1 Week

Next Tuesday, one week from tonight, I will be leaving Greensburg until this fall. Which means that I have a lot to still get done and very, very limited time to do so! Uh-oh!

My To-Do List is as follows:

Trip-Specific:

- Gather and print out all relevant paperwork, including copies of important documents to have backups

- Create official itinerary and email, for those who need to know the specifics

- Transfer my savings into my bank accounts, so that I have access to my "backup funds" as I'm traveling

- Continue searching for possible Couchsurfing hosts along my Russian travels (note: I do have reservations already booked in each place however only one required payment in advance)

- order prints of some family & home photos to bring with me to share

- Pack!!!

- Finalize my pre-trip budget and ledger

- Add personal item coverage for my laptop, camera, lenses, and any other relevant items via insurance

Misc Other:

- Compile and transfer treasurer materials for my fraternity Alumni Association (Meeting on Sat)

- Complete my remaining work shifts (Sadly, I still need the extra money from this week)

- Finish sorting/clearing out my old clothes, determine if any can be bought at Plato's closet and donate the rest

- Sell my car (after getting the now-due exception done to ensure it's value)

- Dentist appointments to complete

- return/drop off costumes and materials with fellow costumer

Blog-Related:

- Finalize a new name & buy URL & hosting package

- Order business cards with the website info and contact info (a tip read from a fellow traveler!)

I've been toying on moving this blog to its own website for a while now, but think it's worthwhile in the end. I can also start adding adds and earning some revenue with my own hosted site (albeit small at first!)

I placed my last Amazon order last night, which should be here by the end of the week. Other than a few small things I can buy at the store, I believe I have all that I need and can start actually laying out what I want to take - and then determining what I actually have room for and need in my small backpack!

I still have not heard word regarding my visas and the current progress... is no word good word?!?! My departure date and the day I need my passport and visas was noted on the application so I trust that I will have them in time. What I do not know is whether the planned processing schedule and fee amount will stay as it was - or if they will charge extra for rushing anything to ensure completion by my departure date. Crossing fingers it arrives by the end of this week rather than on Monday!

Till the next post, a bientôt!

3 weeks and I leave...Yikes!

Hi y'all,

Realized that in the chaos and everything over the last few weeks, I haven't updated on here. Whoops! So let's try and do a quick recap...


1. Moving
I am fully moved home. THAT was a hurdle in itself, and still rather a mess. On April 22, my dad, brother, and I moved all of the heavy large furniture home. We set up my new "room" - After that, it was my hurdle to continue packing everything else up. While working on that, I had to downsize and sorted things into piles of "sell," "keep," and "give/donate." Again, easier said than done!

In the end though, last wed we got everything moved out with help of may mom and dad. Thursday I spend cleaning the place with intent and agreement to turn it back over to landlords - except they never showed! When I called them, I was first chastised for "not informing them" that the previously agreed upon day was actually my last day?!? Then, they were unable to come over to check things over. I'm awaiting the final word and last check, as there should not be any hassles - but certainly didn't go over as I had tried to plan for.

I still have things to go through and downsize, such as clothing, along with a rather larger pile of things still being sold and or given away. Thankfully, it's clearing out rather quick - except for those dreaded clothes!


2. Work
I informed work of my last day. Hoping they can keep me on the roster as part-time/casual to make it easier when I'm back - but that's up to them still.


3. Tickets, tickets, tickets...
I have all of my Russian train tickets booked and paid for. Well, the train exiting Russia into Mongolia is paid for but I have not received the ticket confirmation. Because it's an international train, it cannot be booked easily online so I had to go through a travel agency.


4. Hotsels
I have a place to stay booked in each city until I arrive at Stepperiders. I want to still see about finding people to Couchsurf with, but if I can't find anyone (or loose track of time!) then I still have someone to stay.


5. Visa
My visa applications are mailed and that agency should be in the process of obtaining them for me. I was an idiot and first realized that I forgot to include my photos - and then was reminded that I had forgotten to include my passport itself! Thankfully, my dad was able to help and get that in the mail for me. Things are much closer to my departure date than I'd prefer - and there's a good chance that even with the overnight mail back to me, my passport might not arrive till the day before I leave!


