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Travel Mezze - May 2007

How to D.I.Y. International Travel

May 31st 2007 01:08

Do-It-Yourself Travel: whether you're traveling on a budget, trying to fit a specific agenda, or just trying to venture off the beaten path, designing your own trip can be a spectacular and rewarding experience...or a disaster. It all depends on your preparation, and the flip side, your flexibility!

Doesn't this bus look friendly?

There are a lot of ways to begin planning a trip. If you know your budget, but are generally aimless in your target location, start with airfare. Go check out the typical airfare services like orbitz and expedia and see what specials they're running and search for the dates you want. For a short-term international trip (less than a month, or even two to three months depending on where you're headed), the airfare can be your singlemost pricey travel cost, so savings here will help you out bigtime. On any online service, but especially on services offering student discount rates (like studentuniverse and sta), remember that there will be additional fees applied (though often not very big ones), AND if you get special discount tickets of any kind (student or otherwise) there may be restrictions if you need to change or cancel your reservation. Read the information BEFORE you buy. Another important thing to remember when getting tickets is that if you are traveling with others, you may want to consider purchasing them at the same time (on the same credit card) to get seats together, since otherwise you'll have to call the airline itself (although the policies on when passengers are assigned to their seats-- when they buy or when they check in-- can differ).

If your jumping off point, on the other hand, is where you want to go and when, you're off to an easy start. All you need to do is purchase your airfare as far in advance as you can (6 months is ideal, because tickets start to get more expensive as you get closer), and grab a guide or two at your local bookstore. Start thumbing through your Lonely Planet or Frommer's and look at what attractions there are in your location of choice. Depending on where you're going, you can get general or more specific guides. If you're going to Ireland, for example, you can pick up a guide to Ireland as a whole (which may or may not include Northern Ireland), a guide to Dublin, a guide to national parks and hikes, and probably more. Most country guides will include regional maps with a little information on the various towns, but these days many towns and tourist sites will have their own websites, and more information will be availalbe on the web if you just do a quick search for it. Lonely Planet guides are usually good about including known web addresses, but even if they don't include a web address don't think that means it doesn't exist. You can also use the internet as a prime spot for looking at pictures and personal reviews of locations-- this is ESPECIALLY true if you're looking for hikes or backpacking treks. The best place to get an idea of what long hiking excursions are like is to search online and get pictures/logs from a number of sources. Just looking at a travel guide will give you a source of info for a number of places to stay and eat within a town as well as how to get there and how to get around. From that point, you can choose to make travel reservations ahead of time, or just use the guide once you get there to find the places you have in mind. It's always a good idea to plan ahead, but it's your choice whether to make reservations prior to leaving home or as you go. I've done it both ways, and both had their advantages.

Guides are helpful in planning and in practice

If you know the kind of thing you want to do abroad, but don't know where to do it, then the internet comes in BIG TIME. For example, say you know you want to see some mountains. Do a general search and find out where to find the best views, day hikes, long hikes, or just general mountain tourism. Say you want to go on a tour of museums housing specific works of art. Look them up and find out where they're housed. Say you want to go snorkeling and see some spectacular reefs. Do a search for the world's best snorkeling and you'll know where to go. The same is true if you're interested in doing ecotourism (an increasingly popular way to be a non-parasitic traveler) or cultural tourism. Find the hot spots, and then follow the same steps above-- get some guides and get familiar with what you'll find when you get there.

A blue-footed boobie up close in the Galapagos

If you have language skills for the place you're going, things will be a lot easier for you once you arrive, especially if you want to wait to make reservations or if you want to eat at a small local restaurant, etc. However keep in mind that even if people don't speak English you'll still be able to figure things out and get around if you just try. Numbers are a pretty universal language, as well as pointing to locations on maps or showing a photograph of where you want to go. You'll surprise yourself with how creative you can be.

