[gsferrari]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wmcmanus Now Guru wants me to go to India so he can be my tour guide! Can you imagine?

If I am in India at the same time then I will give you a whirlwind tour of the place. Too many wonderful spots to see...in any case let me put together a list of the best places to visit and I will put you on to a friend of mine who will be your guide in my absence.


Quote:

For some reason, I've never had any big India types of dreams

Probably because of the way the media projects the culture and poverty etc. Most Indian cities are a lot more cosmopolitan than american cities.

Maybe you are permanently scarred by the "Indiana Jones : Temple of Doom" nonsense

Quote:

but I do like their food

I have been to several of the "best" Indian restaurants outside of India and none of them taste ANYTHING like native Indian food.

Prepare for mouthwatering Tandoori Chicken and flavorful Biryani's, rotis etc.

Oh boy...if you like food you are in for a treat...

Chaat snacks in the evening...kingfisher beer in the night...

I dont think you will return. Buy land by the sea, build a house and settle down

I can also point you in the right direction if you have any real-estate needs.

Find a nice Indian girl and get married. I am going to marry an Indian...not because of the familiarity and comfort...but because I think dusky women are waaaay more exotic than pale women AND Indian women (if you find the right one) are amazing partners.


Quote:

Anyway, is India like Indiana? I like Indiana. Maybe I should try India too. Bombay or Calcutta?

Dont target cities. Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Bangalore etc. are the business centres of India...not too much to see. To really see India for what it was you need to hit the less travelled paths.

Let me know what interests you:

* Tiger Safari
* National Parks
* Temples (modern and ancient beyond your imagination)
* Architectural marvels
* Textiles
* Food
* Scenery
* Art and Crafts (small scale artisan businesses...)


While you are there you can also specify your audio "furniture" and have it hand made out of wood/stone/metal of your choice...


Let me know...email - guru at gurushankar dot com

 

[jjcha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wmcmanus (2) Days 17-18, Singapore (5) Days 19-23, Bangkok, Thailand (3) Days 24-26, Hong Kong (6) Days 27-32, Beijing, China (10) Days 33-42, Tokyo, Japan

[EDIT: Okay, I actually just read the thread, so some updated comments in brackets]

Hey Wayne - this looks like a great trip. Just some gut thoughts looking at this for the first time:

10 days in Tokyo seems like a lot. The city itself can be toured pretty thoroughly in about 7. Actually just 5 is probably enough to hit the main spots. Do you plan on touring elsewhere in Japan? [EDIT: Okay, I think you're planning on touring outside of Tokyo - 10 days in Japan should be just enough. Hitting Tokyo, Kyoto and maybe like Mt. Fuji/Hakone can be done nicely in that time. When you're finalizing details, look into a week long, unlimited JR rail pass]


10 days might be good to really take a "pause" and not feel like you're on the clock to move on to the next stop. And this is a great (but expensive) place for such a "pause". [It's nice to have a break from airplanes - I like the idea of an extended "Japan" stay]

I love HK, and I know I'll love Singapore when I get my butt over there eventually, and they're both meaningfully different - but they are both large multicultural, but largely Chinese modern cities. I'd be really tempted to cut one (heck cut out both) if necessary to visit India (never been, but would like to some day) or someplace like Angkor Watt in Cambodia.

Anyway, let me think about it some more, and I'm sure others have suggestions as well, but those are my gut responses to the itinerary. Looks awesome though.

Best,

-Jason

 

[Duncan]

Wmcmanus...

What airlines in the oneworld alliance are you using to go around India / Egypt?

You only have the options of:

Aer Lingus
American Airlines
British Airways
Cathay Pacific
Finnair
Iberia
LAN
Qantas

There are other alliances (which elude me right now) that might be better for your particular RTW trip??

I have access to an GDS, so - if you want to firm up (unless of course this is THE final version) then I can see if it would all work out for you.

Duncan.

Edit: here is a list of all the airlines and their memberships...

You also need to bear in mind (iirc) regardless of which alliance you fly with, that you must continue in the same direction - no back-tracking is permitted, but if it makes it easier, surface sectors are counted towards your overall journey

 

[Wmcmanus]

Hey, I'm just catching up with this thread again.

