Planning in progress - any comments?

Old Apr 22nd, 2010, 09:25 AM
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And I thought 20 nts in Japan was difficult to plan. Why dont you wing it and make no reservations-lol.
What a great trip. I would divide it into 5 trips. Have you been hanging around George Clooney? Sounds great.The Sheraton in Vancouver is reasonably priced and very convenient. As for Thailand, I recommend Chang Rai and chang mai.
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Old Apr 22nd, 2010, 09:55 AM
  #42  
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citiboy50 - "Why don't you wing it" - tempted to do just that in India and SEA - have done it before there. But not Japan, I think! I've been following your thread on Japan - after I make it through another book and a bunch of threads here, I'll be putting up my own. Will definitely be reading your trip report...

The business class seats may be giving a misleading impression - this will be a budget trip - I was thinking of checking into crashpadding (couchsurfing for grownups) for Vancouver! My last RTW in '04-'05, which was trains from Scotland to Saigon and took 10 months overall, came in at $130/night (including visas, vaccinations, guidebooks, toiletries and clothes bought on the road, dentist in Beijing, admissions etc. etc.)
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Old Apr 22nd, 2010, 10:43 AM
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BTW thursday, those Indian visa laws seem to be changing again - for the better. Maybe a follow-up search might be worthwhile, particularly if you're thinking land borders. I've just got lost trying to keep track of it, but India Mike has screeds.
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Old Apr 22nd, 2010, 12:36 PM
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Thanks dogster - hasn't changed on the Washington embassy website, though - re-entry within two months for visits to "neighboring countries" may be allowed "subject to ... submission of a detailed itinerary and supporting documentation (ticket bookings)". I've arranged this trip to enter from Nepal and leave to Sri Lanka to avoid the problem.

I'm thinking of applying for the 10-year visa since I have to use my US passport. It's more than twice as expensive, but you can move it to a new passport, and the six month one might be cutting it a bit fine on this itinerary.
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Old Apr 22nd, 2010, 01:11 PM
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What you need to do to get budget accommodation in Japan is look at Minshuku. You may already know about these. They are Japanese style 'guesthouses' rather like Ryokan but without the vast expense and not as fancy. These days I think there are quite a lot of budget options in Japan, but my first-hand knowledge is very out-of-date.
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Old Apr 22nd, 2010, 01:30 PM
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Yes, I'm thinking one splurge night in a ryokan for the experience, and then minshuku, business hotels and maybe even a hostel if I can get a single room. I decided in NZ that while I'm fine with sharing a bathroom, I can't handle dorm rooms. [Are you home now?]
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Old Apr 22nd, 2010, 01:34 PM
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There is a great overnight trip from Chiang Mai. The first day you climb a mountain and settle into a raised hut w no water or AC.It is a grass hut that the villagers give up for you. You sleep with a mosquito net over you which you do not need. For dinner, you have 2 private guides who cook for you and you sing songs around a campfire after swimming in the river.The next day is incredible. You walk 2 hours down the mtn where an elephant awaits. You go two hrs by elephant to a lunch restaurant on the river. The locals buld a raft from bamboo in about an hour and you take a 4 hr. slow raft trip. I recommend it highly. We are not in our 20s or 30s but work out. It will be something you will never forget.
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Old Apr 22nd, 2010, 01:39 PM
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I think business hotels are quite reasonable these days. They are often conveniently situated next to railway stations. Tourist offices can direct you to minshuku.
You're ahead of me there, I don't like either shared rooms or shared bathrooms any more!

(Yes, I finally got home last Sunday via a 15 hour HKG-EWR flight courtesy of my husband's airmiles. Otherwise goodness knows where I might be stuck.
Am working on pictures this week. Have collated all the e mails I sent along the way but I'm hesitant to call it a 'trip report' as it seems more like a list of impressions rather than the hard information that people on this forum appreciate.)
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Old Apr 22nd, 2010, 01:48 PM
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gertie - Welcome back! Hope that 15 hours was in business! Impressions are good too.

citiboy50 - sounds like you had a great time, thanks for the recommendation! However, I've been to Chiang Mai (twice), ridden an elephant, and boated, although not rafted, on the Mekong. But I've never made it to the Thai islands (although I once spent five days resting up on a Malaysian island), so I'm thinking of going south from Bangkok instead of north this time. If I do go north it will most likely be to Luang Prabang, although I'm a little worried there's been too much development since the last time I was there.
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Old Apr 22nd, 2010, 02:52 PM
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Penang is a great place to see the interaction of three races: Malay, Chinese, Tamil. Stay in Georgetown. Cambodia (Seam Reap)might be an alternative to Laos/Myanmar. Sumatra - Lake Toba- is an undiscovered/end-of-the-world type place that you will love.
Enjoy!
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Old Apr 23rd, 2010, 12:09 PM
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I didn't get to Penang when I was in Malaysia, so I'm definitely considering it this time - probably near the end of the trip so I can take the train back to BKK for my flight to London.

I've been to SR twice, and don't think I want to go back, but more time in Indonesia is a good possibility - I'll certainly look into Lake Toba - thanks. I looked it up - had never heard of the Toba Catastrophe - very interesting! Anywhere you'd recommend to stay?
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Old Apr 25th, 2010, 12:42 AM
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Plenty of good accommodation in Tuk Tuk, Lake Toba, including Samosir Cottages, Hotel Carolina, Samosir Villas. No need to book. You won't be disappointed in any of the offerings from 110,000 rp upwards a night. All the above have boat landings for the ferry that goes to Tuk Tuk from Parapat each hour.
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