Where do i go???

ditzy`girl

So i've been planning on travelling for a long time now... did a little bit when i was in college (spent 3 months in Kenya and the usual holidays - US, Europe etc) - but now i want to do this year abroad thing, before i'm forced to act my age and get a real job - at 25, i feel like i'm gettin a lil long in the tooth!

But i really dont know where to go.

I've always hated those package holidays... doing things thousands of people have done before me, seeing the same sights i've seen in friends photo albums etc... Kenya was an amazing adventure - and would give limbs to go back, but i feel like i need to go and see somewhere new.

Clearly Oz, New Zealand and Canada have been mentioned - but to be honest... EVERYONE, their mothers AND their kitchen sinks are doing the exact same thing!
In my mind, i'd love to go and live in Hawaii for a year, work and just enjoy the lifestyle... but i havent heard of anyone doing that - and i dont really know whether it's even possible etc...

I'm looking for advice mostly... anyone after going and seeing something different? Something no one else they know, has done? Something they would give limbs to go and do again??

Any advice would be so gratefully appreciated!

~~

Valmont

ditzy`girl wrote: »

before i'm forced to act my age and get a real job - at 25, i feel like i'm gettin a lil long in the tooth!

Don't think like that, it'll get you nowhere. Except into an office cubicle!

ditzy`girl wrote: »

Clearly Oz, New Zealand and Canada have been mentioned - but to be honest... EVERYONE, their mothers AND their kitchen sinks are doing the exact same thing!

Well that's because they are freaking out about beginning their lives in... wait for it.... "the real world" so the typical Irish round the world trip of 2 weeks in Thailand and 50 weeks in Oz became the norm. Didn't know Canada was an overpopulated destination?

ditzy`girl wrote: »

In my mind, i'd love to go and live in Hawaii for a year, work and just enjoy the lifestyle... but i havent heard of anyone doing that - and i dont really know whether it's even possible etc...

Too late, the D4 crowd latched onto Hawaii two or three summers ago:p I think there was a few hundred Irish people there last summer and probably will be there this summer too. That said I'm sure it's still an amazing place.

I'm sure you'll find somewhere amazing to visit, it's a big world after all. I've found the one destination on earth where there are no Irish people but it's a secret for obvious reasons;)

breadmonkey

Apparently Iran is emerging as a backpacker destination.

Other than that I don't know what to say. If you went to Nepal off season there wouldn't be too many folks around on the major trekking routes (if that's your bag).

mac123

Valmont wrote: »

I've found the one destination on earth where there are no Irish people but it's a secret for obvious reasons;)

I know of a place like this too;)

WanderlustQueen

I'm planning something a bit off the beaten track, getting the train from London to Moscow, and then boarding the TransSiberean Railway to Beijing-through Russia, Siberia, Mongolia and China...Then while I'm in Asia going to see all it has to offer...I'm not really a big fan of the round-the-world-usit business either, I'd prefer to do it my own way.

OR you could go volunteering in Russia or Africa, even South America?

Or there's always the Oz Bus, London to Sydney by land sounds super interesting....

breadmonkey

I don't want to burst anyone's bubble here but although some of the things mentioned so far are "off the beaten track", you'll still be surrounded by other tourists. And there's a reason a lot of people go to places like NZ; they're amazing! Of course it's nice to do some "different" stuff but I don't like the idea of limiting yourself just because you might be following in other people's footsteps.

lemon_of_old

I gotta agree with Breadmonkey on that one. It's up to you to make your trip the way you want it to be. You can go somewhere totally "off the beaten track" and be surrounded by tourists if that's how you want to do it, or you can go somewhere like Oz or NZ where there are billions of Irish and English etc but you can choose to drive into a tiny village in the middle of nowhere and work and live with locals there. At the end of the day, it doesn't really matter the place you choose, it's what you do with your time there. In my hostel right now there are loads of Irish people, but there are also loads of ozzies, kiwis, maoris, samoans and other pacific islanders, europeans, asians etc etc etc. I prefer to get to know those from the other countries because it just makes for more interesting conversations. But if I wanted to, I COULD hang out with the Irish and talk about Irishy stuff. I just leave that for boards

It's your choice what you make of your trip at the end of the day, so I wouldn't pick a country purely based on a lack of tourists.

hkcharlie

Come and play in the safest toy town on earth and if you have an Irish passport you'll get a job with no problem.
You're a 25 min train ride away from exploring China.
You're a 2 and half hour flight from Thailand.
A 2 hour flight from the Philippines.
You can get direct flights to any where from here.

Come here and you'll think twice about going home!

breadmonkey

Have heard that HK is the business all right.

dory

What kind of place do you like? I have to agree with the others, the track is so well beaten because it's where a lot of the good stuff is. Your percepion here is also going to be determined by where your friends go. If they just stick to english speaking countries then Bolivia might be crazy for you to go. My friends are adventurous enough so a lot of them have been there and so to me Bolivia (although I absolutely loved the place) wasn't the kind of crazy I think you are looking for. To get my friends' eyebrows up I'd have to go Iran.

