How to plan a transibirian trip on your own # 1 - DECISION

Whenever our big plan was mentioned the most common reaction was a single question: "How did you decide to do such a journey?".
The answer to that question is anything but simple. There's no way to even tell when it began forming as an idea. But one thing is for sure - if you fall in love with it, all you have left to do is decide: "I'M DOING IT". :)
At least that's simple! :)

Once you say that to yourself and you feel the excitement at the bare thought, all the rest will just fall into place. Sooner or later you will find the resources, time and company to do it. In my case, that process lasted 5 years. And here I am, at the verge of doing it. :)

Before we leave, I'd like to leave our fresh impressions of how it was all planed. Hoping it will be of help to all those that wish to take up such a journey.



Ever since childhood I've been rather fascinated by Japan. It's smth that is just a part of me and I don't have any real way of explaining it. It's just there. Slowly I turned into one of those Japan-lovers: cuisine, culture, manga, anime, martial arts, language...all into one big bag. So, Japan has always been a target for me - making it just a question of "when".
As for the trans-siberian part - guess it started 5 years ago when a friend of mine decided to take up the challenge. From the first time I heard his plans, it just stuck in my head and gave me butterflies just thinking of it. I wasn't able to join him then, so I kept dreaming of it for a couple of years, until a year ago, when we decided to start saving for it. "Just in case" we said. And that was it!

So here are our TIPS for such a journey:

1. START BY SAVING MONEY
   For many of us the first challenge to overcome is not the time, but money. It's not an easy budget, the lenght and wishes can make it either an affordable or a very expensive journey. There are many ways you can save up, but there are also many things you'd like to see, taste, buy... If you have a bigger party then you might save up on accommodation and travel expenses, but it's harder to arrange everyone wishes. If you are alone or a party of two, the travel expenses might rise but you are more flexible. Be it one or the other way, you will need a fund big enough to cover all your wishes.
   You might think "I'll start to save up once I decide when to leave", but in fact that might be too late. You'll always find smth to else to spend on, and often think "i don't have the money now... maybe another time". Or you will have to arrange your plan based on your current budget. Thus the first and biggest advice I can give you is: start saving.
   We knew that the best time to leave would be summer, but we had no real plan to go. Instead we just decided: lets seriously save up, just in case. We opened an account and started saving as much as we could afford at the time (from the two of us, almost an entire paycheck went into savings). In case we would decide to go, we would have some resources to start; in case we didn't, the money would still be there right :) This might as well be the easiest task on your self planned journey, if you have an average steady paycheck.


2. LIST YOUR WISHES: Duration and Place
   
   
   Might be tough at first, but there are many ways to decide what to visit and what to skip. If you don't already know how long you want to stay, the places you choose might do that for you. So decide in general the countries you wish to see and the average time you wish to spend in total. That should help you narrow it down. Travel books and travel blogs are a great way to give you an approximate idea. Keep in mind the means of your transportation and your own luggage. If you're backpacking, you'll need more stamina, if you travel with regular luggage you'll need a luggage storage or a "base" from which to explore around.
   In our case we used four travel books and I myself researched a lot, and I mean A LOT, over the Internet for tips, tricks and places to stay at. It was a long and tiring process, fun as well. :) You get to know the countries you'll stay in much better, but most of all you might find places that escape the casual researcher.
   (You can find my list of books and sites to check on the separate blog entries for each country)


3. THIS vs THAT: Picking what to see and what to skip
   In all this chaos of information, when you have all the options a country can give that can fit in your time frame, it easy to get lost and frustrated. What to choose. So much to see. So much you would like. More days, more money, more time. In all this data, a dear friend of mine suggested one clever filter: select a theme for your trip. Be it a culinary taste, pilgrimage, hiking roads, big cities, farms, cultural, technical, educational... Pick one or more themes per place and that will help you out narrowing your search.
   In our situation we decided to skip the big cities/capitals and mass touristic places, and focus more on the rural and everyday life. We want to experience the regular life of the country we visit, get a better idea of the way it breathes, enjoy it's own energy flow. That's why Moscow, Ulaan-Baator, Beijing and Tokyo are merely a stepping stone for us.While the national parks, rural cities, home stay and smaller historical locations are in focus. In example, instead of visiting the restored, touristic parts of the Chinese Wall, we decided to visit the old unrestored parts, with a local guide and home stay with his family.


4. PLAN A TIME
   Almost as important as where, is the time of your travel. Seasonal changes, temperature, rain, wind, snow, sunrise and sunset; all are equally important in your choice of places and wardrobe. Travel books will give you a nice overview of the country's climate, while online you'll find more precise information.
   Naturally, when your journey passes through so many different latitudes and climate areas over a longer period of time, you will most probably have a mix on your hands. Pick a focus point in your journey, the place(s) you wish to visit in a special time. For us, in example, it was a mix of the best time to leave from work, and adjusting it to arrive to Japan in a "better" time.
   It was rather impossible for us to travel through Russia and arrive in Japan in the best possible season, so we had to select a priority - Japan. So instead of travelling the transiberian during July, we decided to travel through August. The days are shorter and we might expect more rain, but it's much better to arrive in Japan during September than during hot, humid and Obon August.


5. PLAN THE REST
   Separate entries for each country will follow, so you can check up that too :).

Read you soon!