About us
Mlong currently works at Human Resources. She is making her Phd in European Ethnology and Culture Studies. Her personal interests include traveling, folklore, cultures (mainly Arabic and Persian) and religions of the world (particularly Islam and animism). She finds inspiration in mountains and literature, especially autobiographies of strong women. She’s an amateur photographer and avid scrapbooker. She currently suffers from a chronic lack of time and sleep, but should have a remedy in next few months.
Clong is currently a student in general education. He likes meeting new people and seeing new places. He is interested in kitchens of the world: cooking, tasting, experimenting, and of course, eating! He loves to read and fantasy books are his favorite, longer the better. He is currently learning Polish which makes him suffer from a severe pain in the tongue. He fell in love with sailing in the Mauzry region of Poland, and recently rediscovered his childhood love of fishing. |
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About the Idea
The Route
An avalanche got started with the preparations, first as a little snowball to choose what would we like to see. Africa? The Americas? Asia—north, south, south-east, all? Eastern Europe, all of Europe? Oh, definitely the Middle East. Australia and New Zealand? Hey, what’s this dot in the ocean, Cook Island? Heck yeah,can’t miss that! Now, how to get going…
Then came the reality check. After taking into account our budget (tighten that belt!) and our time, (work and school requiements), we had to decide on our highest priorities.
We definitely want to visit North America, Africa, and South-East Asia. The rest of our itinerary was decided by out ticket agency, Travel Nation. They have wonderfully affordable, around-the-world flight packages, and we picked the best one for us. We were pleasantly surprised to discover that the flights are direct and with large, reputable carriers: Virgin, Singapore Airlines, and Air New Zealand. With the exception of key flights, we will be using local transport as much as possible: autostop agencies, arranged lifts, bicycle rentals, and naturally, a lot of walking!
The final route will look as follows:
EUROPE: Poland > Ireland > UK >
AFRICA: South Africa > Namibia >
ASIA: Singapore > Malaysia > Vietnam> Laos > Cambodia > Thailand > Malaysia > Indonesia > Singapore >
OCIEANA: New Zealand > Cook Islands >
NORTH AMERICA: USA >
EUROPE: UK > Ireland > Poland
The Form
| Then the snowball started picking up speed and size, as we began to comprehend everything we needed to do before departure. We both managed to get half a year off from school and work - what a luck! And not for the first time, everything was starting to fall into place in the puzzle of our lives. We considered our desire to spend our time with real people and their culture as much as possible, and avoid the touristy stuff. We realized that as foreign visitors, this is not totally realistic, but we wanted to get as close as we can to the ordinary - and extraordinary - people who make their homes in the places we visit. With this in mind, we will primarily lodge using couch surfing, volunteering, and home/family stays. |
Health Issues
We have made sure we have all of our required shots taken care of and are currently debating which malaria prevention to take, but be assured we will take one of them.
Equipment
We will take only the absolute necessarily with us. We are mainly preparing for the rainy season in South-East Asia. In addition to clothes, we are taking a small first aid kit, basic cosmetics, sunscreen, insect repellent, pain medication, sleeping bags, mosquito netting, and our camera. There are just a few other things to take, probably a hundred or so! But it will be ok: Clong has the bigger backpack since he is much bigger, but Mlong is a master at packing so it will be a toss up as to who has more stuff in their packs.
What else
At the moment, we seem to have thought of everything, but there is always that one last thing. We know that no matter what, on June 2, 2009 when we get onto the airplane in Krakow, all preparations are over and we are off!!
Afterwards
After the trip, which seems like an eternally distant prospect today, we will return to our former roles of work and studying but as changed people, of course. We hope these
priceless experiences will carry us through the next few years with optimism and love for the world.
Objectives & Goals
Through this journey, we would like to learn other perspective on the world, to touch, feel and taste of life in other parts of the world; to bow to the diversity of cultures and nature.
Since it was a curiosity about the world that brought us together, we would like to show everyone that you can travel, and fulfill your dreams, no matter how trivial it may sound.
We also want to go trekking through every possible mountain and canyon, as well as swim in all three oceans.
In addition we each have personal objectives:
- Mlong would like to get to know people who are religious minorities in the context of their home countries.
- Clong would like to explore the kitchens of the world, finding the secrets to their fabulous dishes, so he can share that joy with others when he returns home.
