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On 2nd July 2006, I set off for the less travelled roads of Eastern Europe and the Caucasus.
These travels were my first independent backpacking since my gap year and I've organised this part
of the site like a mini-version of The Gap Year section. Click on the links below to find what you're looking for:
 
 
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The Route - The route I took, plotted on an interactive Google Map.
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My Journal - Read all about my adventures travelling through this less visited part of the world.
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The Photos - An exciting collection of photos, stored on Flickr.
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The Budget - A look at how much I spent in each country on these travels.
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The Kit - To see what I took, check out my kit list from my gap year.
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You might be wondering why I chose to visit these slightly obscure part of the world. Well, I actually had quite a few places in mind for that summer, my
"post-last-year-of-uni-summer", but a number of reasons led to me picking this route. The main attractions of the Caucasus are the fact that this area of the
world is very much off the beaten track, with almost no tourist trade. This really would be an adventure that not
many others have experienced. From my comfortable bedroom, the cultures looked different and exciting and the people were known to be friendly
and welcoming.
Then in early April, my decision was finalised when I received an e-mail from Teny, a good friend who I met
when I was studying in Paris. (Teny comes from Armenia, although she studied for her degree in America, and it
was on her exchange year in Paris that I met her). Teny's e-mail gave me exciting news...she was writing to tell me that she was going to get married in late August in Yerevan and that I was invited! So, decision made, I'd spend my
summer in the Caucasus!
Then, as I had about 11 weeks of travelling time, I decided to tack on a bit of Eastern Europe too. After discovering
that EasyJet fly to Budapest and that Hungary had the dual
benefits of being about the right distance from the Caucasus and being an interesting country I hadn't been to, I
chose to start my travels by flying there. I could then work my way through Hungary, then visit old friends in Romania,
continue on through Bulgaria, then travel through the exciting country of Turkey before hitting the Caucasus for
real.
With university over, my route sorted and my bag packed, my remaining days in London passed quickly, in a blur of
parties, lazy days in the sun and a few cheap beach holidays and before I knew it...I was off travelling once again...
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To know the road ahead, ask those coming back
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