Our Trip in Numbers
This post was written by Silvia Lawrence, who can be found blogging from Heart My Backpack.
After four and a half months traveling together, Danielle and my first coconut adventure has now come to an end. Despite countless hiccups along the way, we both agree that it was an overwhelming success and have definitely left with some new favorite places in the world. Danielle loved Indonesia, especially the beachy islands, and I fell hard for Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. In fact, while usually my love for countries is extremely fickle and I’m always eager to move on to new places, I’m already trying to think of ways to return to Central Asia and work on my oh so awful Russian.
But aside from all of our mushy emotions about traveling together and the countries we visited, how can we sum up our trip for you guys? Well, if you’re as big of a fan of numbers as I am, take a look at these ones:
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Number of secondhand cigarettes smoked: 600. How often did we hear fellow travelers tell us that no, they don’t smoke at home, but the cheap price of cigarettes in Asia is a bargain too good to ignore. Really? Ew.
Weeks traveled together: 17
Countries visited: 8 Indonesia, Malaysia, China, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam
Hospital visits: 4 All Silvia
Random languages from our past that have come in use: 6 Hebrew, Russian, German, French, Japanese, and Tibetan
Photos taken of us by Chinese tourists: 175
Times we cried: 12 (not always because of the photos)
Longest trip: 72 hours
Bag weight at the start: 9 kg (S) and 12 kg (D)
Bag weight at the end: 12.5 kg and 18.6 kg
Total money stolen: $180
Third coconuts joined: 3 Angel, Jeanna, and Sasha!
Most steamed buns consumed in a sitting: 14 (D)
Total money spent on visas (combined): $1132
Money Silvia saved with her Norwegian passport: $172 Could have saved an additional $100, oops!
Money spent on flights (each): $340
Longest stay: 3 weeks Beijing
Pairs of sunglasses gone through: 8
TOTAL amount of money spent (each): $4,630
And, drum roll ……
We have spent 415 HOURS in planes, trains, trucks, cars, vans, and buses. That’s just over 17 days, or 2.5 weeks.
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Now pardon us while we go stretch our legs.
Wow, you coconuts really did an incredible job! I have been following your travels from the start. Your writing was great and the photos were exceptional. You should be very proud of your work.
Umm, who’s watching Danielle?
Thanks Uncle Richard! And no worries, I’m doing a great job of watching myself…..I swear!
Shit, I was jealous of your trip until reading this. 2.5 weeks sitting in a vehicle? Well done, girls! I wouldn’t have managed it.
Wait, does this mean you guys are finished blogging??
Not at all! We just might be blogging from different destinations for a bit!
17 days traveling, ohmygod!
Thanks for stopping by my blog Silvia & for your lovely comment, let me know if you need any help or information for your Norway trip! And wow, what a trip you’ve had!! I’d love to visit all the “stans” i.e. Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. You really got me curious now, I need to check your blog properly once the kids are sleeping… 🙂
Aw thanks, Satu! The Stans are ah-mazing, seriously! I don’t know how they’ve managed to remain overlooked as a tourist destination for so long, but I’m sure eventually people will realize that they are the new place to go. And thanks for your sweet offer! I go to Norway about once a year, but still have been perusing your blog for inspiration for the trip. xx
I love these “by the numbers” posts! My favorite was “most steamed buns consumed in a sitting” haha. Sounds like a fabulous adventure!
Thanks, Megan! We’re hoping that 2014 can live up to this past year…