Melting

There is a saying in Chicago that we don’t have 4 seasons, we have 2: winter and August. Most Chicagoans have this extraordinary ability to pretend that our winters don’t suck. Ask any one of us, and invariably we will say, “It’s cold, but it’s really not that bad. Besides, our summers make it worth it.” We are all lying through our clenched teeth! It is freaking cold here today and will be all week. I guess I can’t really complain, since I’ll be in sunny Sydney in 22 days! But really, it’s way too early in the season for this nonsense.

It usually hovers around the freezing mark until January. But it is a high of 19F today, so walking to and from work it is about 11F, with a windchill of 2 degrees. Windchill is this great little term they made up to let us know that it’s even colder than we think. Because Chicago is so windy, it can feel colder than what the thermostat actually reads. And it really is the wind that makes it an unbearable 6 months of winter, that whirling arctic blast straight off Lake Michigan cuts right through your clothes. So we layer up, wearing tights and nylons under our wool pants, and once inside, start sweating profusely because everyone turns the heat up to 97 degrees.

Mayor Daley also decided in his great wisdom, to start the Block 37 project in November. Block 37 is this empty lot eyesore in the middle of the Loop, where they try to have events and parties there to make up for it being a big square block of gravel and garbage. So he has decided to finally build something there, and thought that November would be a great time to start. Unfortunately, the underground pedway that I take from the CTA blue line all the way to my work, goes directly under this plot of land. So the minute the temperature hit below freezing, the pedway was closed and I am now forced to walk outside. I know, I can hear the violin the whole 6 blocks to work. But seriously, why does this not make sense to me? Are they really going to complete enough work this winter, to make it worth closing that right now?

The other thing about the Block 37 project is the addition of a so-called “transit center,” which they are pushing to be the main CTA terminal. This will include direct transit from O’Hare airport and the Blue line. That run currently takes about 45 minute to 1 hour, depending on the time of day. They are trying to add an express run, for an extra fee, you go straight to O’Hare without any stops. There has also been talk of the ability check-in your luggage at this terminal, but that just doesn’t sound right. The security checks we go through at the airport are numerous, but now suddenly, we can hand our bags off to some CTA worker? That’s going to go over real well. Maybe they should concentrate on fixing the stations that they already have. The elevators hardly ever work, there are no public bathrooms and the stairwells and staircases are too narrow to accomodate all the people. How about fixing all that first, instead of building a new blue line which really only tourists will use on a regular basis.

Another city that knows how to cater to tourists is Washington, D.C. I spent this past weekend there, and it’s been one of my favorite cities since my first visit years ago. I love that there is always so much going on, so much to do and see. I’m sure it helps that I have friends to cart me around, but it really is a great place. Most of the museums are free, which is practically unheard of nowadays. There are constant rallies and activities on the Mall, and a great nightlife and good restaurants. I was lucky and got a really cheap flight for $98 into National, and said goodbye to a few friends of mine. We went to a Capitols ice hockey game, which I saw about 7 minutes of. I didn’t do any sightseeing this time, since I figured I’d be doing enough of that in the next year. Besides, it was cold out there too, and I wanted to see Shawnna and Dave’s new baby before I left. Boy, is he a cutie! They promised to post pictures from time to time for me to keep up with his first year. I also have news that my friend Nadia had her son this weekend. Another boy! That makes 5 boys, no girls, for my friends who have children. I guess we really want Illinois to have a good football team at some point.

This week is my last vaccine appointment, I have to get my last Jap B Enceph shot and I think my MMR booster. I also started taking my Typhoid pill today, with no ill effects so far. You have to take it on an empty stomach so I thought it might not agree with me, but so far, it’s all good. Last dentist appointment today, hopefully no cavities or other issues. I don’t have any fillings and I really don’t want to start two weeks before I leave, though with my luck that is a definite possibility.

My to-do list is still two pages long, but a lot of items are small and I can get done quickly, once I sit down and just go through the list. I still have a few things to buy, but I’m going to wait until I’m off work to run those errands. I’m hoping in my last 1o days I’ll be able to have some relaxation time, instead of running around like a crazy person.

Anyone who plans a multi-country, extended trip invariably has to deal with the problem of malaria prevention. Unlike many other diseases, malaria does not have a vaccine. Simply put, the best way to not get malaria is to not get bitten. The best way to do this is to cover up and use bug spray with DEET or some recommend lemon eucalpytus extract. But that doesn’t always work, especially when mosquitoes somehow make it their life’s mission to find only you in a crowd of thousands. There is also a rumor floating around in travelers circles, that there is either a homeopathic cure or that you somehow build up an immunity to malaria once you get it. If there is a homepathic cure, can you let the medical community know about it please? Thanks much. And if you intend on getting malaria just to build up an immunity, talk to the estimated 2 million or so people who die from malaria every year and see if it worked for them.

