What to Make of it All?

My top 5 moments ......

I've travelled across the best part of ten countries in the 11 months of my travels, and as you can imagine, there will be loads of moments that were breathtaking or inspirational. I've trekked to Annapurna base Camp, visited the terracotta warriors, climbed the great wall of China, visited the Forbidden Kingdom, kayaked at Halong Bay, trekked the oldest jungle in the world at Taman Negara, climbed Gunung Bromo and there's so many more but after condensing my best moments, which has taken a lot of time by the way and used up a lot of my brain cells, I can finally tell you my top five:

(5) The palace of love, Taj Mahal (India)

With it being one of the most visited places in the world, I really wasn't expecting it to hit me the way it did. Although it was full of tourists and I got charged the full tourist price and not the usual local price, I was taken back by the size and the beauty of the building. The history that goes with this palace and the money and workforce that was used to build this famous building of love, it makes you appreciate it that bit more. Also having the numerous chances to enjoy Johnny's Malai Kofta round the corner, gave Taj Mahal the edge.

(4) Becoming a qualified diver, Perhentian islands (Malaysia)

People who know me will know my hatred towards swimming and how bad I am at it, but I couldn't have completed my travels without having tried out diving, especially at the world class dive sites we have visited. I really didn't expect to pass the course but I just wanted the opportunity to see a good amount of sea life, which I did, but when I confidently passed everything required, I was made up and so proud of myself and it was just coincidence that my instructor, Suzie, was fit and it helped me concentrate Ha! I was amazed at the creatures that lived underwater, it really is another world down there and just makes you think how big the world actually is!

(3) Spotting a wild tiger, Corbett tiger reserve (India)

With approx 160 wild tigers and other animals in a jungle the size of Yorkshire, we were gob smacked to spot a tiger within our first half hour of our safari. I was expecting to see one because thats what we came for but when we met some guys who have been coming for the past 4 years and have still not spotted one and the fact that we spent the whole next day looking for one with no success, it made me realise how lucky we were. I've seen tigers before in zoos and at tiger kingdom in Thailand, but these wild tigers are huge with very vivid colours on their fur. It's definatley one of them stories you tell the grandchildren.

(2) Climbing up Mount Emei Shan (China)

Danny was the hiking half of our partnership in our travels, so when I learnt about my fate of the number of mountains he's planned, I wasn't looking forward to them and this mountain was not an easy one. With us climbing up a set of stairs for 8 hours on ice with no visibility, I was longing for the end and it finally came. The sunrise in the morning made the climb worth it with the clouds below us and mountains peaking around us and with the sun slowly rising, this was one of them moments where words or pictures cannot describe how beautiful nature was at this moment of my life.

(1) The greatest temple in the world, Angkor Wat (Cambodia)

I've never heard of Angkor Wat before my travels and didn't really know much about it until we got into South East Asia. I saw pictures and stories from other travellers, but experiencing it for the first time yourself, really is magical. The admissions are expensive but it is deifnaltey worth it and makes Cambodia worth visiting just for that itself. It is such a huge complex of temples, that I found it impossible to go around seeing them all without getting bored. The detail within these temples, which is carved out of stone is unbelieveable and can only leave you to imagine the Angkor Wat region in its hay day!

My favourite country .......

This is one question that every traveller has asked me and Danny once they've realised how many countries we've travelled. It's a hard question to answer because every country has something different to offer. I was ready to leave India, when we did and hated China to start off with but once you've had time to reflect, you end up loving these countries. The South East Asian countries are all very similar and this is where the bulk of the tourists are, which makes a very different experience when you compare it to India and China. I've got to admit, South East Asia offers you consistent warm weather and a good selection of beaches but these countries can easily merge into one. So they way I have considered which country is my favourite was to tick my own personal criteria of people, travel, expenses, sights, food and language.

The country that comes out on top is Malaysia, mainly because it ticks all these criteria's for me.

People and the language ....

The people in this country generally speak enough English to get by, even better in the main cities and are so friendly and revel at the opportunity to help you out, whereas in the other countries, I really have the feeling they are after your money then genuinely helping you out.

Transport ......

I have experienced my best transport travel in China and Malaysia with the latter being cheaper and you get more for your money. The seats in some of these buses are like executive seats and I slept on them like a baby and I usually can't sleep on buses, so they must be doing something right!

Expenses .....

Before I visited Malaysia, I had a mixed review of people saying whether it was cheap or expensive but I found it relevantly cheap, although you needed money to do things in the Borneo side. It was not as cheap as India, which was the cheapest country we've visited but it is as cheap as Thailand and Indonesia if you budget well.

Sights .....

