After working 12 hours a day in the corporate world in Minneapolis for the last 20 years- I have decided to take an early retirement.

I have done alot of business and personal travel to Europe and all over America. While there are alot of interesting things to see in the "1st world" I feel I like I have seen most major attractions and want to branch out and REALLY see the world.

I have never been to Asia, or a third world (Developing) country. A friend told mine that the people on this board could help me find a vaction destination that will really knock my socks off.

I am looking for a vacation to a place where life in completely different than the United States. Where many people have not seen many westerners and whose persepective on life in completely different than America. A place that my wife and I will be shocked on how exotic the scene is, and we will be affected by what we have seen for the rest of our lives. Cost is really not an issue.

Please advise me!

Go deep into the Amazon rain forest.

I think you might get some strange responses, it's a big wide world out there, full of diverse people, languages, cultures and perspectives on life ( thank goodness !!!!! ). Most countries have and do make significant contributions to the whole 'make up' of the world, socialy and economicaly. I think perhaps a trip thru Asia would be fascinating, perhaps include China and Mongolia, Vietnam and Thailand, perhaps onwards thru India and the Gulf, in fact us a RTW ( round the world ticket ). Good luck on the plans, you will without doubt have an enlightening time, take time to get off the beaten track and don't rush things, get into the real feel of things. Hopefully you can see the perspective of where modernisation has been of benefit and where it hasn't(!)
However if you are seriously after places that has seen few 'westerners' then perhaps Amazon Jungle is seriously one of the few options.

thirdworld, congrats!

How about africa to run with animals? (don't do tour bus, but really go in) Not necessarily bizzare but definitley a very different perspective than life in the corporate world. Being surrounded on an endless open plain by the power of nature is a whole other level of culture shock. Not to be corny but it really made me think and was very humbling.

Not sure if it fits your "knock your socks off" criteria but you can do things like sleep alone in an actual treehouse above a leopards' watering hole with closest phone/electricity/help being 10 miles away. Trust me, it's an experience you'll never forget.

BillT suggested the amazon, I haven't been but likely offers similar out of your element effect.

Keep us posted on your plans, I'm very jealous

Here are a range of things to consider. If you want unique, I'd suggest that you take a look at the April 18 issue of the New Yorker for a story about Papua New Guinea, and a man who takes travelers into areas where the natives may never have seen an outsider before. It's a fascinating account, but not my idea of vacation.

I think virtually anyplace you choose in Asia will fulfill the requirement of changing your prespective. Sometimes, your prespective will be changed in ways you don't expect. For instance, SIngapore is a clean, modern, safe city that puts US cities with their permanent homeless populations to shame. You'll also find that in many areas of Asia, the modern technological conveniences such as cell phones were adopted much earlier than in the US because the infrastructure for cell is quicker, easier and less expensive than for land lines.

I also think it's worth including some locations of ancient civilizations to expand your perspective.

India is a place that comes to mind with its ancient civilization and its current mix of rich, middle class and very, very poor.

China is another place to consider. You can get into remote areas of China where very few westerners go as well as seeing the stunning remnants of early Chinese civilization.

But I would expect that even a trip incorporating the Temples of Angkor (Siem Reap, Cambodia); Luang Prabang, Laos; perhaps some remote parts of Laos and/or Cambodia plus Bangkok and a resort area of Thailand (either the Golden Triangle or a beach resort) would alter your perspectives. You could do a trip like that in a month to six weeks.

Oops- one other idea I wanted to mention is Bhutan. It is open to only limited numbers of travelers. Local guides (required) can take you into remote areas if that is what you are looking for. It's rather expensive, as the price is a minimum of US$200 per person per day plus your transport there, but since price isn't a problem, Bhutan might be what you are looking for.

I can't resist recommending Mali and Iran...though not perhaps on the same trip!

