Bon Voyage to my daughter.

shack

Took my daughter to the airport around 5:00 this morning to start her 16 week backpacking trip to SE Asia and more. 20+ hours of airtime beginning with Knoxville to Chicago, then Tokyo, and finally to Bangkok (as I type she is about half way to Tokyo). She will be meeting her friend there who has been in South Africa for the last three months. They have exactly two days planned...the rest will be on the fly. Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Nepal...and maybe...Turkey...maybe Indonesia. After 14 weeks they will split up and my daughter will fly to Barcelona to meet my wife for a seven day Mediterranean Cruise...Spain, Monaco (Monte Carlo), Florence, Rome, Naples/Pompeii and finally Mallorca before back to Barcelona for a couple of days. A train trip to Madrid for a day and then back to Knoxville just in time for Thanksgiving.

As long as she can find internet service we will be able to stay in touch by skype and the blog she is keeping. They will be traveling by public transportation, staying in hostels, eating local food, etc...going "frugal". She worked for 15 months and saved enough to do all this and still have a few grand in the bank when she gets back.

Hopefully, when she gets back the economy will have turned enough so she can find a job in her field (architecture/interior design).

If not...plan B...Whatever that is.

Bon voyage! I wish I could tag along.

F1nut

Bon Voyage, Shack's daughter.

Good thing she doesn't look like you.

opus

WOW!!!!


What a trip. As a dad I would not sleep for 16 weeks;)


Hope she has a great safe time

Ricardo

I sense a tad of pride somewhere in that post

She'll have the time of her life!

wz2p7j

Awesome !!!

:D:D:D:D

Chris

Fireman32

That is very cool. I wish I was able to do something like that,

shack

Thanks for all the well wishes guys!

opus wrote:

WOW!!!!

What a trip. As a dad I would not sleep for 16 weeks;)

Hope she has a great safe time

We're kinda used to it. She backpacked around Europe the summer before her senior year in college (Poland, Italy, France, England and Norway). She and her friend went to Africa after she graduated (Egypt, Kenya, Tanzania/Zanzibar). At 25 she has already been to 20 different countries (most without us...her parents)...so she knows her way around. Still it's hard not to worry...some.

Ricardo wrote:

I sense a tad of pride somewhere in that post :rolleyes:

Ya think

F1nut wrote:

Bon Voyage, Shack's daughter.

Good thing she doesn't look like you.

Unfortunately for her...people tend to know immediately she is my daughter. Fortunately she got enough of my wife's looks to overcome her dad's genes.

That airport picture didn't do her justice. Several of her friends came over to the house and didn't leave till after 3:00AM...just in time to shower and leave for the airport. Not particularly a glamor shot. Here is a picture I took a couple of days ago when I made her help me with some flash settings.

george daniel

Best wishes for a safe and memorable journey.

joeparaski

Man what a fantastic trip that will be for her!! My daughter is the same age (she actually turned 25 today) and has already backpacked Europe and is heading for Peru soon.

Simply amazing!! I'm very proud for your daughter too...way to go girl!!

Joe

disneyjoe7

Best wishes for a safe and enjoyable trip.

cfrizz

I hope she has a great time. Nice looking daughter you have there Shack!

BottomFeeder

My daughter did the same kind of thing, just last summer. Scotland, England, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, France. I met her in Greece for the last leg of her trip and had the best time and made wonderful memories.

RuSsMaN

Totally, completely awesome. Your daughter, you, your family.

Way to F'n go man. That's what 'it' is all about, living your lives. I'm envious and proud at the same time.

Cheers,
Russ

heiney9

I hope she has a wonderful time and has some experiences that will last her a life time. Awesome Steve.

H9

cstmar01

Sounds like an awesome trip and hope for a safe trip and best of luck with the job search when she returns!

George Grand

Looks like somebody's got 7 or 9 days to himself in the fall. Nice work.


She'll be fine.

