My Trip Around the World, in a Nutshell
When I turned 55, I lost my mind and decided to quit wishing I could go around the world.
A secretary like me almost never has both time and money. So, without a job, my schedule was certainly open after I painted the outside stairs. I decided to go ahead and raid my retirement account. I spent a couple of weeks plugging in practice itineraries on Expedia and looking up visa requirements. Since travel, for me, is a substitute for school, I had to identify what I wanted to learn about. This forced me to settle on a bottom line of a visit to a Moslem country and an introduction to Asia.
Where would I go, speaking only English and American high-school French and Spanish, which, if you've been anywhere, you know are spoken only by American high schoolers.
Then, I remembered something I had heard somewhere a long time ago: "The sun never sets on the British Empire." That meant that, at the very least, I might expect to find English speakers most, if not all, the way around. That gave me something to start with.
The practice itineraries taught me that the ticket prices fluctuate often. Once I settled on four "must-see" countries, Spain, England, Morocco and Hong Kong, I found that I could go to all destinations on two related airlines, British Airways and Iberia. Doing so was actually less expensive than booking the Star Alliance Around the World flat fare. I saved money and time by deciding against any country that required a visa for an American staying only a few days. I made my decisions within a span of of weeks, so I did not prepare in the way one should for a once in a lifetime investment . . . probably because I hope to do it more regularly when it isn't so unusual to have time for a jaunt. My preparation was bare - checking State Department advisories and finding the local equivalents of 911, recording the bank, post office, and American consulate closest to my hotel, and recording the type of government and current head of state so that I was not a complete ignoramus. After all, when you see someone's photo in all public buildings, you might feel more than a little foolish asking, "is that the Postmaster?" when in fact, you are looking at the king. My little trip covered three monarchies - four if you include the cafe devoted to Elvis.
Like Air France, British Airways is a destination by itself. I was upgraded to business class on my last leg - I don't know what prompted it, but it took a while to get used to until I adjusted the seat into a bed and . . . and . . . ahhhhhhhh. The champagne helped.
While solo travel is a lot of work, I enjoyed looking at stuff and hanging with the homies. I was able to avoid the Western "bubble" by staying at hostels, the YWCA, and inexpensive hotels. The exception was Morocco - the amount of money that buys one bunk in a room with five others in Barcelona almost paid for two nights in a small suite in Tangiers, with breakfast every morning - predictably, that hotel was full of Western tourists. But the exhilaration of traveling alone does have a price. While it was very cool to fly solo and show that it could be done, there are things you miss. For example, a companion might have helped pass the waiting time more productively, provided security for more adventurous excursions later in the day, or researched the monuments. My videos memorialize misidentifications of areas and buildings. My friends are the kind of companions who would have compensated for my smackdab preparation. A companion may also have had a working phone - I purchased my phone company's international plan only to end up spending two weeks with, not only no telephone, but not even the correct day and time. If I had been overseas on business, my business might have failed. The phone company really didn't have my back. And in Africa, I had no Internet service.
A word about that. Every place I visited had modern roads, citizens with cell phones, working ATMs (and money changers in the airports) and either public Internet or wi-fi (so my lack of Internet was because I didn't bring a laptop). I didn't go anyplace that was scary outside of its lack of familiarity, and so I would recommend these cities for first time travelers with or without a companion. I had no problem as a woman alone or a woman of color. Whether it is because I was seen very simply as American or whether my age makes me a less interesting or less culturally threatening "target", as it does in the U.S., I don't know. Surprisingly, even in London, I did not see much in the way of places I would characterize as truly accessible for mobility challenged tourists.
It was important to me to visit a Moslem country because I wanted to see urbane Moslems minding their business and chilling, to balance the negativity surrounding Islam here in the states. So now I have seen for myself that whatever the problem is, it is not Islam per se. Like Christianity, Islam provides a framework that can be interpreted for conflicting agendas. I enjoyed seeing Tangiers but if I were to go to Morocco a second time, I feel like I've seen Tangiers and would go to another city.
Having said that, I enjoyed seeing the souk and even the McDonalds(!) in the company of a guide arranged for me at the Hotel Rembrandt's front desk. I enjoyed seeing the colorfully clad, but completely covered, women handling their business (which included driving cars and going to jobs) with an air of efficiency and contentment. Young girls were dressed in more western clothing that had many layers for modesty but did not restrict play. The part of town where I hung out was attractive and clean, even though I followed advice not to drink the water. There were adequate resources on my hotel's street, including a pizzaria two blocks away. It was not, however, a clone of America by any means. Everybody does not necessarily want to be American. And why should they? There is nothing wrong with them.
