The Itinerary

Neil and I have a idea of where we want to visit and when, but I don’t know that we can properly call it an itinerary when only the first two weeks of almost four months are set in stone.  A more accurate name might be “Vague Ideas” or “Potential Plans.” 

Here’s an idea of what we want to do:

                                                

Cambodia: 2 weeks
                Guided tour with Aunts Barb and Holly
                Visit Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Angkor Wat

                                               

Vietnam: 8 weeks
                Visit Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Hoi An, Hue, Halong Bay
                Volunteer in Hanoi for 6 weeks

                                               

Laos: 2 weeks
                Visit Vientiane, Vang Vieng, Luang Prabang
                Take a Mekong River slow boat over to Thailand

                                               

Thailand: 2 weeks
                Visit Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Ko Samui

                                               

Malaysia: 3 days
                Visit Kuala Lumpur

                                               

Singapore: 3 days

                                               

Indonesia: 1 week
                Visit Bali

                                               

The guided tour of Cambodia is a great way to ease ourselves into our travels.  We have a couple of free days to do what we want, but for the rest of the two weeks, we don’t have to think at all.  Our guides will tell us where to sleep, when to wake up, where to eat and what to see.  Since Neil and I will be making all of those decisions ourselves through several months and several countries in the future, this is a real treat.  I’m really looking forward to Angkor Wat.  It should be amazing, just ask Angelina Jolie! 

At the end of the tour, after we send Barb and Holly back home, we’ll cross into Vietnam by bus and arrive in Saigon.  We want to take the Reunification Train from south to north, so we can visit the tailor shops in Hoi An (and Anthony Bourdain’s favorite bahn mi sandwich stall) and the imperial city of Hue before arriving in Hanoi.  We’ve arranged to volunteer with a small non-profit called Bloom Microventures.  Their mission is to provide small loans to hill tribes in order for villagers to start their own companies.  They raise money for the loans by giving tours of the tribes to tourists. 

During our six weeks with Bloom, we hope to take a few side trips as well.  We’ll definitely visit Halong Bay and take Bloom’s hill tribe tour, but we would also like to see Sapa and possibly Macau or Hong Kong. 

Here’s where the plans start to get hazy.  We know which countries and cities we want to see, but we’re not sure of the order or timing.  We want to visit Laos to see Vientiane (the capital), Luang Prabang (a UNESCO world heritage site) and possibly spend some time in the north. 

Neil’s dying to take a slow boat ride up the Mekong River.  The trip takes three lazy days through beautiful scenery.  The boat will drop us off on the Thai side of the river, where we can make our way to Chiang Mai and eventually Bangkok.  After visiting the biggest tourist cities, we plan to make our way south to the island of Ko Samui.  After countless two-star hotels, it will be nice to experience a bit of luxury. 

After Thailand, we can take a train south to visit Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.  These mega-cities will be a change of pace from some of the sleepier towns earlier in the trip.  If time and money allow it, we want to see Bali before making our way back to Phnom Penh, Cambodia, for our flights home. 

So there you have it, our “Potential Plans.”  Three months from now could look entirely different.  For all we know, three weeks from now could bring changes, but we figured a loose plan was better than nothing.  If anyone we know has been anywhere in the region, we’re open to suggestions.  Tell us what we’re missing or where we can avoid!

PS- Sorry this post is so long and lacking our pictures.  We can’t blame you if only our parents make it through the whole way!