Language skills are great if you really want to delve into another culture. Even if you can't have substantial conversations with people, though, you can still take part in a cultural experience by learning what seasonal festivals there are in a region or town (often highlighted in travel guides). Try the local food before trying something you're familiar with-- it's okay if you don't like it-- tastes differ--but always give it a try. Find out what cafes, bars, or locales are frequented by residents and check them out. Buy crafts or other souvenirs from locals when looking to shop. And never underestimate the value of staying in a single area for an extended period of time and getting to know the little old lady who owns your hostel or the people who get coffee every morning at the same time you do. The people you interact with everyday are an invaluable resource, and while you may feel like you're going way out on a limb to interact with them when you're a foreigner, they'll usually appreciate a genuine interest in their home and what about it attracted you. I know if I repeatedly ran into the same strangers who spoke broken English and didn't seem to know where they where going, I'd be happy to show them how to get some groceries and a bus map. It feels a little like asking a stranger out on a date, but with a little less commitment on their part, so you're less likely to get rejected, and it's worth the risk to meet some interesting folks.

Sometimes you'll arrive in a city and realize it was nothing like you expected. Maybe you'll find something to do and make the best of it, or maybe you'll decide to ship out and go someplace else. This is why I say that you need to be prepared first, but flexible too-- even if you are prepared, you'll probably change your mind about something, and it's helpful to set out with an attitude that acknowledges that when you feel like doing something different, you'll do it. There's no shame in being a "quitter" when you've designed your own trip-- D.I.Y. travelers don't quit, they adapt.

I've planned to hike for 10 days in the Alps and quit after 2 because I wanted to spend more time hanging around in town around Lake Geneva-- I had to cancel some reservations and make last-minute new ones, but the trains were ready to take me anywhere I wanted to go, and I LOVED it. The prevalence of internet bars throughout the world makes it easy to change plans and reservations and look up new destinations almost anywhere, and even where you don't have access to internet, don't feel afraid to seek the help of the people at your hotel/hostel or the convenience store where you've shopped three times. The scariest part about travel is going somewhere and not knowing what it will be like when you get there-- and that means that when you get there, you've got nothing to fear.

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How to travel to Tibet, the Roof of the World

May 30th 2007 18:37

Two summers ago, I traveled to Lhasa, Tibet, the People's Republic of China, for a month to volunteer at an orphanage/welfare school and did some trips to other areas of Tibet as well, including Mt. Everest Base Camp (the original British base camp, which isn't the one that is primarily used now). It's an awesome place to travel, though there's small chance that you'll be able to communicate much with locals even if you do have your Tibetan phrasebook (or even speak a little Chinese). Tibet is changing quickly, though, with the addition of the railroad from Beijing to Lhasa-- travel options have opened wide for both Han tourists and foreigners, and as a result Lhasa is going to become increasingly more developed at an exponential pace. There are benefits and pitfalls to this-- the good thing is it's easier to travel, and the bad thing is that Tibet is changing fast from what it used to be. But whether you're viewing it as a pessimist or an optimist, it's time to go for a visit.

Visit the beautiful Potala Palace, former home of the exiled Dalai Lama

Arriving in Lhasa and Concerns:

There's no booking a cheap flight to Lhasa--it will run about $2,000 from the cheapest source, and then you'll need to get a travel permit to the Tibet Autonomous Region from a travel agent in China. I went through Chengdu in China, and spoke with an agent there who bought me a ticket for a flight from Chengdu to Lhasa as well as the permit. Agents are fairly easy to find if you do an internet search ahead or time, if you book a hotel ahead of time, or even if you ask at one of the travel information booths in the airport in Chengdu. You can also get this set up if you go to Tibet through a company like the volunteer organization I went with, but this is in no way necessary. You can also fly through Nepal, which is a better route to take if you have a couple of days to hang out and wait for your connecting flight-- it will give you a chance to acclimatize to the altitude, which is a big issue. If you connect immediately, the altitude will definitely get you feeling a little light-headed (at the least), and waiting a few days in Nepal is probably your safest option (physically, since getting too high too fast can cause serious problems like pulmonary or cerebral edema and death). I spent only one night in Chengdu, which was a big mistake because I ended up only getting to see the airport district of Chengdu, which really sucks (like the airport district of any city), and then I felt insane when I got off the plane in Lhasa. It was unreal, and not entirely in a good way.

