“People try to insult me by saying my success is from a falang (foreigner),” said Nate, smiling as she steered us through the moped-filled traffic, “but it’s just me.”

The story that emerged as Nate (in her taxi-service capacity) drove me from her restaurant to the Phuket bus stop was inspirational. But was also a desperately welcome antidote to the uncomfortable Older-Western-Man-Funding-Younger-Thai-Woman situation thick on the island.

Nate grew up in a rural village in the center of Thailand and had a daughter. “One day I decided I needed to find opportunity,” she explained, “so I left my whole family to go to Phuket where you can make a living with tourism. I told no one where I was going.”

Nate and Her Daughter

She got in the first taxi she could find, and the driver asked her, “Where to?” “I don’t know,” she said, “maybe a job?” “I don’t know where there would be a job for you,” the driver replied. “Don’t you have family here? Friends? Anything?” “I have nothing,” replied Nate. “I just want a job.”

It was getting dark, so Nate asked the driver to take her to a temple, so she could sleep in the sanctuary. “You can’t do that,” he said. “You’re a woman.” At last the driver had an idea. “There is a school being built over there. If you can handle heavy construction, I’ll take you there.” And he did.

For two years, Nate labored at school construction sites. Water from the ocean seeped through the foundation, and sewage bubbled out of the pipes where the toilets would be. At last, Nate realized that most of her paycheck was being swallowed by food expenses. So she had an idea.

“You’re alive?!” cried Nate’s family when she called them. “And you’re in Phuket?! Why?” Nate explained that she wanted to pool the family’s money and start a restaurant on the island. The family agreed, and the restaurant was born.

Success! Nate’s natural energy and scrumptious food brought the customers in droves, but the landlord saw the crowds and began raising the rent. “He was jealous,” sighed Nate. Within a few years the rent raises forced Nate’s business to fold. Again, she had nothing.

And yet, again she rose up. Off to another site, this time Karon Beach with it’s hearty crowd of falang tourists. Nate 1 opened its doors. Success! Nate’s daughter came to help cook and serve before going to school and ultimately just stayed to work. But the clouds thickened again, and again the rents were raised… and Nate was thrown out.

Heartbroken, to the northern city of Chiang Mai she went, desperately searching for another chance. None could be found and Nate found herself sleeping outside. “What else could I do?” she sighed. “But you must still visit Chiang Mai yourself. It’s beautiful!”

So she went back to Phuket. Gathering forces and resources again, she created “Nate 2.” Nate 2! This is where we met Nate, just steps from our hotel.

Speeding from the kitchen to the checkered tables to the taxi, Nate glows! I’m so sorry I wasn’t able to snap a photo of her to go with this story, but I think I was distracted by the green curry. Oh yum yum!

“Who was the German man I saw in the kitchen?” I asked. “Ahhh. People spread rumors about me and him,” she said, “but he is a friend, a love. He had moved here ten years ago and we became friends. I said to him finally one day, ‘I am not young or beautiful, and neither are you, but maybe we can join together and that way we will not be so alone as we grow old.’”

As we neared our destination, I told Nate how much I admired her, and how much I wished her and her enterprises the best.

“You know what I think helped me survive?” she said. “When I was younger, I took classes in art-ing.” “Acting?” I said. “No, art-ing. Creating the body with your hands. Art.” “Ah!” I said.

“Because I know art-ing,” she smiled as she steered into the crowded bus terminal, “I have always been able to see the beauty in the ugliness.”

Lillie taught for six years in the Boston Public School System. Now she’s traveling the world. You can follow all of her travels on her Around the World blog.

Chew on this:

The United States population is comprised of something like:

• 14% Latino folks
• 13 % African Americans
• 5% Asians
• 66% Whites
• 2 % other

We’re a melting pot! A salad! A multicolored stew! In Japan, however, the “largest” minority is a paltry 1.5% (Chinese) of the total population! According to my friend Mike who I stayed with in Tokyo, there are just 8,000 Americans in Japan (about the size of one medium college!) and just 2,000 Canadians (of which Mike is one). Japan is homogeneous!

This begs the question: How does it feel to be a non-Japanese person LIVING in Japan? For this I turn to the experiences of Mike (a White Canadian), and Gordon (a Black American), as well as popular Japanese advertisements and scenes on the street.