6. Equipment
Oh, this one has taken much of my time over the last week or so - and still being resolved. I think I've already noted, but in case I haven't, the two hurdles I have on my trip are being without power at Stepperiders (despite taking photos for them) and the high altitude of Tibet in regards to my laptop and a hard drive. In addition to the struggle of feeling like I am bring even more electronics rather than trying to get off the grid, I'm trying to avoid not spending an arm and a leg on things. Amid a flurry of extra camera batteries, extra memory cards, power bank, solid state hard drives, and solar panel chargers... I think I have whittled it down to what I need though and will be writing a separate post next week.

On a similar note for equipment, I have decided on which backpack I am getting - and while REI did not have the color in store that I wanted, it's much smaller than even I expected! It'll be interesting how to get everything packed inside! I have to order it off amazon now, but should be here in a few days.



Things are quickly coming to a head as departure day approaches. Plenty to still get done, but thankfully, a LOT is already accomplished. At this point, other than packing my backpack, I'm comfortable heading off to Russia. It's the later half of the trip, into China & Tibet, that I need to spend some time on to prepare a bit better.

Enter from stage left, Plot Twist ?!

For those of you who caught the Facebook post about a week or two ago, (almost a month ago! - oops!) there has been an unexpected change of plans - a.k.a. the plot twist! Which has since, as of last week, changed again - but still a plot twist...

I'm no longer going on the entire trek by myself, and it shall now be deemed a "Brothers Trek!" (OK, I only just made that name up - it might change...)

Anyways, while driving down to take my former baby grand piano to it's now current home with my dad and my brother two Saturdays ago, I was talking about my upcoming trek. After mentioning wanting to visit and hike the "world's most dangerous hike" in China, my brother mentioned that he wanted to do that as well (after my dad looked it up on his phone and noted noted that first I, then both of us were crazy!) Before long, the conversation turned into utter seriousness and discussing the realistic possibility of Matt accompanying me on the entire trek!

Up to this point, no one except a friend, who was contemplating seeing part of Russia with me, and my grandmother, who had mentioned a desire about seeing the Giant Pandas in China along with a river cruise, had shown interest in accompanying me on the trip. So it was rather a surprise to have someone joining me at this point! Going on the Iceland trip with Vic back in February was different from all of my other previous travels, but not in a horrible way. It was nice to be able to share the experience with someone and to have someone able to take pictures of me without a dreaded selfie stick, though I had to adjust to having to share and make plans together. So the concept of my brother joining me had similar appeal, but also some concerns.

It also added some potential issues as we were just talking while driving:

1. My brother does not have a passport! (Despite me telling him for years...)
2. I'm planning to volunteer for 6-7 weeks in Mongolia with a small family business - while they take on a couple volunteers each week, would they still have room? AND would Matt be interested in volunteering with them for the extended period?
3. He has never traveled outside of the country before, will he have issues?
4. He had some personal things to determine whether or not he could truly go that had to wait till Monday to figure out.

After talking more about what all it would entail, it became clear that not only was he interested but serious too. Having recently been released from a work contract, he's getting unemployment until finding a new job - of which he hasn't found yet. He moved home about a month before I did to save money and find a new job, so those expenses were gone. And he was now single, unfortunately. It actually places him in a great spot to travel where as I am quitting my job, have saved up some with the ability to bridge the remainder cost of my travels.

Over the last week and a half, I changed my direction slightly and buckled down to get a solid estimate on the costs expected for the entire trip - Matt had to know if he could actually afford it. We also spoke with Stepperiders in Mongolia and, while he would probably only be a regular volunteer, they did have room for him to join for those 6-7 weeks. In the meantime, Matt looked into his personal concerns and realized that there might be some issues but most shouldn't be a problem if he took off for almost 6 months.

Aside from the cost factor, which my dad has noted that he is concerned even on my end let alone my brother's finances, the only major factor is getting Matt his passport, along with everything else I still have yet to plan and book. Unfortunately, the company I plan to use for both the Russia and China visa is not able to help with the passport in the manner we would like. They would have to process his passport application first and ship it back before continuing on with his visas because the passport needs signed, and I need his passport number for the Russian Invitation letter needed to apply for the visa. After looking into other options, the end result is we are expediting his passport through the mail and not using a service. We are actually far enough out that its not possible for him to have the rush expedited service (though it still puts our timeline very snuggly to departure day!)