Guru, thanks for your help with India. Today I finally brought the subject of "the trip" up with my girlfriend, and of course we were having lunch at the Gateway of India. She was pretty amazed by the whole thing, and of course, as I expected it would be, it was a little premature to talk about and really caught her off-gaurd, but in a good way. The key will be to catch her "in between" jobs (which should be possible) so that she can get away for so much time. But she's excited about it (naturally) and said that India is her #1 "must stop" even more so than Japan. So there you have it. I'm sure you'll be a big help when the time comes.

Jason, thanks for your thoughts about Japan, especially the idea of an unlimited JR rail pass. I also agree that Singapore and Hong Kong are not 100% essential, at least not on this "first" trip (now I'm really thinking big).

Duncan, your link to all of the various RTW travel options is MOST helpful at this time. No doubt, I'll benefit greatly by this as I start taking the time to learn about the industry and explore what might work best for this trip. I'm not stuck on the OneWorldAlliance, and in fact just sent off a copy of one of my posts above to an agency in San Fran that specialzes in RTW travel. It may take a couple of business days to get a response from them in terms of what they suggest as alternatives to the OneWorldAlliance. For me, flexibility and convenience are the keys, because I don't want to get married to the travel plan. This is why, in most cases, I'm not going to bother to book hotels in advance (or at least not way in advance). As the trip develops, the dates of our arrival at various destinations may well get pushed back or forward a couple of days, and I don't want to get locked in to the "we've got to be in Tokyo on the 18th" sort of mentality. In any case, the link you've provided will help me a lot in terms of the big picture.

 

[Dimitris]

I would leave the states outsides this. Why would you want to travel within your country when you can do it anytime? Too bad you cant come to Europe too. Mind if i ask what is going to be your musical companion on this trip? You plan on having to listen to arent you?

 

[3lusiv3]

I haven't read all of this thread... but Australia is BIG. Very big. Don't underestimate the amount of time that it would take to get around. Sydney is a modern western style city of about 5 million people and is worth visiting, but if you want to go to the outback you'll have to fly there to save time. I guess as a minimum you could do a few days in Sydney, fly to Alice Springs and surrounds (in central Australia) for a few days, and fly to Cairns and visit the Great Barrier Reef for a few days.

 

[Wmcmanus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dimitris I would leave the states outsides this. Why would you want to travel within your country when you can do it anytime? Too bad you cant come to Europe too. Mind if i ask what is going to be your musical companion on this trip? You plan on having to listen to arent you?

I'm down to 3 days in San Fransisco, nothing else in the US, and don't think I'll cut that out because it is most definitely an international city and one that fits nicely into this trip as a departure point for New Zealand. From Cayman, we will have to head West in one way or another, and you know about the City for Lovers reputation!

At some point, I'd like to do at least 3 more "long" trips over the next 5 years or so:

1. An extended Europe/Russia trip via rail and car rental, less so than air. This I'd probably do before the North America thing because of what can be learned from the process. I'm thinking more like 6-8 weeks rather than the 10-12 that I have in mind for the "world tour".

2. A "mostly US" tour (with bits of Mexico and Canada as well). I've seen a lot of the US already and it doesn't offer the great variety that other places do (at least not in terms of language, culture and history), so this one is not as big of a priority. Yet, there is so much to see and do in the US as well!!! It would focus on the national parks more so than cities. Maybe a little bit of Vegas could be mixed in for good measure, but mostly R&R, and more like 4-6 weeks.

3. I'd also like to spend a good amount of time in Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Nevada (i.e, the Western states), and even more time in Alaska one day. This would be an even more peaceful US-only type of trip and could be done while I'm working on a writing project that I have in mind. It could last up to 6 months possibly but would be more of a temporary lifestyle change than "pure" travel.

 

[3lusiv3]

One more thing...don't visit the outback during our summer. It's too hot.

 

[gsferrari]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wmcmanus Today I finally brought the subject of "the trip" up with my girlfriend

You are bringing a girlfriend???

