Planning Packing

Given that I've been behind the curve on everything else, I thought I'd get ahead on packing.

Having looked at the climate data for the countries I'm going to, I'm going to need everything from an Inuit furcoat to budgie smugglers. For example, Uzbekistan in November can get down to 0-5 celceus in places. Burma is up around 30 celceus or more in December. 

Another consideration is locating various items of clothing when in tight, dark, unfamiliar places. I don't want to be bent over a backpack, starkers, in a mixed hostel dorm, looking for a clean pair of boxers for longer than absolutely necessary. 

Soooooo. First priority is a selection of dry bags. That way, I only have four or five things to stuff into or rip out of my backpack, not fifty. One for underwear, one for T-shirts, one for bottom wear, one for laundry. Oh, and maybe one for possible laundry / might wear again if things get desperate. I got some very cheaply from Amazon. They ain't brilliant quality but they do a good job of keeping things separate and look a bit more professional than supermarket carriers bags. Who knows, they might even keep things dry!

Next, quantities. I'm pretty sure that whatever I do, I'm going to get this bit wrong. I'm working on the principle that I need clothing for a week before finding a washing machine. That means seven pair of the essentials and I'll have to make bottom wear last a bit longer. I'm a bloke, so making clothes last longer than polite society would ordinarily tolerate is no real hardship. 

I'll obviously need to allow for a change into evening wear in the hotter places and that means I'll either have to have washing done more often or buy essentially disposable clothing later on in the trip. Not a huge problem.

Security. Basically, nothing of any value is going in the backpack. None of my clothes qualify as valuable. In fact, good luck to any would-be thief on that score. I can, but will not be upgrading my smartphone in advance of the trip. Current smartphone value - around £30. In fact, no shiny things to be packed if at all poss. If I get turned over at any point, everything will be easily replaceable apart from my passport. And I'm taking a copy of that.

Reading material. Hmm. Tricky. long journeys require something to occupy oneself. I've got two actual books, one fiction, one non-fiction, both of which I've been saving for the purpose. No guide books but I've loaded my research on each likely destination onto the smartphone (along with train timetables, other transport options etc.). I've also got some ebooks on the phone.

Sundries. Footwear, pairs, two (Converse and Teva). Hat, floppy camo jungle style (baseball caps aren't my thing). Dish dash, (I rather fancy myself as something of a T.E. Lawrence). Long johns, one pair, plus thermal top (for those nippy nights). Sleeping bag and liner.

When I think about it, there's a lot of olive green going on (backpack and day bag are both olive too). I'm in danger of looking a bit like a Special Forces wannabe. I'm not sure my profile will be all that low if I travel around dressed as an Andy McNab lookey-likely. Hopefully the Converse footwear will give me away as a humble office bod on his hols.

So I've had a quick trial pack and everything seems to fit with a bit to spare. I'm bound to need any spare room for souveniers (Persian rug, elephant tusks, Thai bride etc.).

Planning Practicalities

Hmmm. There are a few practical tasks that I have very little idea about while on the road, at least in some places. I will no doubt have answers to these questions as I go along.

Washing clothes

I'm not an expert in this field in the UK, let alone abroad. Find a dial setting that runs for about an hour and press the 'on' button. That's about it. There's something about not putting coloury things in with whitey things, but the science of washing isn't something I've ever found the time to research too deeply. As far as doing this abroad is concerned, I'm in the dark. I'm assuming there will be places where people will perform this dark art on ones behalf for a minimal fee. That's plan 'A'. If I have to resort to a local machine, well I won't. It's that simple. I'm not going on holiday to do washing. I'll pay whatever it costs. Emergency underwear plan - wash in sink. I understand one can buy Handwash in extremis. 

Medical Care

I don't take medication, so illness is the only reason to expose my intimate areas to strangers. Will assume that my chosen accommodation will advise. Medical services abroad is something I know nothing about and I don't intend to do any reasearch on it. I have insurance if it comes to it.  

Personal Safety

I'm pretty aware of my surroundings. I know I'm going to a few areas where safety could be an issue. Not that I've revealed this fact to anyone until now. I'm also travelling alone. 

I've thought about this quite a lot and have weighed up the risks. There is no reason why I should get shot by anyone. No-one will know me well enough to take that level of dislike to me. There is no extreme political or religious nonsense in the areas where I'm travelling at present (although historically there has been). But risks remain. 