McDonald's Spokesman in Japan

Wandering about in Tokyo and Osaka, I did not feel stared at, despite being the only person like me for miles. (I do hear the countryside is a different story, though.) That said, on any street corner, there lies a little slap in the face for me and my fellow Americans: The latest McDonald’s spokesman is a pudgy, supremely dorky, bespectacled “American” man who says such things as (in the Japanese equivalent): “Me likeee Japoon! Me likeee McDonalds! Yum yum in me tum tum!”

Being a Black man in Japan seems to have all the joys and perils of the exotification that stems from rareness. Dark skin is extremely uncommon, and thus it is seen in many facets of Japan as extra cool. When does this get a little creepy? Well. As you walk through the streets of Tokyo or Osaka, every few blocks you will see a Black man who has been hired to stand outside a restaurant or clothing store, motioning for folks to come in.  Apparently the majority of these men are from Nigeria and other West African countries, however when they are asked by Japanese folk, “Where are you from?” they often reply, “The United States!” and are fully believed. Word on the street is that some Japanese ladies flock to these men, believing them to be American cousins of Snoop Dogg, Kobe Bryant and other African-American celebrities. Whoa!

Meanwhile, on TV there is a Black character named “Bobby” who is – in the words of Gordon and his friend – Jimmy, “A really dumb, idiotic Black dude who makes an ass of himself on TV for money, and makes Black people look bad to the Japanese, when in reality he’s a perfectly intelligent actor. Dumb for pay.” Jimmy (Gordon’s Kenyan-Canadian friend) explained, “It drives me crazy when Japanese people tell me, “Hey, you look like Bobby!” or “You talk Japanese weird, just like Bobby!” It’s racism, and it’s annoying.”

Overall, though, Gordon has been delighted enough with Japan to stay for five years, and Jimmy for seven. By and large, they have been treated with the wonderful politeness and respect famous in Japanese culture and Japanese service. In particular, Gordon’s fluent Japanese has allowed him deep connections with Japanese people.

Despite this, Japan is a tough salad to nuzzle into. “I’ve been here seven years, and have a Japanese wife,” sighed Jimmy, “But the thing is, no matter how long you stay here, you will always feel like an outsider.”

Just then a Japanese boy passed by the three of us on the street and raised his fist in a Black Power salute. “Hey mon!” he hollered in a Jamaican accent. Gordon and Jimmy sighed. “If I had a yen for every time I heard that…”

Lillie taught for six years in the Boston Public School System. Now she’s traveling the world. You can follow all of her travels on her Around the World blog.

Being commitment-terrified, I planned initially to do this round-the-world stint through last-minute-purchased one-way legs along the way. Stumbling, sunburned, at 11 p.m. to a travel agency in Cambodia to purchase a trip to Iran the next day? Perfect. Thus, on the recommendation of my sweet brother, I opened the homepage for STA Travel (a student/teacher discount hub), trolling for one way tickets from Boston to Bangkok. (See subsequent post for the illogical logic behind each destination.) Success! A $500 trip option gleamed out from the screen.

Before actually purchasing it, however, I decided to to call STA for emotional support. Drew, a husky-voiced Arizona STA agent, guffawed at me from across the phone line. “You fool! If you show up in Thailand on that flight, they won’t let you in the country!” “W-w-w-h-a?” I stammered, wanting merely to be fancy free around the globe. “Thailand has an entry requirement that you show proof of leaving the country! You need some form of onward ticket to enter.” Shoot.

Thus began the 40-hour negotiations for the round-the-world ticket. And I’m glad they occurred.

Drew listened like a good psychoanalyst as I free-associated about what I wanted my next year to look like.

“I am excited about this region, you know? And also I have some friends in these places… And maybe it would be cool to… (etc. etc.)” “What I’m hearing you say,” Drew finally cooed, “is that, at the very least, you want to start in Thailand, go to Dubai, then head to Europe.” Suddenly, my rabid desire for utter and total lack of structure calmed and I realized Drew was right. “I can commit to that!” I smiled. Drew then told me to take the next two hours to hit the gym, make an ice cream sundae, or clean my shower while he hung up and put together my itinerary draft to email to me. Then I would call back and together we would revise the draft as desired.

Two hours had passed (during which I lay, dazed, in my room and stared at the wall, head spinning with thoughts of the trip), when Drew’s draft glided into my Inbox. Cool! I took notes, made some calls, sent some emails, checked a map, then created a list of 5 changes I wanted Drew to make, most specifically cutting my time in Dubai from 22 days to 7, and extending my stint in Japan. I also sent the draft to my parents for approval, who very supportively grunted, “Um, we don’t have any idea what to suggest. Have fun and we love you!” When I called him back, panting, Drew obligingly made the revisions… and I bought the ticket!