Barcelona was gorgeous and easy to lurk in. I was only there two days, and found it well worth penciling in for a return visit. Walking the streets and taking the "Hop-On, Hop-Off" tour were completely satisfying. I stayed in an immaculate hostel near the Plaza Catalunya, an attractive location near food that served as a terminus for tour buses and the airport bus.
I was sick in London and didn't make it to France, but I was just a wee bit less foreign there. I've always heard that the British can't cook, but I completely enjoyed the filling, stick-to-the-ribs British fare I tried, whether a pasty (like a pierogi) from a stand at the train station, steak sausages (dense beef without globs of fat or gristle) and mustard mashed potatoes enjoyed at a tavern opened in 1627, or a thick cheese sandwich on delicious bread with chutney, a combination I would have walked past at home. The "full English breakfast," while legendary, was only ho-hum as cuisine - but well worth trying because how often do you eat a legend? After a full English breakfast, you are totally fueled for a day of whatever you want to do. One long standing stereotype blasted into space, right? Roit! And since London has many Asians and others, there is plenty of ethnic food. I dined happily and made it out to Stonehenge between bouts of King George's Revenge. In addition, I toured neighborhoods on The Tube and the iconic red, double-decker buses because even though the fares were exorbitant, they were reasonable for city tours.
Hong Kong surprised me because I expected a London full of Asians. I stayed in an area of Kowloon that doesn't have many westerners, so I ate, shopped, and bused with the locals. Rather than London full of Asians, there was an element a little like staying at the Howard Johnson's in Lynnwood . . . only Asian. Right down to Elvis impersonation nights at the Cheer-O, next to the YWCA on Man Fuk Road (paging Dr. Freud . . . ) I'm sure if I had stayed on Hong Kong Island instead of Kowloon, the experience would have been more upscale and westernized. So I feel that what I got was more "real." HKIA (Hong Kong International Airport) is very accessible, including spa services offered on site. And really, after a 12-hour flight from London, it is wonderful to know you can take a shower or have a facial to put your best face forward. The transportation from the airport was hassle free. If I had a regret, it was that I was not decisive enough to engage one of the many tailors beating the pavement near Victoria Harbor for customers desiring custom clothing.
Some countries - and on this trip, specifically Hong Kong and Tangiers, have markets where haggling is the normal way of doing business. I do not haggle comfortably - and most Americans don't - but I seriously underestimated the quality of goods available there. Because of weather and theft, we do not expect goods sold outdoors to be high in quality in the U.S. This can be a mistake in countries where open-air markets are more the norm. I have been to several places where I did not fail to disappoint merchants expecting a "rich American" but I would have taken a great deal more money to the souk if I could do it over!
Since this was essentially a busman's holiday, one of my great pleasures was eating my way around the planet. I would say that in many countries, you will pay more money for less food of higher quality. In some locations, one can eat better from convenience stores than here, so it isn't necessary to break the bank or settle for McDonalds, even though McDonalds varies its menu for local tastes - for example, serving fresh pineapple and Kona coffee in Honolulu or putting wasabi on the Filet O' Fish sandwich in Hong Kong - so that is surely part of the adventure. When I travel, I generally lose a little weight, my skin clears up a bit, and the portions always leave me too full for dessert. As I am well over 200 pounds, I find this a little astonishing because foreigners do not strip the fat from their food; it is often quite rich in addition to portions we wouldn't diss from our recliners at halftime. I have been forced to schedule dessert as a "meal" on occasion, in those places where desserts are served in large helpings. While dessert in the rest of the world is as much of a treat as it is here, it tends to be significantly less sweet, so calling that pastry a meal isn't something you have to lie about to friends who eat healthy.
While solo travel is tiring and there is no one to take powerfully engaging photos of you pretending to heft Stonehenge's lintels or wear a cathedral dome as a hat, I learned that the world is very negotiable for a middle aged lady with a credit card, backpack and carry-on. I did end up planning a few days around my sore legs and fatigue, so my agenda was considerably more modest than if I had been in my thirties or had an additional week . . . or an additional grand! Smiles are useful on the road, and don't forget pressure socks for the long flights!
Obviously, I consider this adventure a resounding success. This isn't to say I wasn't happy to come home to my husband's good cheer and eat from the garden he had planted! I came home to a garden where I could tiptoe out back in my jammies and pluck some okra, tomatoes and peppers to fry up and throw over rice. Nothing corny about "home sweet home" after weeks on the road. I no longer saw the flaws in my house. My return to domesticity with my patootie was sweet indeed.
So, while this type of trip can be life-changing, there is another level where it really ain't dat serious. My only agenda was to see what was, with the eyes I already have.
And now, some numbers. The expense for everything, from my flights down to my fridge magnets, was under $5,000 so, if you want to go anywhere in the developed world at least, as one airline puts it, "there's nothing stopping you."