Oh well...that rules out half of the places I was planning to take you to

LOL jk

 

[minya]

San Francisco rules, Wayne. DON'T ride the cable cars and stay the HELL away from the waterfront and Pier 39. And never ever ever call it "Frisco."

Make sure to eat lunch at Mifune in Japantown Plaza on Geary. Amazing, made-fresh-daily udon and soba noodles.

Eat breakfast at Tartine in the Mission (600 Guerrero St.). Their baked goods are otherworldly, especially their morning buns and croque monsieurs.

Make sure to go to Amoeba Records at the very end of Haight at Stanyan, and check out Aquarius Records on Valencia for the coolest little independent record shop in the world.

Make sure you stop at the SF Museum of Modern Art.

And have fun.

 

[Wmcmanus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by minya And never ever ever call it "Frisco."

Annoying as hell, huh? Plus it's a dead giveaway that you're a tourist, kind of like looking up at all of the big buildings while in New York or Chicago.

 

[BigD]

Wow, the physical travelling will take a huge toll on your body for sure. Since you mentioned that you'll skip Europe already, I would delay African tour for now. Nextime do the Euro/Africa trip as many flights are available from many European cities to Africa. While at it perhaps visit Isarael (if peaceful) and some parts of middle-east (again if peaceful).

For the time saved, I would add India, Indonesia, Vietnam on your list.
(1) Day 1, Leave Cayman to Atlanta to San Fransisco
(3) Days 2-4, San Fransisco
(6) Days 5-10, Christchurch, New Zealand
(5) Days 11-15, Sydney, Australia
(3) Days 16-18, Bali, Indonesia
(8) Days 19-27, India
(3) Days 28-30, Singapore
(7) Days 31-37, Bangkok, Thailand
(6) Days 38-43, Vietnam
(4) Days 44-47, Hong Kong, China
(5) Days 48-52, Shanghai, China
(6) Days 53-58, Beijing, China
(6) Days 59-64, Tokyo, Japan
(7) Days 65-71, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
(5) Days 72-76, Bueonos Aires, Argentina
(1) Day 77, Back to Miami to Cayman

If you haven't noticed, Asia is the largest continent in the world. Including Austrailia/Oceania just broadens the map BIG TIME. It's NOT like Europe where just about every city can be reached within 2 hours flight time. Of course this equation excludes Moscow and St.Petersburg. Btw, I took the liberty of extending your trip by a week.

If I were you I would dedicate this trip to Asia/Pacific Tour, perhaps dedicate Europe/Africa and Central/South America next times. Toward the end, you might not want to travel at all. It's going to be gruelling as more out of reach cities are added to your list. Besides China and India deserves more time on your trip. I'm neither Chinese nor Indian, very neutral. Those places are really the birth of civilization. No offense, but Japan doesn't deserve more days than Beijing and Shanghai and India for sure.

 

[Wmcmanus]

BigD, that was a most wonderful reply! I should start some sort of a contest to get other people to put together their own itineraries! It would be quite interesting to see what people come up with.

I also like your idea of doing "circle tours" within geographic regions. Some of the RTW plans, including the OneWorldAlliance, offer this kind of option. Certainly, Africa could easily be added to a Europe and Russia trip. Doing Central/South America together, and for a longer period of time, would also make sense. There are just so many places, and not enough time and money to do it all.

 

[gsferrari]

Wayne - give me tentative dates when you will be in India. I should be able to put you up in the farm-house...trust me...when you are there you will decide to stay there and not go anywhere...

Fishing expeditions, Body surfing, Brand new boat and quad bike, HUGE house and HUGER grounds, nearby arts and crafts villages, fabulous restaurants, swimming pool, tennis court, bose music system

(back from the days when they actually made good stuff)...

I think you can spend 10 days right there in chennai without moving your ass

Thanks.

gs

 

[minya]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wmcmanus Annoying as hell, huh? Plus it's a dead giveaway that you're a tourist, kind of like looking up at all of the big buildings while in New York or Chicago.

You know the drill. Same with the cablecars. Nothing gets a bigger

from real San Franciscans.