The political or religious situation could change at any time. A random mugging could happen. I would probably react rather badly to an attempted bag or wallet theft, putting me in potential danger. I could meet the wrong person at the wrong time. All of these are risks relating to any trip at home or abroad, only a little bit more so. I've read a good deal about managing personal risk and most if it is common sense of course. I don't wear jewellery or leave my camera swinging around my neck. I'm a pretty low key individual all told. My risk profile is acceptable. To me. 

Lowering your profile top tip; Avoid flag or effigy burning where possible. They generally have a very low heat to flame ratio and don't last long enough to boil a kettle. 

Snoring

I have the ability to snore. It's a not so rare gift that, I have found, can irritate a little. It tends to worsen after long binges on alcohol. For the most part, I have booked single accommodation for the benefit of my fellow travellers - at great expense I might add. There will however be occasions where shared accommodation becomes necessary. What to do? I have procured several sets of earplugs which I intend to handout to any who choose to accept. What do other similarly afflicted travellers do? No idea. I'd hate to be kept awake by some Johnny Foreigner playing the nasal bassoon all night. 

Relief

I do know I will come across toilet facilities that will shock me to the core. Not just in not just in terms of cleanliness but also in concept and design. Cleanliness (or lack thereof) I can handle no problem (bloke). Form is another question. I couldn't tell you how long ago man discovered the seat, but it's been around a while. How this rudimentary technology hasn't managed to go global, is anyone's guess. I have of course adopted the virtual seat position before and I recall being less than pleased with the results. I've also noted the hosepipe that often accompanies these facilities and never felt compelled to experiment. On that basis, I think I have four options. 1/ Don't eat anything for seven weeks. 2/ Demand that a proper toilet is built immediately or I will take my tourist dollars elsewhere. 3/ Leave all my travel gear behind and just take a toilet strapped to my back. 4/ Grow up and get on with it - May god have mercy upon my soul. Option 2/ is the current favourite.  

Planning Health

My confidence in the NHS has been knocked this morning. In an effort to be responsible and get the odd jab to prevent serious illness, I have completed the local medical centre travel clinic form. Duly sent and duly received back.

as you can see from the picture of the form, the nurse who reviewed my travel plans had either; 

Recently had a stroke 

Is 5 and yet to master basic writing skills

Was drunk when completing the form

Whatever the case, I am putting myself in the care of someone whose unsteady hand will soon be stabbing me with giant needles, filled with god knows what. I'm tempted to let Mother Nature care for me. It seems like the least dangerous option. 

More edits on health care and insurance (yet to do anything on that) to come. 

Update 30/9 - ok, so had my jabs today. The nice lady at the clinic needed a little help on where Central Asia was, then where Central America was, then what countries were in both. It was about the standard of education on the matter that I was expecting to be honest. Once we'd got past basic geography, we were down to the serious business of needles. Turns out I have enough Rabies juice in me to last a while and I just needed a top up on Hep A & B. One of them cost me £36 but I cant remember which. The other was free. Don't know why. Malaria requires pills (I'd forgotten that), so I do need to take medication after all. Malerone (sp?) in my case. I took that last year with no side effects, so best to repeat. Not cheap though. I'm not sure it will really matter. I'm bound to forget to take them after the first couple of days anyway. At least I'm all properly tanked up in all other respects. 

Update 20/9 - travel insurance all sorted. Took the easy option and hit the first Google result returned. The quote for 3 months (to include my follow-up trip to Central America) came in at £72. That's the 'Backpacker Bronze' package. Once all the bits and bobs got added e.g. Additional valuables cover, it topped out at £120. God knows what 'Backpacker Gold' would have come in at! 

I'm sure someone will tell me I paid twice the going rate. Hey ho. I'm not going to spend my whole weekend researching insurance quotes. Life's too short. 

Update 20/9 - can't possibly need more than this can I?

Planning Visas

Ok ok. I know I said I've been making progress with visa applications but in truth I've been completely rubbish. I've researched the visas that I think I need but have yet to actually do much about most of them. 
What I have managed to do is move the acquisition of visas on my trip tracker from 'red' to 'amber'. This is on the basis that I've done some research and changing the RAG made me feel like I've made some progress. There's no getting away from it though, amber is a generous rating. 

Update 23/9 - Ok. So I've made a right cats arsehole of the whole visa thing. I'm now down to 28 working days before I go and totted up, the remaining visas will take 29 working days to arrange according to the stated embassy timescales. I've got a couple of express options which might bail me out but it's going to be somewhere between tight and disastrous. 