Early last week, we had the fun of applying for his passport. After getting multiple passport photos for each of us, we went to apply for his passport in person at the courthouse. We went there because they permitted walk-ins, except when we got there we discovered that they were not able to overnight the application like we had wanted! In addition, they questioned Matt's passport photos due to words on his shirt and having his sunglasses hanging from his shirt - despite Rite Aid not saying anything when they took the pics! Thankfully, they advised us that Latrobe Post Office allows walk-ins as well. So after a quick stop back at Rite Aid where they retook and reprinted his pics, we headed off to Latrobe. Once there, it actually was quite a breeze since we had everything already done and lined up! Matt ended up deciding to not overnight the application to Harrisburg, which honestly might have only saved us a day due to the upcoming weekend. The goal now is be able to get all of the visa paperwork completed to be ready to turn around after we get Matt's passport, and overnight the applications for the visas so those don't get delayed or need rushed either. It'll be close, as in we might get our passports back just before we leave in June - but if needed, I do believe that they will expedite (and charge for it, of course) to get them back before our departure date.

Russian & Mongolia Itinerary

Since I had to detail my time in Russia for the visa application, as well as I need to start booking trains and making plans,  I have most of the itinerary for my month in Russia and following nigh two months in Mongolia already laid out. Here's all the details!

Russia

June 6: Overnight MegaBus ride from Pittsburg to New York City.

June 7: Morning in NYC, with evening flight departing from New York City.

June 8: Happy Birthday & I Land in Russia! (I land first in Moscow, then have a short layover before a shorter flight to St Petersburg. By dinner time I'll hope to be setting and enjoying my birthday in Russia.)

June 9-13: St Petersburg, Russia

Overnight train from St. Petersburg to Moscow
June 14-17: Moscow, Russia
 Overnight train  to Kazan
June 18-19: Kazan, Russia
Overnight train to Perm
June 20-22: Perm, Moscow
Day train to Yekaterinburg, Russia
June 22-24: Yekaterinburg, Russia
Train from Yekaterinburg to Krasnoyarsk
June 26-28: Krasnoyarsk, Russia
Overnight train to Irkutsk
June 29-30: Irkutsk, Russia
June 30-July 2: Weekend trip out to Olkholn Island on Lake Baikal
July 2-3: Irkutsk, again
Day train to Ulan Ude
July 3-5: Ulan Ude, Russia

July 5: Overnight train from Russia into Mongolia

Mongolia
July 6-8: Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
July 8 - Aug ??: I'll be based at Stepperider's main camp - or out on one of the various treks they will be sending me on. [NOTE: Will possibly be "offgrid" and unable to answer quickly]
Aug ??- Aug 31: Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia: This will depend on how the treks fall, but I will be returning to the capital for a few days before I leave Mongolia.

Aug 31: Overnight train from Mongolia into China

China
Sept 1: Beijing, China:

The rest of China & Tibet's itinerary is still being worked out, due to a couple of factors. Once that is resolved, I'll be updating - though it might not be until while I'm already traveling.

Photographing with Stepperiders!

After a few weeks of talking via email in the middle of the night (Mongolia is 12 hours ahead of our time), I was officially asked to be a volunteer photographer with Stepperiders during my stay in Mongolia! Naturally, I accepted right away but even now the reality is still sinking in.

It started after discovering the company and volunteer experience - Mongolia goes hand in hand with horses, and what better way to truly learn about the country and culture than to live and work with them! They offer two volunteer positions. One is a basic volunteer who's duties including coordinating with the guests on the treks, help with the horses, help out around the camp, etc. The other is actually an assistant manager/volunteer who actually helps in additional elements to run the camp and treks, organizing equipment, and more. Because they are essentially working for the family, they do not have to pay the volunteer fee (though aren't paid anything either.) Being I haven't been around horses since younger and even then it was the occasional ride or two, I wasn't sure how helpful I could be around the camp. Nor did I know which position to try and vie for.

The first thing they resolved was that the lack of horse and horse riding experience would not be a problem - I'd quickly learn and they'll guide me as needed. The longer I can stay and help, the better I will be with the horses. The next item we tackled was which position was best suited for me, after noting some of my strengths and ways I thought I could help out. The extra advantage I had was that due to the mid-Sept start date of the Tibetan trip, I am able to commit to volunteering for at least 6 weeks, if not a full 7. With this in mind, they noted they prefer their assistant/volunteers to stay longer and thus be more useful than those who stay for 1-3 weeks.

