When am I planning my Next Trip?
- Late October, probably around the 25th.
What destination I have in mind for my next trip?
- The Baltic nations namely Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania OR the Philippines.
Why the Baltic region?
East Europe has been calling me for a while now, but I only managed to travel through Georgia last December, my only trip to the region. Three out of my four journeys to Europe have been through central and western regions which are developed and financially sound and therefore more sophisticated when compared to the eastern part.
I have always felt the lesser developed places offer a richer experience regarding the local way of life, friendliness of the inhabitants, the non-touristy vibes and of course more value for our money. East Europe suits perfectly to my style of travel for all the said reasons.
A few interesting facts about Estonia -
It is one of the least religious countries in the world. It is one of the very few countries where people vote online through their mobile phones. Every citizen has a mobile phone with their unique id mapped into it. This ID helps in a fair and transparent voting system. Estonia is home to more than 2000 islands, more than 50% of the country is forest, and the medieval old town of Tallinn is one of the best preserved as per UNESCO. Just imagine the diversity the country offers! Estonians invented Skype. Estonians also invented the sport called Kiiking. Google it right away. Its proximity to Scandinavia, Central Europe and Russia gives Estonia a very rich, diverse and unique cultural facade. The WW II resulted in the deaths of approximately 10% of its population
There is no particular reason for why I chose the Baltics over Romania, Balkans, Croatia or Serbia in East Europe for example. It is purely an outcome of my random and casual approach. I keep reading about countries and follow Instagram feeds of other travellers within the domain of my travel interests. Something or the other comes up and inspires me to go there. Some interesting fact or just a stunning picture of a beautiful sunset, for example, is more than sufficient for me to make up my mind. To me, it feels biased and impractical to rate a place and then decide to travel, so I take it easy and go with the flow.
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania combined, taking into account their cultural differences despite the proximity, makes Baltic an exciting region to travel.
Budget - A 12-14 day backpacking trip should cost not more than Rs 85k including even the cab you take back home ????
Why is the Philippines then making it difficult for me to decide?
Philippines is the other choice I am contemplating to travel. The country is breathtakingly stunning, but the infectious, dramatic, vibrant and arguably the best sunsets on this planet go live in the Philippines very often and are the ones to blame for stimulating this 'beach-lust' in me majorly.
Look at the stunning picture my friend Kim Voogsgeerd from The Netherlands clicked in Boracay, Philippines. Follow her on Instagram - ' trippinwithkim '
Budget - A 12-14 day backpacking trip should not cost more than Rs 65K
So friends, let's get together a tribe, take a call on where to travel out of the two, and make the trip a memory of a lifetime. Are you up for the adventure?