Rough Guides - The Rough Guide to First-Time Around The World

Temple of Heaven, Beijing; County Galway, Ireland; Matterhorn, Switzerland

Introduction to

First-Time
Around the World

The world is flat. Or so the thinking went, until someone actually went off to circumnavigate it. You may not make such a colossal discovery during your own global journey, but what awaits you out there is something only you can find: your very own adventure. Beyond your part of the planet lie mountain ranges with echo-bending canyons, tangled jungles, deserts that stretch into sanguine sunsets and yellow savannah veiling lions, wildebeest and springbok. There are retina-burning white beaches tapering off into gin-clear waters that serve as a playground for dolphins, turtles and manta rays. Not to mention over six thousand languages, countless botanical wonders, architectural masterpieces and geological anomalies. All that is already out there. The decision to find it is yours. Who knows, you may just find a best friend, even the love of your life, along the way.

My own plan was to walk out the front door, head to Florida and try to hitchhike on yachts to South America all on a budget stretched tighter than an aging Hollywood forehead. Without getting into details, my yacht-hitching scheme only got me as far as the Virgin Islands. And the only reason I made it that far was because I flew there. (Turned out I was trying to hitch south during hurricane season, when all the boats were headed north or into safe harbors.) This start, however rocky, did launch me on a two-and-a-half-year trip that forever changed my life. And not just because it ended with a car accident in Bangkok, which left me in the unfortunate position of having a broken ankle and amebic dysentery a tragic combination of constantly having to go to the loo, and never being able to get there quickly enough. I ended up traveling for another seven years as a travel columnist, meeting my Swedish wife, and then living in five countries for over the next twelve years.

Meeting locals

Its hard to pick up a travel magazine, brochure or guidebook without seeing an exotic cast of faces. The unspoken message seems to be that this is who youll meet in these countries. The people youre far more likely to encounter, however, are other travelers. And the local people youll mostly come in contact with are vendors, taxi drivers, guides and hotel clerks people serving you. To make more genuine contacts takes some effort, but is perhaps the single most important aspect of enriching travel. Volunteering or working in a place is one of the most traditional methods. You can also use the web. Get in touch with local organizations (eg if youre a fencer, get in touch with the local fencing clubs and attend practice when you are in different cities) or find out about Couchsurfing opportunities. But even if youre just looking to take a picture of someone, a thoughtful approach might lead to a more meaningful connection.

Hmong minority people, Vietnam

Before I get ahead of myself, though, I just want to assure you this book is not going to try to persuade you to travel, nor make grandiose assertions that stomping around the planet with a coated-nylon pack will somehow fulfill whatever may be missing from your life. Travel is an urge best cultivated from within. In fact, one of the biggest favors you can do for yourself is to travel if and when youre ready , not when someone else thinks you should. The more eager you are to open yourself up to life on the road, the more willing you are to embrace the unknown rather than sign up for a pre-packaged, air-conditioned experience, the more likely you are to reap real rewards.

Believe it or not, nearly anyone can get around the world in one piece (or in my case, two), and Id be lying if I told you that you needed this book to come back alive. However, the downside to blindly winging it is that youll make mistakes , some potentially dangerous, many costly and some just plain embarrassing. By the time you get through the first section of this book, you should be savvy enough to chart an itinerary for your trip and avoid nearly all the snares that await you. With a glimpse of life on the road, a feel for the essentials, and by addressing a number of travels most testing issues ahead of time, youll be well on your way.

World Fact file

World population over 6.8 billion

Circumference of the earth 40,000km

Height of Mount Everest 8850m/29,035ft

Depth of the Mariana Trench, Western Pacific Ocean 10,924m/35,840ft

Highest temperature El Azizia, Libya 136F/58C

Lowest temperature Vostok, Antarctica -126F/-88C

Tourism The World Tourism Organizations most recent figures show there were 940 million international tourist arrivals, which generated $930 billion and accounted for five percent of the worlds GDP. More than six percent of all jobs worldwide are supported by the travel and tourism industry.

Worldwide , according to UNHCR, there are now 42.5 million refugees (15.2 million displaced, 26.4 million internally displaced, and 895,000 in the process of seeking asylum).

The regional profiles in the second part of the book tell you what it costs to get around, how long itll take to cross the various landmasses and if there are any rail, bus or air passes you may wish to buy ahead of time to make things cheaper and more convenient. Youll notice we took some liberties in dividing up the world into eight regions: North America, for instance, normally includes Mexico, but because of popular overland routes, a shared language and its latitude, Mexico has been placed in the Central America and the Caribbean section. The regional maps are meant to provide ballpark estimates of the times of overland travel on common routes. They are by no means instructing you to take such routes (its always better to find your own way), nor are they completely accurate, since delays do occur, particularly in less-developed regions.

Of course, youll want more specific information eventually, either from websites or publications listed in the Directory section at the end of this book or from your guidebook once you arrive. But at this point, much more information than what youll find provided here will bog down your planning process instead of helping it along. And remember that theres such a thing as too much planning. One of the greatest thrills of travel is trying to make your way between two points by the least travelled, most arduous route, chancing rides and roads and climates as you go.

Time and space

One thing that travelers often forget to mentally prepare for is the different conception of time and space on the road. With buses that dont leave until theyre full, boats that wait at the harbour for the captain to return from his family holiday, and mechanical problems that require spare parts sent by cargo ship from Australia, the hardcore travelers mantra no watches, no calendars, no worries begins to seem like a healthy response to seeing your carefully planned itinerary fly out the window. Your personal space , on the other hand, is likely to shrink, whether youre speaking with someone who insists on standing almost nose-to-nose during the conversation or youre packed into a six-person minivan with seventeen other passengers.

Plan for twice as much transport time as you think you need, try to grab a seat near a window so you can control the fresh-air supply and make sure youve got something to read.