You can say that again.
A secretary like me almost never has both time and money. So, without a job, my schedule was certainly open after I painted the outside stairs. I decided to go ahead and raid my retirement account. I spent a couple of weeks plugging in practice itineraries on Expedia and looking up visa requirements. Since travel, for me, is a substitute for school, I had to identify what I wanted to learn about. This forced me to settle on a bottom line of a visit to a Moslem country and an introduction to Asia.
Where would I go, speaking only English and American high-school French and Spanish, which, if you've been anywhere, you know are spoken only by American high schoolers.
Then, I remembered something I had heard somewhere a long time ago: "The sun never sets on the British Empire." That meant that, at the very least, I might expect to find English speakers most, if not all, the way around. That gave me something to start with.
The practice itineraries taught me that the ticket prices fluctuate often. Once I settled on four "must-see" countries, Spain, England, Morocco and Hong Kong, I found that I could go to all destinations on two related airlines, British Airways and Iberia. Doing so was actually less expensive than booking the Star Alliance Around the World flat fare. I saved money and time by deciding against any country that required a visa for an American staying only a few days. I made my decisions within a span of of weeks, so I did not prepare in the way one should for a once in a lifetime investment . . . probably because I hope to do it more regularly when it isn't so unusual to have time for a jaunt. My preparation was bare - checking State Department advisories and finding the local equivalents of 911, recording the bank, post office, and American consulate closest to my hotel, and recording the type of government and current head of state so that I was not a complete ignoramus. After all, when you see someone's photo in all public buildings, you might feel more than a little foolish asking, "is that the Postmaster?" when in fact, you are looking at the king. My little trip covered three monarchies - four if you include the cafe devoted to Elvis.
Like Air France, British Airways is a destination by itself. I was upgraded to business class on my last leg - I don't know what prompted it, but it took a while to get used to until I adjusted the seat into a bed and . . . and . . . ahhhhhhhh. The champagne helped.
While solo travel is a lot of work, I enjoyed looking at stuff and hanging with the homies. I was able to avoid the Western "bubble" by staying at hostels, the YWCA, and inexpensive hotels. The exception was Morocco - the amount of money that buys one bunk in a room with five others in Barcelona almost paid for two nights in a small suite in Tangiers, with breakfast every morning - predictably, that hotel was full of Western tourists. But the exhilaration of traveling alone does have a price. While it was very cool to fly solo and show that it could be done, there are things you miss. For example, a companion might have helped pass the waiting time more productively, provided security for more adventurous excursions later in the day, or researched the monuments. My videos memorialize misidentifications of areas and buildings. My friends are the kind of companions who would have compensated for my smackdab preparation. A companion may also have had a working phone - I purchased my phone company's international plan only to end up spending two weeks with, not only no telephone, but not even the correct day and time. If I had been overseas on business, my business might have failed. The phone company really didn't have my back. And in Africa, I had no Internet service.
A word about that. Every place I visited had modern roads, citizens with cell phones, working ATMs (and money changers in the airports) and either public Internet or wi-fi (so my lack of Internet was because I didn't bring a laptop). I didn't go anyplace that was scary outside of its lack of familiarity, and so I would recommend these cities for first time travelers with or without a companion. I had no problem as a woman alone or a woman of color. Whether it is because I was seen very simply as American or whether my age makes me a less interesting or less culturally threatening "target", as it does in the U.S., I don't know. Surprisingly, even in London, I did not see much in the way of places I would characterize as truly accessible for mobility challenged tourists.
It was important to me to visit a Moslem country because I wanted to see urbane Moslems minding their business and chilling, to balance the negativity surrounding Islam here in the states. So now I have seen for myself that whatever the problem is, it is not Islam per se. Like Christianity, Islam provides a framework that can be interpreted for conflicting agendas. I enjoyed seeing Tangiers but if I were to go to Morocco a second time, I feel like I've seen Tangiers and would go to another city.
Having said that, I enjoyed seeing the souk and even the McDonalds(!) in the company of a guide arranged for me at the Hotel Rembrandt's front desk. I enjoyed seeing the colorfully clad, but completely covered, women handling their business (which included driving cars and going to jobs) with an air of efficiency and contentment. Young girls were dressed in more western clothing that had many layers for modesty but did not restrict play. The part of town where I hung out was attractive and clean, even though I followed advice not to drink the water. There were adequate resources on my hotel's street, including a pizzaria two blocks away. It was not, however, a clone of America by any means. Everybody does not necessarily want to be American. And why should they? There is nothing wrong with them.
Barcelona was gorgeous and easy to lurk in. I was only there two days, and found it well worth penciling in for a return visit. Walking the streets and taking the "Hop-On, Hop-Off" tour were completely satisfying. I stayed in an immaculate hostel near the Plaza Catalunya, an attractive location near food that served as a terminus for tour buses and the airport bus.
