admin8570Between motorbike weekends, a few out-of-town excursions in Sicily, we are now in the middle of summer.
And already almost in the run-up to the August bank holiday, there’s a thought running through my head: Next trip I’ll do it… Yes, as I always say, everything starts from there. There is time before leaving, but some ideas are already there, we need to understand if it will be the final destination or not.
WHICH PLACE TO CHOOSE
The world is big and varied, it is difficult to choose a ‘country’ to visit, because every country you visit has its own culture, its own customs. A traveller’s skill is to plan a trip from start to finish and fully enjoy new experiences, new customs, new places. The more one travels, the more one experiences and the more familiar one becomes with online booking of you B&B’s etc.
HOW I CHOOSE PLACES TO VISIT
First of all, it must be said that ‘choosing a country’ is not that easy. I often, almost always, take inspiration from the various bloggers on the web, and put many destinations in front of my eyes. I then start sounding out the various ‘possible destinations’ on the Internet. I check the political and health situation of every possible single country I might visit, (in this last period I would say very much obliged). It may seem excessive to some, but I risked finding myself in Kiev during the invasion by Russia. I don’t trust it that much. Choose the place depending on the time of year you want to go. I personally like winter so I prefer cold weather, but I don’t mind places with warmer weather. My trip to LISBON bears witness.
Do I have clear ideas? Have I chosen my destination? Well it all begins, Next trip I will make it….
I start by reading a lot about the country, the attractions and especially the ‘hidden places’. Yes because each city is divided into two:
The Main Attractions: you must visit them, imagine being in PARIS and not visiting the Eiffeil Tower, what would be the point. Many will ask you: have you climbed the Eiffeil Tower? and you answer NO… the main attractions are the starting point of every country you visit. So you have to do your researches.
The Periphery: what many people avoid and I go for is the ‘heart of every city’ The Periphery, where you can see ‘The City as it lives’, and in the periphery, you can see the everyday life of ordinary people. The attractions are for the tourists (also for me, at that moment I am a ‘guest’ of the city) for the customary photos, the suburbs, on the other hand, those are for me the heart of every city and it is there that I go to look for the most unusual places.
Travel like Gandhi, with simple clothes, open eyes and a clear mind
BOOKING FLIGHTS AND ACCOMMODATION
On the web, you can find everything, the platforms available to anyone who wants to travel are immense. I usually rely on the platform that many of us know to book accommodation like booking or trivago. They give many choices depending also on the budget available. For flights, I very often use skyscanner or even go to a travel agency, especially if I need a visa. Comparing: in addition to the travel agency and the various platforms found on the web, I compare prices and schedules with other agencies in my city or via other sites, so that I can make full use of the time available to make the choice.
Having done everything, only one last point remains:
PLANNING AN ITINERARY
After years of travelling and not many places visited but not a few either, I have learnt to plan an itinerary leaving a lot of room for improvisation. Sometimes planning an itinerary seems easy, but it isn’t, especially if you don’t know anything about the city you are going to visit and that is why I do a lot of researches, just not to arrive ‘unprepared’. I usually take notes on the places to visit. I refer especially to that ‘hidden part of the city’, reading on the web many bloggers recount their experiences and I try to relive them in person. I always plan the days and the things to do, leaving two days free, one dedicated to some OUT-of-town excursions and the other completely ‘free’ to wander around the city and the most hidden alleys.
Needless to say, I am a walker, using public transports very little except for long distances.
DOCUMENTS AND VARIOUS NOTES
Use a pocket guide or a PDF saved on your phone. It will be very useful when you are in the middle of your journey to easily access various places. Once this is done, you need to prepare your documents:
Copies of all documents besides the originals of course;
Print out the boarding passes and vouchers for the chosen accommodation.
Choose payment cards and spread your expenses over several cards, at least two, even prepaid ones.
Use cash for small expenses.
Download the various travel applications, prepare your backpack and…
Set off.
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