This is a map of our very early and preliminary itinerary. It started with just Brussels, Belgium and Antalya, Turkey. Checking the flights for those two cities, it was around $800 to Brussels, and then another $400 to Antalya (if we were able to book decent prices.) Then we remembered that Airtreks.com exists – but you have to pick 4-5 cities. No problem.
The next problem is that when you’re traveling to 4-5 cities – you don’t want to be out there for only two weeks. So we extended the length of our trip in order to make more time to see EVERYTHING. We added Rome and Athens in there because… well, we didn’t really need a reason.
For many people (particularly Americans), the money part of the traveling equation isn’t even really the most difficult – it’s having enough vacation time from work – and then also being in a position where you can afford the time off or convincing your job to let you go away for that period of time. I’ve worked at jobs where it would be difficult to take 1 week of vacation – you just couldn’t be gone for that long.
There are many things that need to happen for us to be able to do this – but it’s actually possible – and knowing that goes a long way towards doing what it takes to make this trip happen.
We’re talking a part time job for possibly both of us, hardcore saving, and of course negotiations for the time off from work – but again, it’s all realistically do-able. It might seem like way too much effort – but what else do we work for? A new car? tv? cable? clothes? that perfect set of… furniture? That’s all fine if that’s what you want – and there are things that we want… but there is a difference between consciously choosing those things and the usual ‘automatic’ buying/consumerism that many of us regularly perform.
Trust me, I know about automatic buying – keep me away from Amazon.com
That looks awesome! I've bookmarked that website… we've started talking about our next big trip, and are looking into a Scandinavian tour – we're both dying to go to Iceland, so figured why not include Scandinavia, too? It won't be until May 2011 (after I graduate from nursing school), but with me stopping work next month, we'll need the time to save up.
Planning a trip, no matter how far in advance, always gives me something to look forward to 🙂
Yeah. I thought about including Iceland for a second – but it's just… expensive there! so it would've added much more costs onto this trip. But yeah – someday we'll be going to Iceland. How was Vienna? Photos?
Venice was awesome! Jim's been editing photos for several days now – I'm hoping that this weekend we'll get some up on Flicker and Picassa. I'll be sure and link you 🙂
As for videos – We have 2 videos from the trip, both of installations from the Russian pavilion, but they are both sound-dependent for the full effect. We do have a DVD of our wedding that a friend took, but the sound is not so hot. He was sitting next to the waterfall during the ceremony, so you can't hear much.
Hey guys, looks great! You know, if you flew into and out of one destination in Europe from the US, you could probably make up the rest of your trip with cheap airfares. You can criss-cross the contient with cheap airfares, you just have to have the time to plan in advance (which you do!). Check out wizzair.com, ryanair.com, easyjet.co.uk. I think skyscanner.co.uk might spit out the cheapest of these fares in comparison.
We're already talking about moving back to europe in the future – living in Ukraine wasn't enough of a european experience for us, and it was expensive to travel out of the country. Hopefully we'll end up in the UK for a few years sometime in the future.
Oh and study up on Russian, cause Antalya is full of russians and Ukrainians! They don't need a visa to travel to Turkey, one of the only countries in the world they don't need a visa for.