I was sick in London and didn't make it to France, but I was just a wee bit less foreign there. I've always heard that the British can't cook, but I completely enjoyed the filling, stick-to-the-ribs British fare I tried, whether a pasty (like a pierogi) from a stand at the train station, steak sausages (dense beef without globs of fat or gristle) and mustard mashed potatoes enjoyed at a tavern opened in 1627, or a thick cheese sandwich on delicious bread with chutney, a combination I would have walked past at home. The "full English breakfast," while legendary, was only ho-hum as cuisine - but well worth trying because how often do you eat a legend? After a full English breakfast, you are totally fueled for a day of whatever you want to do. One long standing stereotype blasted into space, right? Roit! And since London has many Asians and others, there is plenty of ethnic food. I dined happily and made it out to Stonehenge between bouts of King George's Revenge. In addition, I toured neighborhoods on The Tube and the iconic red, double-decker buses because even though the fares were exorbitant, they were reasonable for city tours.
Hong Kong surprised me because I expected a London full of Asians. I stayed in an area of Kowloon that doesn't have many westerners, so I ate, shopped, and bused with the locals. Rather than London full of Asians, there was an element a little like staying at the Howard Johnson's in Lynnwood . . . only Asian. Right down to Elvis impersonation nights at the Cheer-O, next to the YWCA on Man Fuk Road (paging Dr. Freud . . . ) I'm sure if I had stayed on Hong Kong Island instead of Kowloon, the experience would have been more upscale and westernized. So I feel that what I got was more "real." HKIA (Hong Kong International Airport) is very accessible, including spa services offered on site. And really, after a 12-hour flight from London, it is wonderful to know you can take a shower or have a facial to put your best face forward. The transportation from the airport was hassle free. If I had a regret, it was that I was not decisive enough to engage one of the many tailors beating the pavement near Victoria Harbor for customers desiring custom clothing.
Some countries - and on this trip, specifically Hong Kong and Tangiers, have markets where haggling is the normal way of doing business. I do not haggle comfortably - and most Americans don't - but I seriously underestimated the quality of goods available there. Because of weather and theft, we do not expect goods sold outdoors to be high in quality in the U.S. This can be a mistake in countries where open-air markets are more the norm. I have been to several places where I did not fail to disappoint merchants expecting a "rich American" but I would have taken a great deal more money to the souk if I could do it over!
Since this was essentially a busman's holiday, one of my great pleasures was eating my way around the planet. I would say that in many countries, you will pay more money for less food of higher quality. In some locations, one can eat better from convenience stores than here, so it isn't necessary to break the bank or settle for McDonalds, even though McDonalds varies its menu for local tastes - for example, serving fresh pineapple and Kona coffee in Honolulu or putting wasabi on the Filet O' Fish sandwich in Hong Kong - so that is surely part of the adventure. When I travel, I generally lose a little weight, my skin clears up a bit, and the portions always leave me too full for dessert. As I am well over 200 pounds, I find this a little astonishing because foreigners do not strip the fat from their food; it is often quite rich in addition to portions we wouldn't diss from our recliners at halftime. I have been forced to schedule dessert as a "meal" on occasion, in those places where desserts are served in large helpings. While dessert in the rest of the world is as much of a treat as it is here, it tends to be significantly less sweet, so calling that pastry a meal isn't something you have to lie about to friends who eat healthy.
While solo travel is tiring and there is no one to take powerfully engaging photos of you pretending to heft Stonehenge's lintels or wear a cathedral dome as a hat, I learned that the world is very negotiable for a middle aged lady with a credit card, backpack and carry-on. I did end up planning a few days around my sore legs and fatigue, so my agenda was considerably more modest than if I had been in my thirties or had an additional week . . . or an additional grand! Smiles are useful on the road, and don't forget pressure socks for the long flights!
Obviously, I consider this adventure a resounding success. This isn't to say I wasn't happy to come home to my husband's good cheer and eat from the garden he had planted! I came home to a garden where I could tiptoe out back in my jammies and pluck some okra, tomatoes and peppers to fry up and throw over rice. Nothing corny about "home sweet home" after weeks on the road. I no longer saw the flaws in my house. My return to domesticity with my patootie was sweet indeed.
So, while this type of trip can be life-changing, there is another level where it really ain't dat serious. My only agenda was to see what was, with the eyes I already have.
And now, some numbers. The expense for everything, from my flights down to my fridge magnets, was under $5,000 so, if you want to go anywhere in the developed world at least, as one airline puts it, "there's nothing stopping you."
You can say that again.
posted by Exxuendo at 11:43 AM
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