Given that my passport is still with the embassy of Uzbekistan at this point, my mood is black. Unless someone from their consulate section drops it off to me tonight on their way home from work (it could happen!?), I could be in a spot of bother. The only solution I can think of is a trip to the pub. Alcohol induced blind optimism will sort it all out. 

As a UK citizen, This is what I think I need;

Bulgaria - N/A
Turkey - Visa
Georgia - N/A
Azerbaijan - Visa
Turkmenistan - Visa
Uzbekistan Visa
Kyrgyzstan N/A
Kazakhstan N/A
China - Visa
Burma - Visa
Vietnam - Visa

Of the seven visas I require, I've obtained precisely one. With six or so weeks to go. I am however able to share my experience of the one I have got, in an attempt to write something of use. 

In detail, (with updates as I get them) this is what is required;

Turkey - eVisa. Very straightforward actually. online service costing $20. The link is https://www.evisa.gov.tr/en/ It takes a few minutes to complete and seems like nothing more than a revenue stream for the Turkish government. No in-depth questioning or review as far as I can tell. I've printed a hard copy but a soft copy is reportedly sufficient. We'll see if it works!  

Azerbaijan - Update 15/10 - Finally got my passport with approved visa back today. What a palaver though. Postal application stated 10 working days plus postal time. I posted on the 24th Sept. I can't even be bothered to work it out but they went over by at least a bit - which has killed me time wise. Application made to the Azerbaijan Visa Centre (the embassy subs the work out). Cost including handling fees, £100. I'm only there for a day or two! 

Turkmenistan - Visa with LOI (letter of invitation) and escorted throughout the duration of the stay. I've had to engage a tour operator in order to make any progress with this. They've been great but the process is very long and very expensive. Further updates as they come in. Update 17/10 - Brilliant service from the embassy. Dropped off on the 16/10. Took five minutes. Paid in cash, £53.36 for express service. Collected the next day. Took about a minute. Outstanding. Simple. Efficient. 

Uzbekistan - Update 24/9 - Visa came through today. No LOI required but itinerary was. Fairly pain free postal service quoted as 10 working day turnaround but arrived after 8 days in the end. Postal order payment required (£50) which cost me £6 to obtain. Special delivery there and back to the embassy cost £6.40 each way. All in all, a fairly expensive short trip to Uzbekistan. 

China - Update 1/11 - What a palaver! So here's the deal. The embassy has contracted out the visa application services to an agency who check the paperwork on their behalf (like Azerbaijan). One needs an appointment - it's compulsory. You book a date and time online (http://www.visaforchina.org/SGP_EN/) and turn up to one of their offices, London in my case, collect a ticket and wait to be called to a desk. Here are some important bits; My flight lays over in a city in a sensitive province for 7 hours (Urumqi). This meant I had to write a statement promising I wouldn't leave the airport. Had to do this on the spot. I had booked a hostel for 3 nights and received a letter of invitation from them. Apparently not enough. The format of the letter was wrong and I was told I needed to booked every night of my stay in China in advance. Had to do this at great speed on the spot too. The visa office closes at 3pm (my appointment was at 2pm and I wasn't called until 2.15pm). Finally, I wanted express service but they don't do that after midday. None of this information appeared in my research. As it happens, I applied on Tuesday afternoon and the standard service meant it would be ready on Friday. The guy at the application centre was in fairness very helpful. He told me what was missing and sent me off tot the nearest printer so I could get it. He let me come straight back to his desk when all done, no more queuing. Payment was made upon collection £66. 
I have basically operated a 'just in time' approach to visas all told. There's been no slack in my plan whatsoever. All terribly time efficient on my part ;)  

Burma - Update 24/10 - Burma visa required a personal visit to the embassy. While logistically awkward, very straightforward in practise. Simple single page application downloaded from the embassy website handed in along with £14 fee in cash. Pick-up was possible 48 hours later. total time in the embassy was about five minutes. How come doe visas are amazingly straightforward and some incredibly painful? 

Vietnam - Update 18/9 eVisa came through after successful online application. It appears that one is required to take the eVisa and payment ($45), with x2 passport photos and x2 entry/exit forms to a desk at the airport and get a passport stamp there. So it's not actually a visa but a visa approval letter. Still, admin done. 
  

Planning Money

Surprise surprise, I've done next to nothing about this so far. I have had no idea what currency applies to what country, nor do I know how to obtain said currencies when I arrive in any given destination. I'm basically winging the entire trip and know that this approach will cost me dear in the end.

