We leave for Southeast Asia on Wednesday, after a life of wanting to go! We have five weeks, before my school starts back up and Johanna\u2019s vacation days run out, but it already feels like a brisk visit.<\/p>\n
Why is it so difficult to limit oneself to one place? It looks like travel will be more expensive than we imagined (the cheapest hotels are still ~$18 \/ night in Bangkok!), and language more difficult (we gave up learning the alphabet after the fifth \u2018kh\u2019). And yet, after feeling sure we would be happy spending our time mostly in northern Thailand with a 10-day taste of Burma, we discovered Lonely Planet\u2019s 1-2 month, seven country route, and everything is back on the table.<\/p>\n
Below is our best idea itinerary for now. We\u2019ll each be working ~4 hours a day, so we don\u2019t want to move more than every other day, which leaves us about 15 locations to explore.<\/p>\n
Wednesday, 7\/27: Leaving from Newark at 11am
\nThursday, 7\/28: 4 hours in Tokyo, then arriving in Bangkok at 11pm
\nSaturday, 7\/30: Fly to Rangoon, Burma (300 ft gold stupa)
\nMonday, 8\/1: Pagan (ruins)
\nWednesday, 8\/3: Inle Lake (island monasteries)
\nFriday, 8\/5: Mandalay and surrounding old cities
\nSunday, 8\/7: Fly to Bangkok
\nMonday, 8\/8: Ayuthaya or Lapburi (for ancience and art)
\nWednesday, 8\/10: Khao Yai National Park
\nThursday, 8\/11: Phimai (Khmer temple)
\nSaturday, 8\/13: Nong Khai, Thailand \/ Vientiane, Laos
\nMonday, 8\/15: Luang Prabang, Laos
\nWednesday, 8\/17: Boat on the Mekong River, or Luang Nam Tha or Muang Sing
\nFriday, 8\/19: Chang Mai, Thailand (weekend market)
\nSunday, 8\/21: Pai or Mae Hong Son (culture and diversity)
\nTuesday, 8\/23: Sokhothai (ruins) or Phitsanulok (Buddha and noodles)
\nThursday, 8\/25: Bangkok
\nSaturday, 8\/26: Fly to Phuket, then bus to Khao Sok National Park
\nSunday, 8\/27: Khao Lak (beach)
\nMonday, 8\/29: Fly to Bangkok
\nTuesday, 8\/30: Leaving Bangkok at 11pm
\nWednesday, 8\/31: 8 hours in Tokyo, then arriving in Newark 5 minutes before we leave<\/p>\n
With luck, we\u2019ll be visiting a mother of a friend of mine in Rangoon. We\u2019re bringing a bunch of books with us to hand out as gifts in Burma (and we\u2019ll be refilling that space with purchases from our travels).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
We leave for Southeast Asia on Wednesday, after a life of wanting to go! We have five weeks, before my school starts back up and Johanna\u2019s vacation days run out, but it already feels like a brisk visit. Why is it so difficult to limit oneself to one place? It looks like travel will be … Continue reading Plans for Southeast Asia<\/span>