Bangkok, Thailand

We arrived in Bangkok last night, and after getting our visa's we needed to figure out how to get to our hostel. The easiest option was taxi, but being in cheap mode we decided to take the train. And I'm so glad we did because it cost us $1 per person to get here. We had to take 3 trains and it tooks us probably 3x as long as a taxi would, but we spent a lot less than a cab would have cost. So I'm happy to report that since we have arrived in Bangkok we have only spent $2! When we finally arrived at the hostel they upgraded our room from a double with a shared bathroom to a double with a private bathroom! So we now have our own room with our own private bathroom. We went right to sleep as we were exhausted, and woke up around 8am local time. The weather here is very hot and humid, but it's raining. I am blogging from the lobby of our hostel(Lub D Hostel - Siam Square) and we are now going to try and find something to eat.

Hong Kong

We have landed in Hong Kong after after saying some very emotional goodbyes in Toronto. Overall the past few days have been very emotional and I think everything just started to hit me a few days ago. I didn't think leaving friends and family behind would be this difficult. Since the previous weekend was thanksgiving we were able to spend a lot of time with family and I'm glad we had the opportunity to do that. I am now sitting on the floor at HK airport blogging from my iPod while Andrew is getting us something to drink and I wait for our iPods to charge. The flight here took approx 14 hours but I have to say it didn't feel that long. We actually had quite a bit of leg room compared to other flights and the meals were pretty good as well. We are now waiting for our connecting flight to Bangkok so we have around 4 hours to kill. We didn't sleep a lot on the flight over here so hopefully we'll be able to catch up on this flight.

It was interesting flying here because we took off at 9:30am from Toronto and as the flight progressed it got darker and darker outside and after a few hours it was night again. So we went from waking up at 5am in the dark, taking of in the morning, to complete night and landed in HK at noon local time. And for those of you wondering, there is a 12 hr time difference between TO and HK. Needless to say we're pretty tired.

For those of you who know Andrew, you will appreciate this; he just informed me that at Burger King here you can up size your drink to a beer.

Karolina you and Jarrod will be happy to know Andrew is in full out cheap mode and has scoured the whole airport for the cheapest water. He is very excited because he just saved us $5.

Family & Friends

We have been receiving lots of questions about how our families feel about us taking a year off, so I thought I would address it here. When we told our parents it was received with mixed emotions. Initially they weren't very happy as they thought it was a mistake and that our careers would be affected. Then there was of course the money issue. Both sets of parents are immigrants so it was hard for them to understand why we would want to "throw" our money away on something so frivolous. They worked very hard (and continue to work hard) to be where they're at and as my dad said, "If you don't know what to do with your money, just give it to me".

The conversation I had with my parents is that they brought us here to give us a better life and allow us to realize our dreams. I'm aware the dreams they had in mind for us were more traditional, but that is exactly what we are doing, realizing our dreams. Once I had that conversation, they became very supportive and are now talking about visiting us in Australia. Andrew's parents also became supportive and dare I say it? proud. They tell everyone they speak to about our trip. So yes, our families are supportive.

Most of the feedback we have received has been very positive. There are a few people who don't necessarily agree with what we're doing, and they feel we should follow a more traditional path, but even when speaking with them or telling them about our plans, I get a feeling they are excited for us.

I think it's hard for everyone to understand why we would take a year off from our lives to travel the world, and they see it as something scary. And although I get nervous and question whether this is the right thing to do, at the same time I know I can come back and start all over again. It's the fear of the unknown which deters most people. And I think it would have deterred me too, if I didn't have Andrew pushing me along. The one thing I know for sure is if we don't do this now, we will never do it. And I'm more scared of not doing the trip and regretting that, than of any other consequences which we might face as a result of the trip.

I won't speak for Andrew (he can post his own version of how he feels about this trip - another opportunity for him to post :)) but I'm glad we're doing this trip together and I'm glad I'll have him along for the ride, if only to push me forward and to not let me look back...too often.

The Countdown Has Begun

We are now 1 week from leaving. Our last day at work was a few days ago, and it still feels like the weekend. We have been tying up some loose ends. Banking, insurance, selling the car, cancelling phones, etc. Today is an exciting day as it's laundry day. :) It's really weird having all this time on your hands. You always think about what you could do with all this free time, like clean the house, finish up that project you started, take care of all the little things you have been meaning to take care of, and then of course do something to enjoy yourself. But when you get the time, you really don't know what to do with it. I guess it's because we are now on a tight budget and can't really do anything fun, and also because we don't own anything so we also don't have any responsibilities. You really become used to the fact that you always have something to do and something to take care of, but when all those things are done, then what? I'm sure you're not feeling sorry for us right about now nor do I expect you to. I think we'll figure out ways to pass the time. We'll watch the shows we've been meaning to catch up on, and if you know us you know we don't have cable so there is a lot of catching up to do. We'll sleep in, we'll catch up with friends, and generally just hang out. This weekend is of course thanksgiving and we have a lot of family time planned.

When we were planning our trip I made sure to plan it for after Thanksgiving. I wanted an opportunity to see our families before we go. After Monday it will all go by very fast. Our flight leaves at 9:30am on Wed. Oct. 13 so really after the weekend we only have 1 day left. We're flying into Bangkok and right now the weather there is partly sunny with a high of 31 degrees Celsius. Let's hope the monsoon rains end soon so we can hit the beaches.