There's really nothing you can do to prepare for the altitude change in Lhasa, either-- you can bring some Diamox (which will alleviate symptoms of altitude sickness), or purchase canned oxygen at a convenience store in Lhasa, but you'd better go ahead and plan on not being very active for at least a few days. Even climbing stairs in your hotel will wear you out, and if you don't give your body the rest it wants you can have serious complications. I recommend going to Tibet for at least two weeks, and planning to stay in Lhasa for at least the first week of it, doing low-key activities like visiting the Potala Palace and the Jokhang temple, and the Barkor circuit for some shopping. Then, if you're interested in doing some hiking in the area or outside of Lhasa, do it in your second week when you've gotten more acclimated. There are plenty of great hikes in the immediate Lhasa area, as well as some monasteries and various cultural sites, so you can easily plan to spend two weeks in Lhasa alone. Alternatively, spend a week in Lhasa and then rent a land cruiser or take a bus to visit some of the smaller surrounding cities, all of which will have a central temple or monastery to visit and hikes to do (if only the pilgrimage circuit surrounding the temple).

Food, Accommodations, and Conveniences:

I strongly recommend that you stay at the Kirey Hotel in Lhasa-- it's only blocks from all of the attractions in the historic (old) part of the city, which is definitely the part you're going to visit. The hotel costs mere dollars a day, and has laundry service (you put your clothes in a bag and take them to the desk, they're done by the next day) and a delicious restaurant called Tashi's II, which served as my staple food for most of my time in Lhasa (where you can also eat yummy yak steaks and other hearty meals for dollars a day). There's another restaurant in the Kirey Hotel plaza that has a more touristy fare (and a cultural show every night), and is slightly more expensive, as well as an internet bar above the restaurant with about 10 computers. There are a couple of small convenience stores on the same block as the Kirey Hotel, a store with phones for international calling, and a bank up the street. The computers in the internet bar initially display in Chinese, but can be set to display pages in English-- just ask the attendant. The only downside to this internet bar is that they only play the Eagles greatest hits, which sucks if you don't like the Eagles and sucks if you do like the Eagles, because after hearing that CD for a week you'll want to break it into tiny shards and stab yourself with it. In fact, I'd venture to say that I preferred to hear the uncanny Chinese versions of American songs on karaoke mixes that were playing in a lot of bars, restaurants, and random outdoor areas. At least that was funny. Also in the Kirey hotel (and this will be in most hotels, and is highly convenient), there is a message board for travelers to post ads for people to rent or share a land cruiser to do some area traveling, and you can usually find someone interested in almost anything you feel like doing. If there's not a message already up, you can post one and find a way to do what you're interested in.

There are a number of hotels and restaurants in the city-- the downside to the Kirey is that the bathrooms are shared at the end of the hall, and the toilets (like most in Tibet), are in-ground and you need to bring your own toilet paper (ALWAYS have your own toilet paper in Tibet). For more amenities, try the Lhasa Hotel or the Yak Hotel. There are a lot of good restaurants around the Barkor (the pilgrimage circuit) with all kinds of food-- just stop in when you see a restaurant and try it out. Almost all menus will be in English, and prices in yuan. For a big, American-style meal of world cuisine, try Dunya Restaurant and Bar-- it is more expensive than most restaurants in Lhasa and owned by a German couple, but the portions are big and the food comforting if you've had a long day. My recommendations for food anywhere in Lhasa are these: Definitely try the yak steak or yak burger, and definitely DON'T try the pizza. Pizza in Tibet is always weird, but local fare is usually great. Traditional Tibetan food weighs heavily on barley, and you should try tsampa (barley mush, basically), at least once, which you can do at Tashi's II, but now that there is so much Han presence in Tibet you can get great Chinese food everywhere, including the street stands that are prevalent in much of China.

Hikes:

Do make sure you bring plenty of food, juice, and water when you go hiking in Lhasa, because there's nothing like being tired on a high-altitude hike and not having enough to eat or drink. Even experienced hikers will feel some fatigue when they don't expect it, so plan to do less than you probably could at least on the first hike you do in the area. It's the roof of the world and you're in the Himilayas, so definitely get out and enjoy it, just make sure you're equipped! Pack animals can be rented for longer hikes, though I think it's more enjoyable to do day hikes since there's so much to see in the cities. The highest hikes in the Lhasa area are all walk-ups (so no climbing expertise or equipment is necessary), but they're all VERY high altitude (17,000-18,000 feet for the top 3), so you can hike for a day or two and still get amazing views and feel like you've accomplished something BIG.

