Travel Plans

Where are you going?  How long are you going to be gone?  How did you think of that? Aren't you scared? ... Whenever we tell someone about our trip these question usually follow, not necessarily in that order.  While we don't have a set itinerary per say, we do have a general outline of the countries we want to visit.

We are starting our trip in South  America, beginning with Ecuador, then Peru, Chile, and Argentina.  From there we go to Mexico, and while it is not a new destination for us, we have some important people to visit.  My sister lives there and we couldn't miss an opportunity to see her and our niece, Natalie.  From there we have a one way flight to India.  After India we are going to travel throughout Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and China.  Then we go to Japan.  From Japan we go to Russia.  We are going to cross Russia on the Trans Siberian Railway.  Going by train seems like such an adventurous way to travel.  Meeting other travelers, eating in the dinning car as the landscape goes by, and getting off at stops to see different cities... Need I say more, but I digress.  After Russia we are going to tour around Europe with whatever money we have left, if there is any. 
We have budgeted for a year, but will keep going till the money runs out.  As far as planning, we are keeping it to a minimum.  We want to leave room for spontaneity and discovery as we go.  Whose to say we won't hear about an amazing new place we just have to see, or fall in love with a particular city, or food for that matter, and just have to stay a while longer.  I wouldn't want an itinerary to get in the way.  Are we scared? ... I wouldn't use the word scared, but perhaps nervous anticipation of the unknown mixed with excitement.  It would be hard to embark on such an ambitious endeavour without having some anxiety.  For the past year our lives have been defined by planning.  Now that the planning is done and its time to actually go on the trip, its hard to switch gears and just enjoy ourselves.

Christina