I agree that there are many amazing sights that we've seen across all the countries that we've visited but I felt in Malaysia, there were lots of places where you could venture where toursits are not gathered around and you are able to meet the locals properly. I felt you could do the same in India, Indonesia, parts of China and parts of Laos too.

Food .......

Malaysia has a good mixture of different ethnicities from all over the world but they have adopted many Chinese and Indian people in their population. With this great mix, this gives Malaysia the edge on the food front compared to the other countries. All of Asia is full of rice and noodles, which is what you get in Malaysia too but you also get roti (bread) and curries, so you can always mix your food depending on what you're craving. Local food is pretty cheap and I was generally satisfied with my food over here.

My favourite food ........

Soooo many cuisines to choose from, how am I supposed to choose my favourite? Like I said above, I think Malaysia has to be my favourite because of the variety they have to offer as their own local food. My least favourite would have to be Nepalise food, with their fucking boring Daal Bhat, so I just stuck to Western food. I've never really had Chinese food before I went on this trip and I was really impressed by the Chinese food. I would have liked to try out more however the menu's were not in English, so I genuinely stuck with a few meals. The Muslim food in China was something else, especially the dapanji, which me and Danny nailed at any given opportunity. Vietnam/Cambodia/Laos was mainly western food or fried rice/noodles, which was the main dish across South East Asia. A lot of people prefer Thai food, but generally the curry's are too tangy or coconutty for me but I have found the Masuman curry, which is my favourite round these ends. I really liked Indonesian food too, pretty similar to Malaysian and with it being a Muslim dominated country, it was easier for me to get food.

My travel advice .......

Me and Danny have covered so many miles over this year across many countries and the only thing we both want to do is save some more money and lets plan the next one. But now we are experienced travelers, there are a few things that I have learnt, that will help me the next time I hopefully travel.

If I have enough money, I plan to do my future travels on a motorbike, as I've had the best times traveling on one of those. Yes they are dangerous to drive, especially in Asia, but as long as your careful and have your wits about you, you'll be o.k. It allows you to travel at your own pace, whereas if you're on a bus, you have to stay and stick to their itinerary. A lot of the times, you drive through areas, which are still untouched, therefore allowing you to meet the locals and appreciate the country for what it is. Also when you stop off for food, you get to taste the real local food at real restaurants at real prices. The best reason for traveling on a motorbike is that you can be flexible with your itinerary, which allows you to travel at your own pace. Plus with a good set of shades, you'll look pretty cool ha!

Me and Dan had huge bags to carry around for a year, so my extra bit of advice is to make sure you travel light, it saves you getting big shoulders like us. The problem for us was that we were visiting countries across the four seasons so we had to pack for that, but if you're only there for a certain season, then pack wisely. The clothes you bring will get knackered really quick, as you will be wearing them all the time, so either bring your old clothes or just buy them from here. Clothes are really cheap out here so it's worth packing hardly anything and buying your shizzle from here. However if you're a big lad like me, then buying clothes are a little bit harder!

The Lonely Planet book was a godsend in some countries but also annoying in some. The book is really useful for background information, sight information, maps and recommendations but the bad thing is that every traveler has one so the recommended places are busy. It is definitely worth buying one because whenever you are stuck, it's a lifesaver, especially in places where they don't speak English. But as me and Danny transferred real travelers, we generally did things our own way and only really used the books for the maps. Getting into the Lonely planet book is every hotel/guesthouse mission. Every traveler has one and are so dependent on it, that they always stay at the recommended places. Generally the standards were dropped and the prices have gone up since they have been recommended in the book. There are plenty of budget accommodation, so generally when we arrived in a town/city, we found the tourist area and looked around for a cheaper guesthouse, which generally had better standards. This is also the same for travel, as there are many company buses for the comfort of tourists, which are more expensive and the local buses are generally the cheaper option.

summary of travels

What a year, I can't believe what me and Danny have achieved and how quick it has whizzed by. I have met so many great people and have made some real good friends, which I plan on staying in touch with. We both couldn't have traveled without the support of our families and that makes a big difference. I haven't had any regrets from this trip, although it has left with me a little debt, it was definitely worth it. I heard a lot of people saying to me, ' I wish I'd have done it when I was younger" and this made me decide to do it while I was young and have no commitments, but it is never too late. A lot of people are too scared of leaving their comfortable lives or plan to do it later, but a lot of times, you get yourself into a routine or a commitment and feel it's too late. You're never too old, as I saw loads of people of different ages enjoying it out there, especially the older ones who just loved it! I'll leave you with the motto that I have created from thinking on these long ass journeys on buses/trains/boats/airplanes and that is, "Live fearlessly and it will create unlimited opportunity.