... as people love to keep reminding me.
The weather on my route looks be be pretty damp at the moment, with most places in the middle of or just coming out of the monsoon. The timing is not totally random, I am hoping to get there for the end of the rains, before the tourist season kicks off. The heat should not be too bad and the end of the monsoon means everything will be fresh and green, and with a bit of luck the more touristy places I am passing through may be a bit quieter. The thought of daily rubbing shoulders with dozens of other meandering tourist types makes my skin crawl... While it is obviously unavoidable in the typical tourist-trap type places, I am really hoping my entire route will not be littered with intrepid gaggles of braindead over-tanned westerners clutching Lonely Planet guidebooks and backpacks larger than they are, or sweaty sun visor-wearing mom-and-pop tour groups hauling their flabby pasty carcasses from one market stall to the next, loudly pointing out the completely obvious and recoiling in horror from anything unfamiliar.
The weather combined with the current troubles in some areas will make it interesting to see how many tourists are actually around, but hopefully it is still late enough in the year that roads will be passable and floods will have eased etc.
For now the bulk of my buying of things is done, I have a new camera backpack and now I am trying to decide if it is in fact too big and impractical, but the fact is I am going to need a daypack for the times I am not carrying my large pack, and it is also rainproof which is essential for making sure my camera survives - so at the end of the day I am probably just going to have to deal with it. If anything it is not the fact that it will all be heavy because I am really not taking a lot with me, it is just going to be a bit cumbersome, but then I have carried two packs in the past so it shouldn't be too bad.
I guess one of the key things when picturing my preparations is the fact that I am not doing the typical "overload your backpack as much as possible with clothes and junk, land at the airport and set off for the nearest backpackers hostel or motel" that 95% of people do. I am essentially taking as little as possible while still trying to ensure I have what I need. A pack is not something you use to haul gear from point A to point B, it is something you live out of... "Your pack is your house"
The weather on my route looks be be pretty damp at the moment, with most places in the middle of or just coming out of the monsoon. The timing is not totally random, I am hoping to get there for the end of the rains, before the tourist season kicks off. The heat should not be too bad and the end of the monsoon means everything will be fresh and green, and with a bit of luck the more touristy places I am passing through may be a bit quieter. The thought of daily rubbing shoulders with dozens of other meandering tourist types makes my skin crawl... While it is obviously unavoidable in the typical tourist-trap type places, I am really hoping my entire route will not be littered with intrepid gaggles of braindead over-tanned westerners clutching Lonely Planet guidebooks and backpacks larger than they are, or sweaty sun visor-wearing mom-and-pop tour groups hauling their flabby pasty carcasses from one market stall to the next, loudly pointing out the completely obvious and recoiling in horror from anything unfamiliar.
The weather combined with the current troubles in some areas will make it interesting to see how many tourists are actually around, but hopefully it is still late enough in the year that roads will be passable and floods will have eased etc.
For now the bulk of my buying of things is done, I have a new camera backpack and now I am trying to decide if it is in fact too big and impractical, but the fact is I am going to need a daypack for the times I am not carrying my large pack, and it is also rainproof which is essential for making sure my camera survives - so at the end of the day I am probably just going to have to deal with it. If anything it is not the fact that it will all be heavy because I am really not taking a lot with me, it is just going to be a bit cumbersome, but then I have carried two packs in the past so it shouldn't be too bad.
I guess one of the key things when picturing my preparations is the fact that I am not doing the typical "overload your backpack as much as possible with clothes and junk, land at the airport and set off for the nearest backpackers hostel or motel" that 95% of people do. I am essentially taking as little as possible while still trying to ensure I have what I need. A pack is not something you use to haul gear from point A to point B, it is something you live out of... "Your pack is your house"
I have to say I hate the fact that because I have had to buy new gear for this trip I am going to look like a total travel virgin. I should really take my packs out and roll around in the mud with them for a while...
Anyway... I am going to put my headphones on and try to get through this week sane. Speaking of sane, I just reminded myself I need to start taking my Doxycycline, fingers crossed I am still immune to some of the side effects I have seen in others, haha.
Anyway... I am going to put my headphones on and try to get through this week sane. Speaking of sane, I just reminded myself I need to start taking my Doxycycline, fingers crossed I am still immune to some of the side effects I have seen in others, haha.
