Saturday November 21, 2009

10 countries, 21 days

Stories by JOLEEN LUNJEW

Superb itinerary, perfect weather and awesome people. What more could you ask for when traversing Europe alone?

There we were staring hopelessly at the pile of metal poles and mess of plastic sheets in front of us.

What in the world goes where?

The disaster we created didn’t resemble a tent at all. As my Korean tent mate and I decided that we should dismantle everything and start from scratch, along came a handsome young lad who offered to help us out.

The tent was set up, information was exchanged and friendships forged. It was that easy.

Taking cheesy shots at the Leaning Tower of Pisa

Setting up our own tents was part and parcel of my 21-Day Contiki Camping tour, a travel experience covering 10 European countries (England, Switzerland, France, Monaco, Italy, Vatican City, Austria, Czech Republic, Germany and Holland) within 21 days.

I chose camping because it was the cheapest, and I thought it would make a great experience, seeing how I had never set up a tent in my life. And to the horror of my conservative Malaysian friends and family, I decided to embark on the journey alone.

“Alone?!!” gasped a friend. “But you’re a girl! It’s dangerous! Who’s going to help you and keep you company? How are you going to make friends?”

Relax, I told her. Contiki has taken care of everything, from accommodation and itinerary, to transportation and food. I would be travelling with people within my age group (18-35 years), so would have plenty of opportunity to make friends there. Besides, this wouldn’t be the first time I travelled alone.

Not convinced, my friend gave me a look which I took as: “You’re crazy AND weird”, shrugged her shoulders and said “OK, suit yourself. Enjoy.”

And enjoy I did. I ended up having much more fun than I ever had in the past decade. I had THE time of my life.

Camping throughout Europe isn’t as bad as it sounds. For one, European campsites are nothing like Malaysian campsites. Throw away those images of dirty compounds, dilapidated facilities and horrendous toilets with frogs stuck to the walls. Replace it with clean shower rooms, lovely cabins, immaculate lawns for pitching tents, laundry rooms, restaurants, grocery stores, Internet cafés and a bar. Some campsites even come with a swimming pool. That’s what I call budget luxury.

And I love the tour’s concept. It’s nothing like those boring guided tours where you are grouped with stuffy old people and dragged from one tourist attraction to another.

Switzerland; playing dress up for Oktoberfest, Munich.

Contiki does it differently by catering to a niche crowd and being very personal. They understand the market, and everything on the itinerary, from visiting the popular tourist icons to exploring the little streets off the beaten path, is catered to our specific age group.

Covering 10 countries in 21 days is not as hectic as it sounds. We set up camp for a maximum of two nights at each city and there was plenty of free time to do as we pleased.

A typical day starts early in the morning with breakfast prepared by supercook Amber Higgins. If it was the morning of departure, tents must be taken down and packed before we could touch breakfast.

The first time was the hardest as we had to figure out how to re-pack the tent but it got much easier after doing it a few times. I could practically do it with my eyes closed by the end of the tour.

Each of us were given specific tasks like packing and unpacking the coach, helping to prepare meals, setting up the cook tent and washing the dishes. Not only did this teach us responsibility, it fostered closer ties with the group we were tasked with.

Bus driver Jeremy Gadd dropped us in town and tour manager Scott Edmeades would let us in on the best places to go and the best things to do. Free and easy. If you don’t enjoy a particular activity, you can opt to skip out on these “Optional Excursions” and just chill at camp or wander around town.

I ended up taking 80% of the optional excursions offered, such as riding the gondola in Venice, visiting an old Schnapps factory in Vienna, biking the dykes in Holland and going up the Swiss Alps. There were plenty of free organised excursions to learn more about the country, such as visits to a perfume factory in the French Riviera and a beer stein outlet in St Goar, Germany.

We were kept busy at night as most camps organise theme parties. It was hilarious to see the costumes we made as we had to make them with whatever materials we had at hand. It was also an excellent way to socialise with people from other camping groups.

There were many experiences that I will treasure for life, and these include taking creative shots at the leaning tower of Pisa, exploring the ancient ruins of Rome, marvelling at the treasures in the Vatican City, singing along with the locals at Oktoberfest in Munich, getting lost in the small alleyways of Venice and soaking in the sights and sounds of Amsterdam.

Although I was gone for nearly a month, it seemed like barely yesterday that we departed from London. Maybe I should have taken Contiki’s longest camping tour of 46 days covering 22 countries. They have other non-camping concept tours that cater to the medium budget traveller and the slightly wealthier traveller as well.

Contiki’s exclusive distributor Holiday Tours, is organising a Charity Carnival today (Nov 21) at their new office off Jalan Ipoh to raise funds for Hospis Malaysia, Society of the Blind and the Children’s Spastic Association of Selangor & Federal Territory.

A 15% discount will be given for all Contiki tours booked today and 1% of every package sold will be donated to the three charities.

In addition, Contiki is sponsoring the City to Surf (Australia) package for the charity auction. Bidding price starts at 70% off the normal selling price.

> For bookings and enquiries, call Holiday Tours at (03) 6286 6288 or visit www.contiki.com for details.

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