Taking an
idea from some friends we met on our travels here is a list of commonly asked questions we've received.
Favorite Country?
Abby (A): Hard to say because we enjoyed so many places, but India and Nepal are at the top of my list.
Ross (R): Definitely a tough one, but I'd say India.
Favorite City?
We loved Hong Kong, it's a hi-tech city with loads of hiking trails just miles from the heart of the city.
Favorite Food?
A: Indian followed by Vietnamese
R: ditto!
Least favorite food?
A: Probably Chinese, we had some great food there, but also some really bad stuff, we had a disgusting black bean dumpling dessert soaked in sweet syrup and several very fishy tasting meals that didn't have fish in them, or so we thought.
R: China as well, and don't forget the boiled fish that made our lips tingle.
How did you get around?
Plane, train, boat, subway, taxi, car, truck, bus, auto rickshaw. We used all sorts of transportation to get around and really planned as we went so normally a few days before we would leave a place we would do some research and find the best and most economic transportation.
Were there bathrooms everywhere you went?
Yes, some were very rustic and many 'squatty potties', but there were always bathrooms. Toilet paper on the other hand was a rare commodity and became a staple in Abby's purse.
Was it hard to communicate?
Not nearly as difficult as you might think, English is widely used so we were lucky in that regard, except in China (see below).
Where was the hardest place to travel?
China, due to the language barrier, the weather (it was freezing in December) and strong cultural differences that didn't necessarily make for an easy visit.
Where was the easiest place to travel?
Probably a tie between Australia and South Africa.
Were you ever scared/in danger?
We were never in danger, at least that was apparent to us. We did have one situation arriving in Nairobi, Kenya and 3am and getting into a taxi where we both felt a little uncomfortable as they took us down some back roads, but we arrived at our destination perfectly safe.
Favorite Lodging?
A: Probably our amazing villa,
The Longhouse, in Bail for Ben and Lisa's wedding followed by our little hut on the beach on Koh Phanghan in Thailand.
R: I also really enjoyed the
Two Dragons Guesthouse in Siem Reap, Cambodia
Did anything get stolen or lost?
A: Unfortunately, I left my Kindle on board one of our last flights and I think I had a few Euro coins stolen in Madrid, but other than that we came home with everything in tact.
Did you get sick?
Yes, were both experienced "traveler's belly" a few times in different places (Nepal, Cambodia, Vietnam) but we tok along antibiotics and never suffered with anything for more than a day.
Would you do it again?
A: Hell yes!
R: Most definitely, but days after returning Abby asked me if we won the lottery if we'd take off again…I told her I needed some time to recover :)
Did it cost more/less than you thought it would?
We averaged $185/day, we had guesstimated $150. So we were a little over budget, but the whole trip was still relatively very reasonable.
Was it hard to adjust coming back to the US?
As strange as it sounds, coming back to the US was pretty smooth. We think that after traveling for 7 months we were just excited to be home.
What did you miss most?
A: our bed
R: relaxing on our couch
What are you going to do with all your photos?
Like other trips we've taken we're planning on doing photo books (it's going to take several for all the photos).
What are you going to do with this site?
We'll be keeping it up for the foreseeable future and updating it with our continued travels, both here and abroad.
If you have any other questions post a comment and we'll respond. Also check out our
faq page for some more info.
