Hallo,
Go to Himalayas. You can do combination of Trekking and meditation camps. Dont know of any specific. But i am sure you can search them online.
Its a great place to bring in inner peace with lots of scenic views and maybe that will help you find what you looking for...
Thailand is a good country for a first trip overseas. Thailand is very tourist friendly, you have excellent highways, good transportation, reasonably priced hotels, good food at cheap prices. From Thailand you can easily get to other countries in the same area. You can get to Cambodia, Laos and Malaysia by overland transportation. From this area you can also fly to the Philippines, even Hong Kong if you want. From Thailand you can even use train travel to get from Bangkok to Singapore.
Not all countries are equal as far as costs go. Singapore, Hong Kong, Korea, Japan and Taiwan are more expensive than Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia, Cambodia and Thailand. Japanese and Taiwanese go to Thailand for their cheap vacations!
Before you leave on a trip figure out a budget. Know how much you can spend on hotels per day. If you intend to remain in a particular country the whole 6 months you must investigate what is needed visa wise. Some countries you get in for free with a Belgian passport and some countries (often communist or former communist countries) you must pay for a visa even for a short period. Some tourists to Thailand use the free 30 days you get at the airport and then before the 30 days runs out they visit another country. When you fly back to Thailand you can get another free 30 days. Malaysia allows tourists in for a longer period of time for free. But for long stays most likely you would have to pay for a tourist visa.
How you keep cash available or daily expenses is another thing you must work on. For many countries you can use debit cards in ATMs for cash. Thailand is one country in Asia that is real easy to cash travelers checks. For other countries cashing a travelers check takes a little more effort. Do not rely only on a single credit or debit card. Not advisable either to travel around any country carrying many thousands of dollars, euros or whatever! For Thailand you convert your money over to Thai baht and spend that currency. Some ATMs have expensive surcharges so take out a lot at one time to save on big fees for small withdrawals. You must notify your bank where you will be on holiday. Otherwise when the bank starts getting withdrawals from Hong Kong or some other country they may suspect fraud! For small value purchases, like in restaurants or some small stores, use cash! This will lessen the chance of credit card fraud by exposing your CC numbers less often.
You will need a passport of course. If you haven't got one yet - get hot! You will need at least 6 months remaining on that passport by the time you leave for home. Asia is pretty good for internet shops and many hotels have wifi. If you bring a laptop make sure it is password protected. Also don't save any passwords into memory that are for banks and other sensitive information in case your laptop is stolen. Google up scams for various countries. My preference is always a hotel with a safety box or safe in the room. (If you need any hotel recommendations always mention a price range.)
Visit a library and check out some travel guides. Lonely Planet is often used by kid backpackers to save money. Other travel guides may be more for well to do travelers. But any travel guide on Asia or specific country is pretty good for maps, how to get from here to there, safety, currency, etc. Google checking different questions you may think of will also give you some ideas or at least some links to read for specific questions.
A round trip plane ticket to one major city may be the same price as a one way plane ticket to one city only. Two one way flights could cost double what a round trip flight costs. Local flights within Asia are pretty cheap. Price depends on the airline! So do the arithmetic!
Just something to get you started.
[ 09-Nov-2011, at 14:58 by karazyal ]
"... My question: are there people who took the same type of journey as i am willing to take ? Any advice about where to go?..."
==========================
Honestly, are you serious asking that question? You're not unique in any way, shape or form.
Countless people have travelled for exactly the same reasons you are and they go to every corner of the earth - no one destination magically has the market cornered on trying to find "inner peace" or whatever else it is you think you're missing. You can find it in a Tibetan monastery or an Austin honky-tonk.
Good luck.
Cheers,
Terry
Honestly Terry - and I am very sorry to say this - your answer is one of the reasons for me to leave for some time ...
I know i am not unique, and I have never thought so. If my written text suggests just that, than it was my mistake for which I apologize. I only wanted some advice from people who read this forum. I have never been to india or vietnam or whatever. Maybe some countries are more hospitable than others ? Maybe some ... I know for example that if a stranger adresses an unknown person on the Belgian streets ... 9 out of 10 would just walk on. I would like to evade these kind of things. Above that ... I have encountered - as a psychologist - many people that were looking for something else, but I have not met any people that started a long travelling journey because of that. Again: that's why I posted this message. I know travel will not give answers to question or whatever, but seeing alternative ways of live can help see things in perspective for example, can help to make choice that do fit in your life, ...
By the way: numbers of depression are booming in Western worlds. It is no coincidence. Social tissue is falling apart. Everything must be in a rush. Consume consume consume ... I do think some people - and that must not be me - will fit better (be happier) in other societies that don't (yet) have these characteristics. Yes, these will have their own problems, but big life question are more prone to get a satisfying answer over there. An whole bunch of us ... don't any more.
All the best, Wim
Hi Karazyal,
Thank you for your answer. I will keep all in mind. 30-day rule is very interesting to know ! Will certainly read some more about Thailand today in my big pile of lonely planets .
Wim
Good luck Wim, although I'm afraid that you're in for a very rude awakening when you discover that these idealistic societies that you are imagining don't really exist for 99.99% of western foreigners - unless you have money with you. Money always makes inner peace easy to find.
All the best.
Cheers,
Terry
Hallo,
I - a 29 year old man - am planning to leave western civilization for 6 months or even more, in search for something that fits me better. Leaving it all behind for some time in order to reconnect with who knows what. The reason is not that society spits me out. On the contrary. I am well educated, have a nice job (child psychologist), perfect family, many friends, second carrier as a pianist ... Problem is that my inner rest and the answers to many questions keep on fading. I do have to say this is my first big trip on my own (scary), so some advice-winning wouldn't harm . My question: are there people who took the same type of journey as i am willing to take ? Any advice about where to go ? In my search my eyes fell upon countries like Thailand, India, Nepal, ... (though other countries [africa] are also an option). So if you guys (or girls) have comments, suggestions, ... I would be very and extremely greatful !
All the best,
Wim (Belgium)
you can visit the middle part of Himalaya in Himachal pradesh that is famous for spiritualism,trekking and yoga kind of stuff.you can visit dharamsahal for Buddhist circuit and enjoy rishikesh for Hindu philosophy and golden temple Amritsar for new and best philosophy Sikhism.also to relax you can visit Shimla where it was British raj and once the summer capital of India.it is all about relaxation,nature and versatile people and culture.
find yourself inside
sandeepan
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