So we are left with taking pills. Lots and lots of pills. In certain places, the skeeters have built up an immunity to certain drugs, so you need to research where you are going and what to take. I think the main reason that travelers don’t take malarials is the cost and side effects that come with certain kinds. There are three main anti-malarial drugs out there, mefloquine (brand name Larium) which can cause anxiety and nightmares in some people. Then there is doxycycline, which is an antibiotic, and not only are you not supposed to drink alcohol while taking this (what’s the point?) but it can cause sun sensitivity, reduces the effectiveness of BC pills, and makes you at greater risk for yeast infections. Sign me up! The last one is Malarone, which is fairly new, reportedly has no side effects and the skeeters aren’t immune to it. The kicker is that not only is this pill insanely expensive (I was quoted $4.75 A PILL) but you have to take it everyday. So, if you are like me, and plan on being in malarial zones for about 9 months, this will put a major crimp in your budget. Not to mention the hundreds of dollars I spent on my vaccines or “jabs.”

For my trip, I decided to get the Jap B Encephalitis (3 shots at $110 each), since I’ll be in Asia for part of the monsoon (read: skeeter) season. I also got Hep A&B, Yellow Fever, Tetanus/Diptheria booster, MMR booster, Polio booster, Meningitis (why I didn’t get this FOR FREE at college I have no idea) and a flu shot. I also have to take my typhoid vaccine, which is 4 pills. All of these, not including the malaria meds, cost me over $600. And my insurance even paid for the Hep A&B and Tet/Diph booster. Supposedly my insurance will also pay for a 90 days supply of Malarone, but I’m thinking they may catch on that if I need 90 days of Malarone, I might not be working or have their insurance anymore. We’ll see how that goes, I’m going to try and get my script filled today at Sam’s Club, which quoted me the cheapest price. The hard part is to not buy too many, as it is a waste of money, but to not run out either, since Malarone is really only available in western countries right now. So if I run out I can’t really get any more on the road. These are the issues that suck about planning a trip like this.

None of this addresses any of the diseases that don’t have any vaccines or preventative medicine at all, not to mention post-infection care. Dengue fever, another awesome little disease, is also transmitted by mosquitoes. Difference is, these mosquitoes bite during the day, while malaria mosquitoes bite at night. I wonder how they decided that? Did they have a little Darwinian pow-pow one day?

Almost 50% of travelers will also get “sick to their stomach” at one point. When someone says they are sick to their stomach, they are really referring to poop. And this usually means some form of diarrhea, more affectionately known as “Delhi belly” or “Montezuma’s revenge.” The best advice to avoid diarrhea is to not drink local water, ice or any fruits and vegetables that have been washed in said water and not peeled. But if you read this article, you’ll understand how even the most careful of travelers end up with a dodgy stomach. (Not for the faint!)

Well, as you’ve probably guessed by the title, I’m off on a Round-the World (RTW)adventure. After 6 years of looking around and only seeing beige cubes, I decided I needed a change. Whereas most people would maybe just change jobs, I’ve decided to leave the country and travel, something I’ve been thinking of doing for years, seriously for about two, and have been sort of planning for the entire year of 2005.

I’m a 29, soon to be 30 year old, American girl who grew up in Chicago. I’ve lived here pretty much my whole life, except for college, which was spent at the University of Illinois Urbana-Cornfield. I also spent a semester in Vienna, Austria my junior year. I have always regretted not going a whole year. I don’t remember much about Vienna, except heurigen, chocolate croissants and my friend Liga. Almost every weekend we traveled somewhere else, and when I was actually in Vienna during the week, I was either drinking, or hungover in class. I really should go back there and refresh my memory a bit.

After college, I worked a few odd jobs and found myself working in the health insurance business, both for private and government work. Suddenly, I had been working in insurance for over 6 years, no idea how that happened, and made the decision to get out and basically start over. So, after thinking about this trip for about two years, I finally made the decision to go, and just booked my ticket one day in September. That way, I couldn’t wimp out and change my mind.

At first I really wanted to be gone for my 30th birthday, December 11th, but after some discussions with my family and other plans within the trip itself, I decided to stay for Christmas. That being said, I’m leaving Dec. 26th. I bought a one-way ticket to Sydney, and have another flight out of Oz to Singapore on May 13th. I am also going to NZ in there somewhere, but otherwise, nothing else is planned. I’ve decided to buy my tickets as I go, because I will probably be gone for longer than a year, and I also wanted the flexibility. My bank account may not agree with this decision, however, seeing as my flight to Oz was WAY more than I expected. But that’s okay, it’s bought and paid for, and I’m arriving on the 28th. Dec. 27th? Doesn’t exist for me.