TECHNOKID

Ricardo wrote: »

I sense a tad of pride somewhere in that post

She'll have the time of her life!

No wonder, I would be too. She seems to know where she's going in life and makes the best out of the present situation. I bet dad is behind her all the way and that usually makes a big difference. No bigger prize then raisng our children to finally see them do good out of their lifes.



''Bon voyage! Les voyages forment la jeunesse!''

arun1963

A bit of pride, a touch of apprehension, some yearning over the seperation and tons of dotting......yeah, it all comes through. Girls are special and have that effect on dads.

Heres wishing your daughter all the very best on her trip Steve .

muncybob

Lucky girl!! I hope she keeps a diary of some sort...would be cool to share those memories with any children she has in the future or just for her own reading. I used to backpack a lot and still get a kick out of reading my journals along with my photos.

shack

Just got the call (33 hours later) that she just got off the bus from the airport to the hostel. 2:00 AM there in Bangkok...3:00 PM here in TN. Her traveling buddy was already there. Now the fun begins.

shack

muncybob wrote:

Lucky girl!! I hope she keeps a diary of some sort...would be cool to share those memories with any children she has in the future or just for her own reading. I used to backpack a lot and still get a kick out of reading my journals along with my photos.

Yeah...she keeps a daily journal and has started a blog as well. She has a good photographic eye and takes some interesting shots.

vc69

Backpacking SE Asia is one of my dreams. I am sure she will love it.

Bon Voyage!

Mike Kozak

God Speed to her.

engtaz

Ditto

steveinaz

What an awesome opportunity for her, wish her luck for me.

There's nothing like visiting other countries (no matter how beautiful) to really make you appreciate AMERICA.

superjunior

sounds like a trip of a lifetime, hope she takes a lot of pics!

cnh

Wish your daughter a great time...this will probably one of the trips of her life.

On another note...you're NOT going to Greece??

Have fun!

cnh

schwarcw

Steve,

Best wishes for your beautiful daughter on her exciting journey. I wish I was that young and crazy again! Please keep us posted with stories and photos. Godspeed!

Regards,

Big Dawg

Looks like you have a beautiful daughter off on a great adventure. Everyone should travel the world and fulfill wild dreams in their 20's before children and "maturity" make it more difficult.

Here's to a safe and life-changing experience.

George Grand wrote: »

Looks like somebody's got 7 or 9 days to himself in the fall. Nice work.

As usual, George nailed it!

muncybob

shack wrote: »

Yeah...she keeps a daily journal and has started a blog as well. She has a good photographic eye and takes some interesting shots.

cool! Would be nice to see some photos here from time to time!?

shack

Some have asked for photos and updates. It's been a week now and it seems like much longer. I actually spoke to her this morning about 5:30AM. The internet and Skype is a wonderful thing.

She got up early to try and catch the sunrise over Angkor Wat, the largest religious compound in the world. The cloud cover didn't cooperate, but it is sitll a nice shot. It is near Siam Reap, Cambodia.



A tree growing through one of the temples.



After the entire day spent at Angkor Wat, here she is relaxing in a "hammock bar". After (or during) your meal you can relax in a hammock for as long as you like. The guy in the photo is their driver. To visit the Angkor Wat compound everyone is required to have a registered "guide" or be part of a tour. This guy charged something like 10 bucks for the entire day. The meal at the hammock bar cost them $5 total (2 full meals and a beer for the driver).



If you wonder how to afford a trip like this...here is something she wrote when she was in Thailand.

You hear that southeast Asia is super cheap but let me elaborate on that. In one day I spent $1.50 for the train, $.75 for the subway, $1 for lunch, $1.75 for dinner, and $3 for the accommodations which was ensuite and had free wifi. So in total I spent $8 for the whole day. Not bad, not bad at all.

She is about done with Cambodia...Next is Vietnam where they plan to start at the southern coast and travel the length of the country over the next month.