How much did this all cost? There ended up being six legs to the ticket, each leg costing about $400, which is just fine with me. Date changes and other alterations have varying price tags (from $0 to $200), depending on which leg it is. My hope is to not alter too much.

Ultimately, my ticket ended up cheaper than the round-the-world concoctions offered by airline partnerships, such as Star Alliance, which run at $3,000 or more. Yeah!

Please note that these STA Round the World tickets are different from airline partnership packages, because:

• The STA tickets are pieced together from one-way teacher/student discount legs
• Airline partnership packages have awfully complicated rules involving calculating the number of miles, not back-tracking, having a specific length of nosehairs, and yadda yadda yadda.

Plus, I like to think STA Travel has far more fun-loving agents. (Drew apparently was taking the next three days off to coach youth wrestling in Idaho.)

What does this have to do with YOU? Well. Whether or not you want to do the round-the-world thing, STA Travel is THE PLACE for discount plane tickets. I recently purchased round trip weekend ticket with them that was supposed to sell for $700 for a grin-inducing $200. Basically, each flight has an allotted number of discounted seats for the butts of students and teachers, and STA links you up with them.

Now, of course, I have not yet embarked on even the first minute of this obese ticket, but I can tell you that buying it has made my last few months far happier and calmer.

First, I am now able to really nail down housing and meet-up dates and times with my contacts in each place and do more informed research. Second, the majority of the world loves a 15-second blurb to explain ridiculous things one is doing, and listing my current itinerary has been a far preferable response to “What are you doing on your year off?” than “Umm, like, I just want to gooo, you know?

Maybe the Middle East? Or Southeast Asia? Massage? Um, yeah… travel.” I suppose some form of commitment does bring its gains . :)

This blog was cross-posted from the original post on my Around the World blog.

Photo Credit: ToastyKen on Flickr

So you say you want to travel around the world.

Where are you going to start? What do you need to prepare before booking your flight? Is travel insurance a good idea? How far out should I book my trip?

These are all questions you should keep in mind when planning your adventures. I’ve helped travelers book round-the-world trips, in addition to dozens of other trips of various lengths, so I know how these trips work.

When you start planning your trip keep this information in mind:

1. What is the first step to putting together a round-the-world trip?

You're Going to Need Help for This One

I’ve found that when people are looking to go on a round the world trip, one of the first issues involves putting together some kind of itinerary. Many travelers prefer to just buy their first one-way ticket, and make the rest up as they go, but if you really want to travel “around the world” it’s a good idea to have a plan, even if you end up winging it.

2. Is it a good idea to skip around the world or try to head in only one direction?

The direction of the ticket should continue in the same direction without continental backtracking. Backtracking is traveling in an opposite direction to the overall direction of the ticket. It is permitted in certain situations, but usually comes with a more expensive price tag.

3. Can I skip a plane between two stops and catch a train or a bus?

These are called, “Independent Sectors,” and they are permitted on the round-the-world tickets. This option gives you the freedom of winging-it, but with the structure to stay on track.

4. Are there any additional fees for booking a round-the-world trip?

There is no additional fee for booking a round-the-world trip. However, because you are booking several tickets the taxes are often a significant portion of your final ticket price. It is common to have taxes of $300 to $600 dollars added to round-the-world tickets depending on how many places you visit.

5. What happens if I miss a flight on my round-the-world ticket?

Keep in mind you may be charged if you miss the flight and it’s clearly your fault. This where having a student/ flexible ticket will help. These tickets can usually be changed for a minimum fee as long as the airlines have availability

If it’s the airlines fault, more often then not the airline will accommodate you with the next flight on a different airline.

I have traveled quite a lot and from my experience I can tell you that the best is not to plan. Of course you will probably need a “general” idea of where you are going, but chances are any plan will change once you are in the destination of your choice.

This is where being a student or young professional (under 26) benefits you. The STA Travel round-the-world tickets are extremely flexible. The STA Travel Student Exclusive ticket allows you to change your travel dates for a minimal fee, stay wherever you are for up to one year, and refund your ticket at guaranteed rates.

Give me a call or email me if you need some advice.

1800-337-5726
onlineagent1@statravel.com

Photo Credit: ToastyKen on Flickr