All part of the fun surely?

I did have some hope that I could turn up with GBP and that would do. The British Empire did stretch pretty far but most of my route traverses areas that were sadly not under our wing. The romantic notion of me in pith helmet, sporting a swagger stick and waving pound notes in the air in anticipation of deity-like adoration, is not likely to endear me to the local populous I suspect.

Ok, so here's the rundown on currencies and some initial research that will no doubt require updating as I go;

Bulgaria - Lev
No problem. Easily obtainable. Have used numerous times. Pegged to the Euro. 

Turkey - Lira
No problem. Will get a small amount of cash before I go. Enough for train fare and some food. 

Georgia - Lari
Seems as though the Lari is a closed currency. I will likely be arriving at the border town of Sarpi and hoping for an exchange bureau to be there - and open when I do - inside the Georgian customs terminal. It isn't 24/7 apparently. USD accepted widely and ATM's everywhere apparently. 

Azerbaijan - Manat More research and updates to come
Turkmenistan - Manat More research and updates to come
Uzbekistan - Som More research and updates to come
Kyrgyzstan - Som More research and updates to come
Kazakhstan - Tenge More research and updates to come
China - Yuan (or Renminbi) More research and updates to come
Burma - Kyat More research and updates to come
Vietnam - Dong More research and updates to come

Update 26/9 - Here's my problem. I'm doing eleven countries in seven or so weeks. So some of these countries will be 2-3 day affairs. That means I'll need enough money for a bottle of water and some dinner, plus bus/train fares. Not enough to warrant a costly ATM withdrawal with my regular card, nor do I want the cost of exchange bureaus etc. Finally, if I can avoid carrying large sums of cash($) with me, I think we'd all agree that would be a good thing. I've just applied for a specialist credit card with no international fees. It sounds safe, it's sounds as though the fees are mild and it's easy to carry. I will be more reliant on ATMs than I'd envisaged but hey, it's a modern world. Money worries over. 

Halifax Clarity Card review

This credit card gives near perfect exchange rates as there's no foreign exchange 'load' fee. It's our top pick because, uniquely, it has no fee for ATM withdrawals either. Pay it off IN FULL and there's no interest on spending, but you will be charged interest (c. £1/mth per £100 withdrawn) on ATM withdrawals (not spending).

Equipment Check

I have come to realise that blogging ought not to be a simple series of thoughts, musings and personal opinions. One should also strive to inform in the process.
On that basis, my third entry concentrates on the absolute essentials of travel.

I have already been too modest in my initial post (...it's a curse). I've already gathered together some additional travel tools which I am convinced will serve me well on this trip.

The picture below shows the contents of my survival tin. From left to right it contains;

Spoon (in case the spork fails to deliver)
Utility tool (in case I need to put up a shelf)
Ring saw (in case I need to saw my own leg off)
Tweasers (in case of splinters)
Sewing kit (domestic, not medical. Socks don't darn themselves)
First aid kit (basically, plasters)
Fruity tablets (I've forgotten what they do)
Striker (man should not be without the ability to make fire)
Torch (um... for light)
D-ring (no idea what this is for)
Water purification tablets
Mess tin

In short, all bases covered. Should be in need of a decent meal in Hanoi, I am fully prepared to saw wood, kill prey, cook and devour, all in a well lit space. I'm sure I'll find a use for the D-ring.

The Plan

Ok, so as I said, I'm off in November and the broad plan is as follows;

Bulgaria - Plane/Train
Turkey - Train
Georgia - Train
Azerbaijan - Train/Ferry
Turkmenistan Car
Uzbekistan Bus??
Kyrgyzstan Bus??
Kazakhstan Bus??
China - Plane/Train
Burma - Plane/Bus
Vietnam - Plane

So I'm cheating a bit at the end by taking to the air but frankly, in 7 weeks to traverse the lot, China by train just isn't practical and the China/Burmese border is a difficult and uncertain prospect.

There will of course be more detail added but the above is it in a nutshell.

View Full Size Travel Map at Travellerspoint

Initial Planning

Soooo. This is a bit of a test, being a virgin blogger.
My trip across Central Asia begins on 2nd November 2014 in Sofia, Bulgaria and ends in Hanoi on 22nd December 2014.
I'm in the process of arranging the (many) visas required and have begun thinking about packing. The most significant contribution made so far is displayed below. When one thinks about all the challenges and pitfalls associated with this trip, it would surely be foolhardy to face any of them without a spork close at hand.

More to come. Obviously.