We have been putting all the things we need to take on the trip in a box, and Andrew has now emptied the box and placed everything on the living room floor. I think his mom will really appreciate that we have turned her living room into a packing area when she gets home. I think the next step is a "dry run" with the packing. I'm procrastinating as I don't want to think about all the things I will not be able to bring with me and making decisions is giving me headaches. We have been going through our clothes to see what needs to be thrown away, what we can give to Goodwill and what to pack away for when we come back. It feels good to be purging. It makes me feel like this is a fresh start to our trip and when we come back we can have a fresh start as well.

Andrew

As you can see, this blog is called Margaret & Andrew's travel blog. However, as you can also see there haven't been any postings done by Andrew. They have all been done by me. When Andrew's name was added to this blog (that's right, added), the condition was he would need to contribute at least one post before we leave. We are 2 weeks away (actually 2.5 but who's counting) and he still has not contributed. I'm putting it out there on to the world wide web if Andrew does not contribute to this blog, his name will be erased and he will be banned from posting his opininons.

T minus 2.5 weeks

We are wrapping up at work this week and the feeling is kind of strange. As of next week I will no longer have a routine, no place to be every morning. In a way it’s very liberating but at the same time it’s also scary. My blackberry was turned off last week and I had to borrow a cell phone from my mother-in-law. I really appreciate her lending me her phone but it’s definitely not a blackberry. It’s amazing how attached you become to your belongings. BBM (BlackBerry Messenger) was something I used on an ongoing basis and it was a very easy tool to keep in touch with everyone. Of course all my work emails came in to my blackberry and I was able to see who’s emailing me and if there is anything I need to action right away. When I told people my blackberry was going to be turned off they asked “what are you going to do now??” and I didn’t know how to answer the question. I told them I was borrowing a phone until we leave and that I would text them. “Text? That’s so old school…who texts anymore?” I don’t know. The first day the blackberry was turned off I had 2 phones with me; my old one and my new one. I just couldn’t let go. On the second day I left it behind at home but I felt naked. Everywhere I looked people were on their Blackberry’s. I felt like a loser. On the elevator, at the mall, on the bus…everyone was on a blackberry. I had a constant need to check my phone for messages or emails, but every time I looked the only new thing was the time. No messages, no emails, no voicemails. The upside was I got excited anytime I had to check email. I knew there would always be something waiting for me, until I finally realized it wasn’t a present but an email. A work related email no less. And the excitement wore off. I have been blackberry free for a week now and I think the withdrawal is done. Don’t get me wrong, I would like to still check something every few minutes and look important doing it, but a Samsung phone just doesn’t have the same effect. Now when I’m talking to people face to face I’m actually listening to them and not thinking if my inbox is filling up or if someone has just sent me a BBM. It really is liberating.

At this point in our preparations I thought I wouldn’t even be able to focus on work and only think about the trip. Unfortunately I have discovered that is not the case. Perhaps it hasn’t hit me yet but I don’t feel like I’m going on any trip anytime soon. So many things still need to be taken care of and wrapped up at work. Will I really be able to finish it all this week? When I’m home however, it’s a different story. It’s a nagging feeling that I wish this week would just end so I can focus on the trip and have that excited feeling. We have the travel books our friends and family have so graciously given us, and we have been reading them in preparation for the trip and getting excited.

I have been researching destinations, weather patterns and diving locations. October is a tricky month in Thailand because of the Monsoon season so finding a place where it’s not raining is tricky. After speaking with some people and doing some research I think we’re going to the East side (of the South West side). The islands there, Koh Samui and Ko Phangan are apparently not affected by the monsoons as much as the West side of the coast so hopefully that will be the case when we get there. We land in Bangkok on October 14th and we’re spending 3 nights there adjusting to the time change and just exploring the city. After that we will be looking to catch a train south to the islands. That’s the plan right now anyway. We have had so many plans over the past few weeks of what we’re doing when we get to Bangkok that I wouldn’t be surprised if it all changes again. But that’s the fun part of planning a trip. The options are endless! I can’t wait to see where we end up.

Preperations

We are now approx 5 weeks away from our trip and there is still a lot to be done. We are meeting with OHIP at the end of the week to extend our OHIP while we're away as when you're out of the country for more than 153 days a year it gets cancelled. We have booked our flights for October 13th but our last day at work will be October 1st, which leaves us just a bit over 3 weeks to go. We have been doing a lot of research about where to go when we land in Bangkok and for now the consensus is that we'll head south east to Koh Samet or Koh Chang. October is just the end of Monsoon season (rainy season) but the east doesn't get hit as hard as the west so hopefully we'll get some nice weather. Although I was checking the weather in Bangkok the other day and it was 30 degrees Celsius so I think we'll be okay.

We have been doing research on where we can work and stay for free or for little money and Andrew found this great program called WWOFER. It basically allows you to get in touch with various organic farmers in the country of your choice and you can stay with them for free as long as you help out on their farm. It's meant to help people learn about organic farms but a lot of people use it for backpacking and for cheap accommodations. I think we might try something like that out.

I have been trying to figure out the best items to pack. We have put aside a box and just keep adding items to which we have to remember to take with us. My goal is to take as many ts-shirts and underwear as possible as those are the items I will be changing most frequently. After that I'm packing a pair of cargo pants, a pair of jeans, a long sleeved shirt and a sweatshirt. I'm going to keep the toiletries to a minimum as I'm planning on using my shampoo as a body wash. Besides all those items listed above, the medicine we're taking will take up the most space. We have a whole box of malaria pills.

I don't know how much I will be posting leading up to the trip as there's not a whole lot happening right now. But if I get the chance I'll blog about the rest of our preparations.