You could go to Mongolia or Russia, might be hard to look from Ireland but once you get there you might find some volunteer work. There's always TEFL teaching in many Asian countries. Maybe you could live in an Ashram in India. ALso depends on how much money you have. If you haven't anything saved you'll have to stick to a country in which you can earn. That's English speaking, Europe and Asia most likely.

Write up what you're interested in maybe we could give some better ideas. Like the others I also have my secret spot, and no one is finding that out. I found it from rambling around the place. I highly recommend it!

breadmonkey

dory wrote: »

Write up what you're interested in maybe we could give some better ideas. Like the others I also have my secret spot, and no one is finding that out. I found it from rambling around the place. I highly recommend it!

Ahem:

Independent & youth & Student Travel Forum Charter wrote:

Deadly secret spots must not be kept from other boardsies

:pac:

Isobar

WanderlustQueen wrote: »

I'm planning something a bit off the beaten track, getting the train from London to Moscow, and then boarding the TransSiberean Railway to Beijing-through Russia, Siberia, Mongolia and China...Then while I'm in Asia going to see all it has to offer...

I'm doing the same thing myself in May and then on to Oz and NZ. It should be a great way of seeing a lot of the world.

Bobon

hkcharlie wrote: »

Come and play in the safest toy town on earth and if you have an Irish passport you'll get a job with no problem.
You're a 25 min train ride away from exploring China.
You're a 2 and half hour flight from Thailand.
A 2 hour flight from the Philippines.
You can get direct flights to any where from here.

Come here and you'll think twice about going home!

Tell me more Charlie. What do you work at in Hong Kong?

Did you go over with a job sorted or did you just take a chance?

Is there many jobs about for english speaking people?

hkcharlie

Bobon wrote: »

Tell me more Charlie. What do you work at in Hong Kong?
Did you go over with a job sorted or did you just take a chance?
Is there many jobs about for english speaking people?

• There's always teaching English

• Working Holiday Visas: Hong Kong has working holiday agreements with Australia, New Zealand And Ireland

Applicants may be granted a stay of up to 12 months
To obtain a Hong Kong Working Holiday Visa you must :

* Be an Australian, New Zealand or Irish citizen who is holder of valid passport and ordinarily resident in their home country.

* Intend primarily to holiday in Hong Kong
* Be aged between 18 and 30 at the time of application
* Have sufficient funds and return or onward ticket when you arrive in Hong Kong
* Be of good health and of good character

• I think it allows you to work for three months with any one employer, which makes life pretty easy.
• there are not loads of jobs and unemployment has risen to it's highest (7%) since records began in 1981.
• however, Hong Kong is good place for an opportunist, if you have the urge to do what it is you want to do, I believe HK is a good place to start it.
• there's a massive English speaking community here
• I coach football, I came with a job sorted.

Bobon

Cheers for the info Charlie. I didn't realise you could go to Hong Kong on a working/holiday visa. Might look into it.

ditzy`girl

Thanks everyone for the replies... Some seemed kinda pissed off with me for havin' an opinion on where i go travelling! Funny stuff!
I'm not ruling out going on the beaten track, clearly i know the reason WHY it's the beaten track - is because it's amazing... i just wanted to know if there was anyone who knew somewhere else is all...

Thanks to everyone! It's all food for thought! *S*

dolliemix

I did the trans-mongolian trip last summer. I would highly recommend it if you want to do something different. I don't have a problem with meeting Irish people abroad so I wasn't trying to avoid 'the beaten track of the irish' as such. But, for the first time ever, I did not meet one Irish person or hear an Irish accent from when I got off the plane at Frankfurt - to when I got back on the plane Frankfurt five weeks later! I did an organised trip to make things easier so I was travelling with a group of 12 from Canada, Oz, New Zealand, England, Denmark US...but bar those people i didn't meet many other tourists in Russia. Mongolia we met some ex pats and in loads in Beijing.

If you're looking for work in Russia - Good Luck! It's not a tourist/ foreigner friendly place. Even trying to get a tourist visa in the Russian Embassy in Dublin is an adventure in itself!

I've done a lot of travelling and Russia was the most hostile countries I've been to. Having said that it is probably one of the most interesting places I've been. Travelling by train over something like six time zones - from cold and rainy Petersburg /Moscow to Asian and unbearably hot Beijing. And stopping at the wonderful Lake Bakal for a few days en route. I still get a buzz thinking about it.

Mongolia is beautiful - rolling hills, horse-riding. The capital Ulanbaatar was a let down for me actually, but the country-side in Mongolia is like being in a set of an epic film. Well worth it!

I loved Beijing, even though I didn't expect to. It's buzzing - loads to do and loads to eat.

I have done trips to Australia, South America, SAE East Africa and India. I loved them all - but if you're looking for something really different ( and challenging) and you have the opportunity to do so, I would definitely recommend the Trans -Mongolian train.

Btw - the train journey itself was a great way of living amongst regular Russians for a short period and literally sharing everything with them - from the toilet to warm vodka and juice . (Which, incidently is illegal to drink on the train!)

Balmed Out

go teach english in south korea or vietnam

Valmont

Balmed Out wrote: »

go teach english in south korea or vietnam

That'll be my next big trip hopefully.