Myanmar - Burma
I am a backpacker traveler, which means I basically travel only with what is in my backpack. I don't ever check in any luggage. I only bring the necessities, and purchase what I need as I go. So the question is "well, what do you pack then?". Ha ha, I will post that blog right before I leave =).
I will be leaving for South East Asia by the end of August, and I cannot tell you how excited I am!
As far as preparation, I mostly read a lot of Lonely Planet travel books, and use the internet to do my research. The type of travel that I do is called independent travel. I prefer to plan things on my own, do things as I please, and create my own itineraries. Honestly, I don't plan much, I just go! =) I also prefer to choose my own volunteer travel opportunities, so I know that my donations go straight to the cause. There are plenty of places to do volunteer work abroad, and I enjoy doing this to help the local communities, and to learn while I'm traveling.
My growing Lonely Planet Collection
What I read most =)
My first backpacking trip that I planned was in 2001 when I backpacked Europe for about a month, which is very short by "backpacker" standards, but this was my first backpacking trip, and I learned a lot from it. I did everything myself and planned the trip for me and a friend. No tour guides, no fancy hotels, no middle man fees. Now I know that a lot of people prefer to use travel agents and tour companies because it is very convenient, and trust me, I like convenience, but by doing that, you are limited to seeing a lot of things when using a tour company. Most of these companies only take you to the tourist areas, and I am not interested in that, I am interested in the local people, local food, and local activities.....that's why I travel, otherwise I might as well just stay home and be comfortable. Bottom line, I like going "off the beaten path", getting lost in a different part of the world is something that I am comfortable with, and I love the challenge of survival =).
I will be flying into Manila, Philippines and luckily I still have many relatives there. I will be meeting with my cousin and he will be with me for most of my stay in the Philippines (roughly 2 weeks). I plan to visit the Banaue Rice Terraces which is located north of Manila. These rice terraces are considered a "Wonder of the World" and I will be doing 30 burpees there as part of my 100 Wonders of the World Burpee Challenge. From there I will be going south to Boracay and Palawan to visit the most beautiful islands of the Philippines, then flying out to Bangkok Thailand.
Banaue Rice Terraces - Philippines
I will not have a certain itinerary that I will follow, I will just be going with the flow. After Manila, I will be on my own as my cousin will not be with me when I fly to Thailand. But that's the beauty of backpacking, you meet so many people, and so really there is never a dull moment. Other places that I plan to visit are Laos and Burma. If I happen to stay longer, than I will be adding Vietnam, Cambodia, and Malaysia. I do have a couple Obstacle Course Racing competitions (Warrior Dash World Championships in NorCal, and the OCR World Championships in Cincy, Ohio) in October, so I have to be back by Mid-October, unless I am having a blast, which I know I will, so we'll just have to see! =)
OCR World Championships
Less than 2 months is just not long enough, but I also have to be back for some races, and I also have my daughter to be with, I don't want to leave her for that long, although I know that she will be fine without me, she's one tough cookie! =). This is her last year in high school, so I need to be there for her. Once she begins college, I plan to travel for 6 months at a time.
While I'm traveling, I will still be working out at least 5-6 times per week. Heck, I have some races to train for, so I will be hitting some P90X and Insanity workouts in the backpacker huts, and visiting gyms to stay fit while I am in Asia. Not only that, Asia is pretty mountainous, so there will definitely be plenty of places to train outdoors. I'm sure that I'll also be running a lot on the beach as well while people are having fun with their Full Moon Parties =). Oh and I will be packing up my Shakeology, you better believe that, can't leave home without my Superfoods!
My Healthiest Meal of the Day - Anywhere!
So I'm pretty excited about my trip. I will be blogging about my workouts abroad, travel experiences, local food, and other things here, so stay posted. And if you're traveling and reading this, then I hope to run into you! =)
Backpack Asia
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