Here are a few questions I’ve been asked repeatedly, so I thought it might be easier to just answer them here.

How long and where are you going?
I’ll be gone at least year, and maybe more depending on how fast my money goes. My “plan” is Oz/NZ, SEA (Thailand, Vietnam, Laos Cambodia loop) Myanmar maybe. Then over to Tibet,Nepal, India, maybe Sri Lanka. Hopefully then over to South Africa and work my way up the East Coast towards Ethiopia.

How much is this costing?
Well, I’m budgeting $30/day, more for OZ/NZ and less for India/SEA, so it should even out. I’m hoping to keep my flights to $5000 and pre-trip spending including vaccines, clothes, pack, etc, will be about $1500.

What do your parents think?
Well, they’re parents. They are worried that I’m a solo female off alone in the big bad world, but they have only themselves to blame. My parents are big travelers. Iin the 60’s, they took a hippie bus, even though they weren’t hippies, from Germany to New Delhi. My mom, a German citizen at the time, emigrated in Hawaii. They’ve been in countries that people rarely go through now, Iran, Afghanistan, etc. After that, they moved to Chicago and started a family. But we were always traveling, I went to Europe before I went to Disneyland, and they’ve continued to go on big trips, most recently to China, Vietnam and Cambodia. They also just spent the last year cruising around Europe in their retirement. Needless to say, traveling has always been a part of my family, so they can’t be too shocked.

Why are you doing this?
Because I love to travel, and I want to go to places while I’m young, not when I’m retired and imprisoned on a tour bus. Plus, I have none of the normal attachments right now keeping me home. It’s the perfect time to go. So I’m going.

How do you pack for a year of travel?
From everything I’ve read, lightly. Packing list will follow once it is final. But it’s going to have to fit in a 60 liter backpack. For you Americans, that is about 3600 cubic inches. I “backpacked” my way around Europe for about 6 weeks a few years back, and I had a 110 liter backpack. No, that’s not a typo. I was one of those maroons who dragged around 4 pairs of shoes, two pairs of jeans, and numerous other clothes and items around that I never wore or used, struggling every step of the way. I don’t know how I managed, but I’m sure a few people got knocked over on a bus somewhere. I can’t even fathom a guess as to how much that pack weighed. This time, I’m going to try and keep it to 20 pounds, including the 5 pound pack. That being said, anyone in the market for a really nice 110 liter backpack?

What are you going to do when you get home?
I have no idea. Don’t want to even think about it, because it scares the bejeezus out of me. Stop asking me.

Well, I can’t believe today is November 28th! I have less than a month before I leave for my Round the World (RTW) trip. When I bought my ticket in September, I thought “No problem, 3 more months.” But now, I am rapidly running out of free time to get things done. I already gave my notice at work, and instead of the work slowing down, I am busier than I have ever been, trying to get things wrapped up before I leave. It’s hard to get motivated to do work at a job that you don’t have anymore, and never really enjoyed that much to begin with. I have so many more things I need to get done for the trip, some big, some small, but all seem to take longer than anticipated. And it seems every time I cross something off my list, I think of two more to add, so I am making no progress it seems. Though I did finally decided on my backpack, after much hemming and hawing, and being my indecisive self. I kept the Osprey Waypoint 60, technically a travel pack, but really keeps the weight off my shoulders well. We’ll see how it goes. I have the majority of my clothes and things I’m taking with me, and will post a packing list once I finalize everything I am taking. I’m trying really hard to not take too many clothes, very hard for me, and keep it to 20 pounds, including the 5 pound pack. But somehow I’m managing to take 4 pairs of shoes with me. Some things never change.

I will be super-busy before I leave, and don’t really have a free weekend left. This coming weekend will be spent in DC, visiting my friends Shawnna and Dave and their brand new baby Zachary, and celebrating Dave’s 30th Birthday and completion of his PhD. Should be a fun weekend, and somehow I managed to book a flight into National for $98.00. Unheard of! Next weekend will be my going away/ 30th birthday party on Saturday, and I’m really looking forward to that. Then my last of work is the 15th, and I’m off for 10 days before I leave. But I imagine most of my time will be spent with family, Christmas stuff, and getting things finalized. It doesn’t really seem real that I’m leaving, and it probably won’t hit me until I’m on the plane. I have been having some small freakouts about getting things done, but it seems like these tasks are all in the abstract, like I can’t remember what the end goal is. It’s very strange.