Attractions:

Lhasa (and Tibet in general) is a hotspot for CULTURAL tourism-- so get ready to see a lot of Buddhism! For Buddhists, or people who are familiar with places like South Korea where Zen Buddhism is prevalent, Tibet seems to have a lot more widespread and institutionalized religion. It's much like the Bible Belt of the U.S.-- everyone is Buddhist. They just are. Buddhist monks will ask for money in ways that most Buddhists would consider to be completely inappropriate-- get used to this, and try to keep your center when confronted by people in religious garb asking you for money. It's simply a historic trend-- in Tibet, it was often so difficult to grow enough food to support the entire family that people would frequently send at least one child to become a monk or nun, regardless of the child's interest, so the monastic culture is just heavily institutionalized and ingrained in society. That being said, you should still be respectful to the monks and nuns you encounter in the cities, especially in the temples. The Buddhist temples are a treasure of Tibet, so see as many as you can and admire the unique qualities of each. Give some money if you can, buy the wares the monks are selling within the temple (the profits of which will go to them to support the monks and the temple), and ask before you take pictures. Often you can take as many pictures as you want, but sometimes you'll need to pay a very small fee before taking all your pictures. So just ask. And above all, be respectful of the Tibetans who are going on pilgrimages. They'll be kneeling, bowing, and walking in circuits, so if you need to walk around something, go in the direction of the Tibetans to make sure you're going to right way. No one will hurt you if you go the wrong way on a circuit, but it is disrespectful and should be avoided if you're a nice person with any cultural sensitivity.

Tibetan women walk a circuit around some stupas (burial monuments)

Money:

It's a good idea to exchange money or get money out from the ATM. Don't rely on anywhere to accept your credit card, even major hotels. You won't be carrying exhorbitant amounts of money at any time because most things are so cheap. Also don't be afraid to negotiate (bargain)-- even hotels may try to overcharge you because you are a tourist (though this didn't happen to me in Lhasa, only in the countryside). If you go to a convenience store, pay attention to the price that is marked-- I once got overcharged for a bag of oreos that had a price clearly marked on the package! I told the cashier the right amount and he sheepishly corrected himself. However, don't feel bad if you do get overcharged, because it usually won't be by much (although I've sometimes heard of people trying to charge foreigners the equivalent of like a million dollars for a land cruiser rental, just because they were trying to think of an exhorbitant amount of money and had no concept of what they were asking).

Safety:

Tibet is a REALLY safe place to travel, even for women alone. Dress modestly (pants, long skirts, and at least 3/4 length sleeves on shirts), but not because you're in danger of unwanted attention-- you'll just scandalize all the Tibetans around you, who are quite conservative, if you wear shorts or a tank top. You don't need to worry much about being robbed or assaulted, just be aware of the small annoyance of people asking for money anytime you show that you have some. Transportation can be a little scary at times (passing people on the right or while going around a blind curve, passing people who are passing people, etc.), but you don't have much choice when it comes to taking buses and taxis, and you're probably safer than driving yourself if you can be driven instead. The main danger in Tibet is the many feral (and domestic) dogs-- if you see a dog acting funny, get away from it, because many dogs in Tibet have rabies. If you get bitten by a dog, visit the hospital immediately. If you're going to spend a long time trekking in Tibet and will be away from the cities for many days at a time, I might even recommend getting a rabies vaccine at home before leaving, because it's much less expensive and less painful than being treated after the fact, and if you get bitten by a rabid dog while trekking you may not be able to reach a hospital in sufficient time to be treated.

Overall, Tibet is an incredible place, full of rich cultural heritage and a unique blend of Chinese and Tibetan ways of life. English-speakers can get by fairly easily in the cities and you can travel between cities in a matter of hours to see different sites if you want to leave the capitol of Lhasa. Don't feel like you have to leave Lhasa, however-- the Himilayas are incredible, but you could easily spend several weeks just in Lhasa and the surrounding mountains, and there are some rewarding hikes and vast numbers of cultural sites to see in the city. Be prepared for some discomforts, but don't let them daunt you if you're planning a trip to this ever more accessible land of adventure. You'll do fine if you bring your favorite toilet paper and when you get homesick, there will be oreos and pringles waiting for you in the supermarket (near the post office and the Potala Palace).