We went to Mali on our honeymoon and it really is extraordinary. I was in Iran a little less than 2 years ago. It's an incredible place very friendly people, great guided trips at reasonable prices, beautiful and ancient ruins...Perspolis etc. You can even see my trip report here if you search for Iran.

places that come immediately to mind are the following: the lower half of africa from kenya to s. africa....the amazon as already mentioned and other parts of SA to include peru and other countries, india of course, many of the smaller south pacific islands, south minneapolis, china and many others....

you are perfectly located to take northwest to many places...it is particularily good for asia...in fact i will be passing through your city on my way to asia in less than a month...

but since you specifically mentioned asia i will center my comments on that area...

many of us on this board are smitten with asia and particularily SE Asia...my personal favorite is thailand...we find that once you go to asia you want to return over and over again...the place is so big that it takes many trips to cover it all or even 1/2 of it...we are on trip 9 in 11 years...7 of which involve thailand.

as for seeing people who are not used to westerners, that is almost a thing of the past...its not impossible but it is very rare..

unique experiences are far more common and easy to come by....asian people are among the most friendly in the world...most of the asian economies are not in great shape so things generally are very inexpensive...exceptions are hong kong and singapore to name two...

you do not mention how much time you intend to spend on this or future trips....so i will assume that perhaps you want to spend one month initially...we find that the distance from usa is so far that to go for less than 2-3 weeks is insane....we usually try for a month...for us it is just about right...we are 61 and i am semi retired and the boss is still working full time so we are roughly your age...we are now discussing if we want to spend winters in SE Asia once we are fully retired...not sure about it, but will try it at least once....

now to more specifics....thailand is about the easiest of the countries to start in...it is exotic, enticing and enjoyable and very affordable...bangkok is a world class city and quite westernized in the best use of that word....you can stay in a 5* hotel for $150 nite or rent a fabulous apartment for $85 per nite on a short term visit or pay $40 for a 3 star place which will also be very nice...meals are $12-75 for two with beers that compare to anything you would pay $40-175 for in usa....sights are fantastic...shopping is unreal....
so thailand is a good base from which to work...it offers city life, country/up county life, island life, backpacker life, sex/drugie life and just about anything your little heat might desire...to us it is paradise....

within one hours+ flight path are wonderful areas or places to visit:

siem reap, cambodia (angkor wat ruins); yangon, myanmar (burma)--stuck in the 19th century; laos, vietnam, malaysia, singapore....

further afield are the maldives, fabulous india and the phillipines....

but saved for last is an area that i think you would find to be what you have described and that is bali, indonesia and neighboring islands....the culture/life there is different from all of the other places...the way of life is slow and family orientated with huge religious overtones (which are unobtrusive)...bali offers all the ammenities of thailand, in a slightly less conventional way...please look at it carefully as a spot for at least part of your trip....

in the north of asia are korea, japan, macau and hong kong....hong kong is especially wonderful but very westernized in many ways, but well worth at least 5 days...it might even be a good starting place....

some transportation issues: both malay air and cathy pacific offer passes to asia which allow you to jump around from place to place using their capital (kuala lumpur and hong kong) as bases...these are very cost effective but have severe time restraints...they are worth a look however...

so the sample trip i would lay out for you would look like this:

usa-hong kong
5 days hong kong
flt to bangkok
5 days bangkok
flt to koh samui, thailand
4 days samui
flt to singapore
3 days singapore
flt to bali
one 1/2 weeks bali
flt to banglok
2 days bkk
flt to siem reap
4 days angkor wat
flt to bkk
1 day bkk
flt to yangon, myanmar
one week in myanmar, including up north or country
flt to bkk
4 days bkk
fly home

more than a month but a good sampling

so i've written quite a bit as have others so you need to ponder it...get a few guide books and do your homework...fodorites are here to help and critique what you decide and to assist...let us help once you refine things....

bob
boston

Great advice so far. I am looking up these places and reading all I can.

I was watching a TV show called Globe Treker. The show is more orienatated towards young people but they go to places that see few, if any, western people. I thought that would be very interesting.

Keep the ideas coming!

I good place too find crazy freaky travel is

http://www.whatsonwhen.com/leisure.asp and check the bizzare tab...

yep with these fine folks help I went too japan and checked out the Tagata Fertility Festival (Hounen Matsuri).... where else can you see pregnant japanees ladies cradling paper machai (sp) penises..


the live crusafictions near manila also seem cool

thirdworldtravel,

One more idea along the different perspective from corporate life theme is to incorporate volunteer work in your travel abroad, like orphanage work (people or animal orphans), eco preservation, habitant for humanity, etc.

I may be way off here in terms of what you're interested in but just throwing it in the mix. On your other thread you asked about living in a place for a month at a time to experience resident life, well this may let you experience life with the locals away from souvenir stands. There are a lot of write-ups about volunteer travel lately especially after the tsunami.

Hmm, parts of Asia that haven't seen much Westerners? North Korea? Just kidding.

