Mark & Jen's 'Around the World' Travel & Photography Blog

Walla–our tentative itinerary! Our round-the-world ticket allows us to change dates of flights as needed….so if we are enjoying our bungalow on the beach of Thailand way too much, then……

Much of our travel will be by train, bus, foot, rickshaw, and some crazy cabbies to whom we are told to say, “do the right thing….” While our list below includes many “adventures,” we are also seeking to learn about history, culture, and people. So plans may change along the way.

• Perth and Western Australia –June 21-July 10 — 2 1/2 weeks
  • snorkeling at Coral Bay, hiking at Karijini National Park, spending July 4th at a sheep-shearing station in the Outback, wine tasting at the southern vineyards, and beginning our vacation with a little vacation…
• Singapore–July 10-July 15–5 days
  • shopping???? uh, no.
• China–July 15-Sept 11–2 months
  • Beijing and the Great Wall, to Xi’an and the Terracotta Warriors, to western Chengdu and a trek through the Middle Kingdom’s holy monasteries, to Guilin and Yangshuo’s idyllic rice paddies, and back to bustling Shanghai
  • Mark’s plan? To practice his fluent Chinese–”Kung Pao Chicken, “Bok Choy,” and “Sesame Chicken.”
• Nepal–Sept 12-Nov 1–7 weeks (see detailed itinerary)
  • trekking through through the Everest and Annapurna regions, and the northern Langtang Valley, and trying not to get attacked by a Yak
• Southeast Asia (Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos)–Nov 1-Jan 1–8 weeks
  • straight from the Everest region of Nepal to the beaches of Thailand, through Bangkok, east through Cambodia’s temples of Angkor and the chilling killing fields, straight up Vietnam’s coast to a trip through the Halong Bay, and if we can, Laos; then to northern Thailand, a trek through some Buddhist villages, possibly visiting an orphanage in Chiang Mai, a Thai cooking class, and a visit to a friend working at Burmese refugee camp; then back to Bangkok and walla!
• India–Jan 1-Feb 9–5 weeks
  • the vibrant streets of Kolkata (Calcutta), south to a tiger reserve, north to Darjeeling and a tea estate, west to Varansi and a “purifying” dip (maybe?) in the Ganges River, to Agra and the mighty Taj Mahal, west to the deserts of Rajasthan, and finally leaving from Mumbai (Bombay).
• Eastern Africa (Tanzania, Kenya)–Feb 10-Mar 1–3 weeks
  • Dar es Salaam and the beaches and Muslim island of Zanzibar, to Lushoto and a little trekking in the Usambara Mountains, to Arusha and a safari in the Serengeti National Park during the wildebeest migration, a Masai village, to Mt. Kenya National Park, and finally to Nairobi, Kenya (political problems at the time).
• Egypt–Mar 1-Mar 15–2 weeks
  • the pyramids of Cairo and the Nile Valley of Luxor and Aswan, trekking in the Sinai desert, Mt. Sinai and the Red Sea, and then by land to Israel
• Israel–Mar 16-April 1–2 weeks
  • by land from Egypt to the Red Sea resort town of Eilat, maybe some snorkeling in the coral reefs, to the holy city of Jerusalem, to the Dead Sea, the Sea of Galilee, to the hills of Golan Heights, to Caesarea and the beaches of the Mediterranean Sea, to Tel Aviv
• Turkey and Greece–April 1-May 11–6 weeks
  • Ankara, Turkey, to the eerie formations of Cappadocia, to the densely forested Olympos and trekking parts of the Lycian Way, to Ephesus, to Istanbul
  • by land to Thessaloniki, to the island of Corfu to trek the Corfu Trail (how to trek the Corfu Trail independently), then to Athens and all its glory
• Munich, Germany–May 11-May 15–a 3 day lay-over–why not?
  • celebrating with some beer!
• San Jose, CA–May 15-19
  • a visit with the Shepard clan
• Denver–May 19, 2008

This page has the following sub pages.

• Nepal Itinerary