The final tipping point came when Nathalie asked me, almost out of the blue, if I can take photographs. I explained that I would consider myself an amateur but have a relatively nice camera and would be willing to undertake such a task. Naturally, I offered to submit some of my best photos for review before they decided. Of course, they asked - yet I hadn't actually gone through and established what my best photographs were!

After spending some time sorting through the photos I have access to digitally, I pulled a little over a hundred into an album to pare down drastically further. With this, I enlisted the help of a good friend, Bekah, who helped pull out 8-10 of the better shots. After some basic editing, with the addition of a couple more photos, I had a nice digital portfolio album to submit. The thing I found interesting was that about half of the photos were taken with either my old Nikon or my iPhone cameras, rather than my Sony a6000!

Here's the link to the Photography Portfolio album:
Photography Portfolio

Unfortunately it took a few days to get the album lined up, and then I didn't hear anything for a few more days - so I started to wonder. Saturday evening, and due to the added of possible plot twist, I emailed Nathalie again to ensure that she was able to access the photos (and make note of the plot twist). Shortly afterwards, I received the email back that yes, she received the link and could view the photos. She was simply waiting for the owners to get back to her on how to proceed. Well, at least I knew that she got the email but back to waiting - attempting to do so patiently.

Then, late Sunday evening I got another email from Nathalie officially asking me to be a volunteer photographer! They actually are going to start me off running, so to speak, as I told them I will be in Ulaanbaatar by July 8, and their Naadam Festival trek starts on the 9th! As this is Mongolia's largest national festival, they want me to go along to take photographs. After that, they are hoping to send me on as many treks as they're able to various locations around Mongolia.

Logistically, she noted they will try to get me into their Ulaanbaator office once a week to do the sorting and editing as there is no power in the actual camp (or on the treks). Which means I definitely need a solar-panel charger good enough to recharge my camera batteries (along with a few extra batteries and memory cards!) I need to make the initial deposit and will be starting off as a regular volunteer, but they will reassess and determine to continue with the plan of using me as an assistant volunteer.

I'm glad that this extended portion of my trek is now confirmed, and am sending the deposit out asap. I now need to brush up and learn some better photo editing skills, along with some extra equipment, but I am already thinking that this has now turned into one of the major highlights of the entire trip!

Lastly, here's a link to their website: Stepperiders

My Current To-Do List

Time is flying - and before long, so will I!

This post is mainly one for myself, however I think many of you might also enjoy a snippet into the crazied, multi-tabbed browser of my mind. This is a generalized, yet significant, to-do list for my upcoming Trans-Mongolasia Trek. (New term, just came to me while typing this!)

Itinerary Specific:
- book transport to New York (either overnight MegaBus or train)
- finalize Russian itinerary (needed for visa application)
- book accommodations in Russia
- book trains for within Russia (don't go on sale until 45 days before departure...)
- book international train from Ulan Ude, Russia to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
- book basic accommodations in China (possibly needed for visa application)
- apply for Russian and Chinese visa (currently gathering paperwork to get in the mail)
- continue finalizing details regarding my volunteering position in Mongolia
- look into highlights and attraction costs in cities
-


Moving Home/Personal:
- rent U-Haul truck to move large items home (already booked and planned for this Sat!)
- actually move and return living at home!
- sort through my trailer and decide which items I want/must keep
- pack up the items that my family wishes to keep (most preparing for Steph to move back out)
- sell the items we don't want to keep
- donate/throw out the rest
- open bank account with Charles Schwabb (refunds ATM fees each month and reported great bank for international travel!)
- advise current bank of my upcoming travel itinerary
- create a living will and authorize
- establish needed paperwork for my father to handle my affairs in lieu of my absence and authorize
- determine which sibling will "manage/drive/pay" for my car during my leave