I would say Mongolia, parts of China, Vietnam, Borneo, Papua New Guinea.

Although I would say this - if this is your first time travelling to a "3rd world" country - you may want to go places that are not so remote. Like previous posters have said, any place in Asia would jerk your sense of reality.

we live in dubai (having moved to the gulf from the uk 5 years ago) we love this part of the world. though westerners aren't in short supply it's still worth a visit. emirates airlines fly direct from new york in 14 hours to dubai. we have also been round asia including vietnam which was our favourite. all our visa were taken care of by the travel agent in vietnam and we had our own driver, minivan and english speaking guide for the trip from hanoi to saigon. fantastic. if you wish to go into thailand, thai airways start flying direct to new york on the 1st may in 17 hours.
bangkok and dubai are 6 hours apart.
if you need more info on where to stay and what to do in dubai just let me know!

I was curious how people who are use to seeing Westerners change their own behavior because of the new influence of American and European travelers.

I was told that Bali is no longer exotic because the people now mirror the behavior of western visitors.

Don't believe everything you're told. There are those who will tell you that every place has been spoiled, it's not as good as it was 20 years ago (or whenever they first visited). I was first in Bali about 20 years ago, and while it has changed some, it's certainly not spoiled, nor do the Balinese mirror the behaviors of Western visitors. For someone who has never been to a third world country you'll find plenty to amaze you in Bali. It does mean that you won't want to stay at Nusa Dua or in any enclave of high-priced western hotels. There are plenty of places to see Balinese culture.

Don't waste you time responding to the troll.
The troll doesn't travel.
What an insult to a great city like Minneapolis.

_______________________________________

User - thirdworldtravel

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If I were able to plan an exotic trip at this point in time, I would probably do Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand or some combination thereof. But that's because I just got back from the Amazon. What a wonderful experience just for a short time - I would LOVE to have been able to spend more time. And see different parts of the Amazon. We were at the "meeting of the waters" traveling the Ril Negro on a small river boat (17 people). it would be interesting to be able to spend some time really getting to know people in the small villages - very different life from ours. Also to see the Amazon further up towards its source. I would love to do the Peruvian Amazon area and also spend some time at Machu Pichu. Enjoy the planning! For me that's half the fun.

jeez whats up with Miniapolis it unleashed the freak usually known as PRINCE and now this guy....

Thirdworldtravel, What a wonderful plan! I'm an American who has lived in Asia for 15 years, the last ten in Indonesia. Although I've traveled to most of the countries in the region, Indonesia never fails to astonish me on the weird and wonderful scale. Yes, Indonesia -- especially Java and Bali -- has a veneer of Westernization. This is a country of 230 million people and it certainly has modern hotels with modern trappings. Some people who visit never get beyond the veneer. But for those who do probe a bit, seek the unusual, this is one strange and fascinating culture, blessed with profound natural beauty, ancient civilizations, sophisticated artistic traditions and incredibly hospitable people most of whom are caught in a centuries old time warp. Your dollar will go far here (and it's getting stronger) .

My recommendation would be to divide your time between several Indonesian islands, using Bali as your jumping off point. That way, when the weird gets too weird and you need some creature comforts you'd have a lot of choices. In addition to Bali I'd suggest Yogyakarta in Java, Sulawesi, Kalimantan and West Papua/Irian Jaya. These are all strange and mysterious places. I assure you you will be "shocked on how exotic the scene is."

With a little fortitude and a good guide in Sulawesi, Kalimantan or West Papua you can easily get to areas where Westerners are rare. Northern Sulawesi is home to tropical rain forests and some of the world's best coral reefs. Tanah Toraja in Central Sulawesi is an animist culture tucked away into mountain valleys, revered by anthropologists. West Papua (the Indonesian side of New Guinea) is home of head hunters, forest dwellers, and the world's largest mine. Kalimantan, which is Indonesian Borneo, you will find stone age communities accessible only by river, forests full of apes and rare birds. Bali and Yogya are fairly touristed, but still there is no shortage of unbeaten paths to explore, just under that aforementioned veneer. Throughout Indonesia the animist, Hindu, Buddhist and Islamic cultures have intertwined in a unique amalgam.

Indonesia has a way of getting under your skin -- an almost addictive attraction -- or as you say "you will be affected by what we have seen for the rest of our lives." Tell me what appeals to you and I can give you more specific suggestions.

I agree, Marmot, Indonesia is a great recommendation. There is so much diversity within Indonesia!