When we started discussing the idea of taking a year-long trip around the world, we were dreaming from experience. In 1984, we did the unheard of (at least in our circles) and left for a four month trip to Southeast Asia. Our family and friends were aghast that we would even think of taking more than a two-week vacation to travel. But we had this idea and were determined to go. With our trusty Lonely Planet guides and round-trip tickets from Los Angeles, CA to Bangkok, Thailand we packed our backpacks and boarded the plane.

We began our trip in Bangkok, Thailand and traveled to Burma, Bangladesh, Nepal, Malaysia and Singapore. I will write in more detail about each phase of our trip in later posts.

One of the things I like best about travel is seeing, trying, doing new things and having new experiences. Sometimes those experiences are good. Sometimes they leave you saying, “hmm that was interesting” and other times you don’t want to ever repeat it. There were many firsts for me on this trip. Luckily, few of the experiences on our trip were bad.

Some of the firsts I still remember 30 years later include:

• Seeing elephants on the streets of Bangkok, Thailand
• Anovernight ferry ride
• Seeing a giant sea turtle clawing her way up the beach to lay her eggs
• Being the one who looks different
• Taking a hill tribe trek
• Getting my bag slashed on a city bus
• Taking showers with geckos on the wall
• Staying in hostels
• Being in a place where I didn’t speak the language
• Travelling long distances by bus
• Riding an elephant to see rhinos
• Picking a fish and having it cooked and served with the head and guts still in tact
• Getting terribly sick from something I ate or drank
• Travelling on a public bus with armed guards
• Eating anything I wanted and coming home having lost weight
• Seeing monkeys on the streets in Kathmandu, Nepal
• Sleeping with rats walking on the beams overhead
• Seeing ornate temples and ancient places of worship

Once I started thinking about it, it was amazing how much I remember from way back then. Hopefully our next big adventure will provide just as many ‘firsts’ to remember!