General Travel:
- research and buy a new travel backpack (my current trekking one is way too big)
- buy SSD external hard drive
- possibly buy an internal SSD hard drive (still checking into whether my Mac's drive will be OK in Tibet)
- buy a couple additional memory cards
- buy a solar-powered charger (need for Mongolia due to no power in ger camp or out on treks)
- buy a second power bank, possibly laptop battery backup
- confirm and obtain the needed vaccinations
- buy travel insurance for this trip
- decide what clothing/items I will be packing
- pack my backpack


Things to do while on the road:
- book/update accommodations if needed
- buy international train from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia to Beijing, China
- confirm/rebook accommodations in China
- confim/pay for Tibet trek
- pay for train ticket into Lhasa
- buy plane ticket from Lhasa to Chengdu
- finalize details for Giant Panda volunteering
- plan and finalize post-Tibetan leg from Chengdu
- decide from which East coast Chinese city I will fly home from
- book ticket home (using frequent flyer miles!)


I'm sure I'm still missing items from my list, but wowzers! And remember, I leave June 6. T minus

Planning updates - post show

Hi! - to those still following along in the madness, and to those who have just joined in for the fun! My last show is now over, and while I have to put away costumes and return the rented ones to Buffalo on Tuesday, my time should hopefully open up more - only to be filled with the actual packing, cleaning out, and moving home elements. Oh boy! Things are finally starting to sink in, which is both exciting yet part terrifying at the same time.

I'm just touching on a few things with this post. First, I apparently was slightly off on the timeline of exiting Russia on a single-entry visa. Instead of the 20 business days, I have up to 30 days (if I'm still understanding things correctly!) This means that as long as I leave before July 8, then I will be fine on the single-entry visa. (I had noted July 5 as that final date previously - not a huge difference.) As either of these dates are just before Mongolia's Naadam Festival, it does not change the plans significantly. I do think though, that I can save some money and apply just for the single-entry Russian visa. In my overall arch of plans, I do not foresee returning to Russia again during this trip nor during the year I'm probably spending in New Zealand - thus, the extra cost wouldn't be worth it.

I have also reached out to two Tibetan companies to try and hop on with a group tour into Tibet. The trek I'm eyeing is as previously noted, hitting the highlights in Lhasa, making my way into western Tibet to do a 3-day trek around Mount Kailash, and seeing the Everest Base Camp on the way back. All in all, that leg would be 15-18 days depending which company I settle with. I'm leaning towards one as they have been much quicker to respond, with both options being similar priced. The one downside is that the treks are either the beginning of August or in mid to late September. Early August would mean cutting time in Mongolia to 1-2 weeks, in order to explore the beginnings of China before the trek. However, the treks in September mean that I would have all of July AND August to explore Mongolia and the beginning parts of the China leg - which is almost too much! Or is it...?

As luck would have it, I stumbled upon two options to volunteer in Mongolia! The one program is primarily for teaching English and based out of Ulaanbatar, lasting at least 1 month with additional weekly/monthly increments and becoming quite affordable the more weeks I stay! ($699 for 1 month, $799 for 2 months!) I'd be staying with a local family, but still in the capital region and my duties would be more spread out through the day.

The other option, and the one I truly am leaning towards, would be to volunteer with a small family horse trek business. Now, the last time I was near or rode a horse was when I was a kid - however, in talking with them via email, there are many things I could do to help out around their camp, assisting even on some of their shorter treks. At $200/week for food and housing, with a real Mongolian ger experience - it's hard to pass this opportunity up. Mongolians are known for their horses and treks! Except, that's not even the best part - if I can stay at least a month or more, then I could potentially volunteer as an assistant manager where my room and board would be free! (Instead of payment, the two break even.) I would have more duties including helping to plan and prepare treks and assist on some business aspects, but otherwise I'd still be working with the horses and going on smaller treks. I think this option not only would be amazing, but the price is hard to beat for 1-2 months! Even better, depending on which treks I assist on, I might be able to see many of the sights I want to without having to arrange on my own, or pay for a pricier tour!

As I am looking into volunteering, I also discovered a site that helps to fundraise for trips abroad. While I'm not a fan of asking for financial support for this overall trip, I'm feel that having a strong purpose such as volunteering would be a worthy cause people might consider donating. I'm still toying with the idea, but you might see something more on that note coming up.

I also realized that parts of my travels might actually appeal to others to join. So, if anyone is interested in any leg of my planned trip, let me know quickly and we can discuss things!

Till then, adieu!