Hi

We had a long weekend here in Germany as Thursday (10/3) was a national holiday and I took Friday off.
Apart from switching my car to winter tires and getting a haircut, eating out with friends all I did was trying to figure out where to travel in November.



Vietnamese food.



And some sushi. Never as good as in Japan, but good enough.

I feel like I’ve travelled around the world this weekend. I’ve researched so much which was quite tiresome.

I had a really nice offer for New Zealand. 3 weeks with a bus with a group of people aged 18-39 (thus cheaper than a normal pre-planned bus roundtrip) in hostels etc. but single rooms are possible, but a lot more expensive.
Nevertheless that would cost over 5000 €(!) and a lot of activities are not included yet and need to be paid on the go.
Considering the fact that NZ wasn’t on my top list and that we’d leave next month, I think it would be too crazy to take this opportunity.
I know that NZ is expensive no matter what you do, but it’s over 5000€, guys!



New Zealand

Alternatively I was interested in Chile + Argentina (which is also quite expensive as pre-planned guided trip) or Peru.
But I think I’ll end up going to Southeast Asia after all (Vietnam + Cambodia). This also has never been on my bucket list, but then again … why not? It’s cheaper than the other destinations and also great to visit in November as the dry season has started.
To be honest thus far I never considered visiting Southeast Asia, but now I got kind of curious.
I researched so much during the weekend that I probably could plan my own trip by now which would be a lot cheaper, but then again it’s probably not a good idea to travel there alone as a solo female traveler plus I simply don’t have the time to plan out the trip as I’d be leaving in less than 4 weeks.



Halong Bay, Vietnam

I had a few moments of panic because I don’t have all the vaccinations they recommend.
I do have all the standard ones plus Hep A + B. They say that typhoid and rabies would be a good idea for long-term travelers and those who travel to rural areas which I won’t.
I’m still thinking about the typhoid shot, but I don’t have enough time for rabies anyway and even if you get scratched, licked or bitten by an rabid animal (mostly dogs, cats, bats and monkeys) you have to go to a hospital and get shots afterwards immediately either way.
Just with pre-vaccination you need less shots and have a bit more time to get to a hospital.
But all people I’ve talked to thus far never had any issues with rabid animals when visiting there and we stick to the bigger cities and main tourist attractions anyway.

I also won't take any Malaria meds with me, but I'll make sure to take mosquito repellent with me and maybe even a mosquito net for the hotel beds.

It’s a bit sad because I’ve found quite a few places I’m interested in in Vietnam that are a bit “out and about”, but they’re usually not included in the guided tours (e.g. Sapa – beautiful rice field trekking there).
Or it’s only included if you do a Vietnam only tour and I really want to see the temples of Angkor in Cambodia …..

There are also trips covering 3 countries e.g. Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand or Laos, but they then cost over 3000€ and that’s also quite pricey …….


Phew. So exhausting.

At least I got a lot of inspiration for future trips.


A combination of Tawain + Bali also sounds great for next year, but I REALLY want to do Iceland and Canada ASAP (which is also expensive AF).
And don’t get me started on Hawaii ……


If you have any last-minute tips / recs let me know.
As of now I haven’t booked but will within this week.


I hope you had a nice weekend!

Bye~chuu!~