you might look into a tourist work visa. Some countries have them and they are pretty easy to get.

[CPMaverick]

I think camping in Europe is about 5 euros a night and if we find enough people we could split a house for maybe 10-20 euros a night (probably sleeping on the floor). I think the price of diesel in France is about $6.50 per gallon right now but our Peugeot is rated at 60 mpg on the freeway.

For money I'll be using my Schwab bank card. Schwab reimburses for all ATM fees, even international. Schwab doesn't charge any extra fees for international use but Visa charges a 1% currency exchange fee for making purchases or withdrawing from an ATM. I called Amex and they said they charge a 2.75% international fee.

I use my ATM card for money, it's the best exchange rate. You pay a couple dollars in fees, so just get a ton out at once. Capital One charges NO international fees and the exchange rate is as good as it gets, so get a card from them if you can. Everyone else charges 1%-3%. I used mine and for big purchases it's a huge money saver.

Good luck... the best travel advice I ever got was to bring twice the money you think you need and half as much of the stuff you think you'll need :)

[Veedubtrek]

In Japan everyone does follow the law... seriously. Not 100% but close as you could possibly imagine.

Without a work visa good luck getting a job (you won't in Japan), but you might look into a tourist work visa. Some countries have them and they are pretty easy to get.
I will look into it, thanks for the tip... It's gonna be a little tough since anything beyond the initial flight out the country is going to be unplanned.

Sorry about threadjacking, I like how you went about your trip... Very thrifty

[ActiveAero]

Go read my orginal response again. I never tried to impose any financial morality on you or anyone. I simply...

A: Attempt to inform you that you can't apply the "world bum" plans to every country without doing some research. The real world is filled with real people who often don't give a crap about the "way you think about things". I think it is great if you want to go travel around the world in a bare bones manner.....but if you are going to do something that MIGHT be in violation of visa laws you best take the advice seriously. There have been tons of young college graduate foreigners who have tried your plan in countries like Japan. They all thought their approach was "different" and that there would be ways to "figure it out" without paying mind to their visa restrictions. Do some get away with it for a period of time? Yes. Did the one's who get caught regret it? Every day of their life.

B: I simply gave a PERSONAL example. I never said "If you ever spend money on a car you should kill yourself" lol. I simply stated that if you are serious about traveling overseas for an extended period of time, ESPECIALLY starting off in a place like Japan (which you mentioned), then it would be VERY smart to have your finances well in order.


If you had said some other country I probably wouldn't have mentioned a thing but Japan is just another ball game compared to many other countries. Anyone who has done an ounce of research would know this and I'm sure Charlie can back it up (edit: I see he did). Japanese visas basically break down like this:

Tourist visa (visa you get when landing in Japan) = no work. Get caught working = may god (aka the Japanese police) have mercy on your soul.

Culture visa = You take some sort of Japanese culture related class for a few hours per week, which will cost you at least a few hundred $ a month, and they will allow you to work part time up to about 20-25 hrs per week. If you are actually interested in the cultural aspect you are learning about this is actually a fairly good deal. However, this isn't something they just give out. It requires the proper paperwork, usually an immigration lawyer, and several months of waiting.

Work visa = Requires sponorship by a Japanese company for full time employment. Work is almost always contract based for at least one year.

Student visa = For Japanese university students or full time language students attending government recognized learning institutions. Allows part time work on par with the culture visa. Must show finanicial reserves to be able to cover both tuition and living expenses.

Hope this helps and sorry for coming off like a dick.

[ActiveAero]

In Japan everyone does follow the law... seriously. Not 100% but close as you could possibly imagine.

Without a work visa good luck getting a job (you won't in Japan), but you might look into a tourist work visa. Some countries have them and they are pretty easy to get.

The U.S. does not have a working holiday visa arrangement with Japan.

And the "twice as much money, half the stuff" is also the best advice I ever received too.

[Veedubtrek]

Hope this helps and sorry for coming off like a dick.
It does help, and I accept your apology and I apologize for firing back at you. You tend to be argumentative in threads so I tend to respond with that perception in my head.

[Veedubtrek]

Good luck... the best travel advice I ever got was to bring twice the money you think you need and half as much of the stuff you think you'll need :)
I agree with that... those lists that tell you to bring everything but the kitchen sink in a backpack are overkill.

[CPMaverick]

Onebag.com is a pretty good site. A couple things there I was glad I brought with me although I also admit it tempted me into bringing a couple items I didn't need.