I love this thread. Travelling is amazing, apart from the airports and planes (I'm not scared of flying, I just don't enjoy the flights much).
1.Have you travelled? Where?London, Hong Kong (mainly because of flight connections), Japan and most of Central Asia (including north-west China).
2. What do you think of gaps years for travel?I feel like I need to travel with a purpose. Especially with gap years, where I would graduate one year later as a later as result, as well as the costs involved, I would need interesting projects/ research/international journalism /internships to justify the travel.
3. Would you study or work abroad? I would love to, in the long-term I aspire to work in either of the Global Medicine or International Law fields where many institutions for these areas are based in Europe. Living in London is ridiculously expensive though (I rejected a scholarship from a central London uni because of living costs).
I'm hoping to study abroad in London (because the university and city is amazing) next year or the year after. I've always wanted to do an exchange in Europe because the debating circuit over there does British-parliamentary debating all year round (I prefer BP over Australs).
4. Where would you like to travel? Why? Why not?Central Asia, South-east Asia and South + Central America: The authenticity, down-to-earth nature, exotic culture, picturesque towns, lost civilizations contained within, the lush and captivating natural landscapes. Also as someone interested in economic development, culture and environmental sustainability, I'm interested in how cultural identity influences economic development and self-determination in such places.
Iceland: Games of Thrones was filmed there. Nuff said? The breathtaking, magical natural landscape. It also has some of the best Northern Lights spots.
London, Paris, Edinburgh, Vienna, Copenhagen and Prague: The fairy-tale castles, imperial palaces, baroque/gothic streetscapes. Also Vienna for the classical music. Cities of dreams.
The Balkans/former Yugoslavian states: I am interested in the history and the progress made towards peace in that region after the Yugoslav Wars. I am also would like a better insight into the self-determination, cultural identity and marginalization of minority groups such as the Roma people.
Istanbul and Jerusalem: The layers of history and sacred buildings.
5. Do you think we take for granted that we live in Australia and not travel it enough? I think that's the same for every other country though, it whole world outside seems more exciting. We're intrigued by places and culture aren't of close proximity to us. But yes, I would love to see more of Australia. Hopefully I'll get a few more opportunities to see more of it in the next few years with uni debating (the Australian intervarsity in in Wollongong and Australasians is in Queensland this year).
6. Is there somewhere you recommend people travel to?CENTRAL ASIA!!! The region encapsulates the romance of the Silk Road like nowhere else. You get the best of both worlds: unrivalled natural landscape and medieval architecture from the ancient cities. There's the glorious weight of history and the sense of travelling in the sandprints of some of history's greatest travelers. Also the local hospitality, homestays and community-based tourism are lovely.
If I had to choose one place from there though, it would be Kyrgyzstan because of its natural beauty: unspoilt mountainscapes, stark craggy ridges, and rolling summer pastures are brought to life by semi-nomadic, yurt-dwelling shepherd cultures.
Also London for the best museums, architecture, and galleries
7. What do you like to do when travelling? Are you the museum type? The sightseeing type? The tropical/relaxing type? I prefer to engage in the cultural experiences. That's why I hope to get internships/funding for interesting projects/research related to global medicine, international law, economic development, environmental/energy sustainability and minority identities/self-determination/culture/ marginalization in the years to come. I love architectural sightseeing, nature and museums though.