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Lea and Keith Survey
Before we began this trip, I (Lea) wrote an article about Round The World travelers and their experiences. To write this article, I sent a survey to several travelers and read through their responses. Now that we are completing our first RTW, Keith and I thought it would be interesting to answer the same survey.
The Questions
1. On your RTW, what countries have you visited or plan on visiting?
(Lea and Keith) USA, Thailand, Vietnam, Nepal, India, Australia, Tonga, South Africa, Kenya, Egypt, Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Czech Republic, Austria, Luxembourg, Germany, Netherlands, England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland.
2. Are you traveling alone? (If no, who are you traveling with?)
(Lea and Keith) No, with each other
3. Why did you decide to embark on an RTW?
(Lea) I always dreamed of traveling all around the world. When Keith and I married we made a list of our dreams and an around the world trip was one of the items. I believe you cannot wait for your dreams to come true, but have to make them happen. So we planned and saved and made the trip a reality.
(Keith) Ditto.
4. What have you gained from such an adventure?
(Lea) I now have a much better knowledge of and interest in world affairs. Before the trip I would just scan the international section of the papers, but now I have a keen interest in world news. I want to know what is happening in the world and how our (the US) decisions affect the world. I have also gained a greater confidence in myself and my abilities. I now know that I can do things like hike in the Himalayas, dive in the Barrier Reef and camp in the African wild. I can travel to completely foreign cities and feel sure that I can orient myself and explore. I have enough confidence now to try a new career - writing.
(Keith) Perspective.
5. What is the most important lesson you have learned on your trip?
(Lea) Throughout the year I have learned that there are many kind people all around the world. The majority of people we met were welcoming and helpful. I have also learned that many of my pre trip assumptions about developing countries such as Nepal, India and Vietnam were untrue. I thought travel through these countries would be difficult and we would have to “rough it.” I discovered that travel was relatively easy to set up and everywhere we went we enjoyed amenities such as hot showers, clean rooms, telephone and yes, MTV and CNN. I think a lot of people are afraid to visit countries like these, but we found them safe, easy to travel and full of some of the best sights in the world.
(Keith) The United States is a great place to live. Though
lacking the cultural depth that many older countries have and the geographic
beauties of others, the US is truly the land of opportunity. We are blessed
to live in a country where we can freely speak our minds, worship as
individuals, and enjoy an extremely high standard of living.
6. What is the hardest part about traveling for great lengths of time?
(Lea) Aside from missing our family, I got tired of the hours it would take us to find a place to stay when arriving at a new place. Walking around with a pack trying to find a reasonable place is not always fun. Other than that, I loved the constant travel - it gets in the blood.
(Keith) "Walking around with a pack trying to find a reasonable place" is NEVER "fun".
7. What is the best part about traveling for great lengths of time?
(Lea) Spending so much time with Keith. We had so much fun seeing the world together – it was amazing to be able to learn and experience such adventures together.
(Keith) Realizing your dreams with the person you love.
8. Would you do it again?
(Lea) In a second.
(Keith) Definitely.
9. Tell me one of your favorite on the road tales.
(Lea) We were visiting the Ho Chi Minh museum in Hanoi. Like most Vietnamese government owned museums, there was plenty of Anti-American propaganda about the Vietnam War. However, in this museum, like in the rest of the country, the people we encountered were very pro-American. We were the only Westerners and many people stopped to greet us. I was walking toward the stairs when a pretty teenage girl approached me. She did not speak English, but smiled and held out her hand. I reached for her hand and we walked down the stairs together. At the exit, she smiled in friendship then said goodbye.
(Keith) Drinking tea and eating "momos" in the restaurant of the Utse Guesthouse in Kathmandu. The sitting area consisted of couches with large pillows and Tibetan decor. Surrounded by other trekkers and Nepalese guides, Lea and I planned our trek to Annapurna Base Camp. The atmosphere was unforgettable - the food and people were totally foreign and we were preparing for a trek deep into the Himalayas; neither of us had ever undertaken such a feat.