Freaked out Mum

Hi,

Hope someone out there can give me some advise.

My 18 year old son started at uni last Oct and announced recently that he was planning to fly into Hong Kong amd travel through China, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand, flying back from Bangkok. He is travelling as part of a group of around 5 lads,all pretty sensible . They are planning on being away for around 6 weeks , going beg of July and returning middle of August.

Although we have travelled widely as a family, our trips have always been planned, having places to stay every night.

Both my husband and myself are concerned about this trip, but also realise that it is almost impossible to stop him. We want him to have a great time, but we also want some pointers for him to be aware of ,as we have never travelled to any of these countries before.

Can anyone give us some dos and donts when visiting these countries please?

Many thanks.

Freaked out Mum

Hi mum.

for you and your husband

do try to relax - if he%26#39;s a sensible he%26#39;ll be fine

don%26#39;t fret too much -there are five of them

do let him become his own man - we want our kids to become independant adults - you have to let go sometime

do encourage him to set up a %26#39;live journal%26#39; or similar blog so you can stay in touch.

for him

don%26#39;t deliberately put yourself in places which are dangerous

do behave in a manner that is not offensive to the cutures of the places you%26#39;re visiting

don%26#39;t drink the water unless you are absolutely sure it%26#39;s ok

do remember your mum is fretting - send her an email occasionally

for mum again

you%26#39;ll be OK - hundred of us mum have survived these kinds of events

cheers

helen

Freaked out Mum

We know how you feel Tubster as a concerned parent.But all 3 of our kids were travelling Asia,Uk and Europe in their late teens,early 20%26#39;s.Either on their own or with companions.

In fact our son didn%26#39;t want to come home.So when his visa ran out in UK, he went and joined the British Army....and ended up in Basra, Iraq!Now he%26#39;s home ,in our police force.And that was a rebellious kid!

All 3 went off as kids, but came home as adults.Throwing them out of the nest, so to speak, forces them to grow up, to gain maturity, and to make sound judgements.

If you are so concerned with him, buy him a laptop,throw in microphone and speakers, download Skype and keep in face to face conversation with him as he travels whenever he can plug into the net.You can then %26#39;travel%26#39; with him.

Technology is so exciting these days.

Tubster

Having travelled through most of these countries independently l hope that l can reassure you! He%26#39;s with a group of friends and they are easy countries to get about in and everyone seems to look after each other in the travel world!

I am mid 40%26#39;s and would encourage my Children (similair ages) to do these trips - as someone else has already mentioned it is such a learning and growing up experience. I am tralling to Cambodia in June/July with my two niec%26#39;es ( 18 and 19) and l am sure it will have some life changing effects on them and make them better people.

just make sure he regularily emails or does a blog. My sons worry about me travelling and l email in every third day at the least? Depnds on where you are in some places.

He should just trust his instincts and he%26#39;ll be fine. Read up all about these places before he goes to be aware of the cons and do%26#39;s and dont%26#39;s. And as parents you%26#39;ll be so proud when he returns with all his amazing stories and photo%26#39;s of his trip of a life time!

No need to worry. Things will be quite safe. As someone mentions, he may spend some time finding out the customs and cultural-don%26#39;t-dos for each culture (there are definitely some differences among these countries). He should try to aquaint himself with any scams or other dangers to his money and possessions in these various places (his money is at more risk than his person).

Take care of his health. Make sure he has all his necessary shots. Be smart when eating street food, fruits, etc. Carry travel insurance - if current insurance is not covered. Make sure that emergency evacuation is covered - as you can lose a ton of money, say he has to be evacuated from Cambodia to Bangkok. As mentioned, drink only clean bottled water - I even use for brushing teeth to be safe (last thing you want is to be sick during such a trip). Much of this would be covered in the basics/intro sections of any travel guidebook.

These are very safe places - so don%26#39;t worry. Just have him be a prepared traveller to minimize inconveniences. :)

Basic rule when you are away from home - have your mates look after each other. Don%26#39;t go out alone or separate - always have one another%26#39;s back.

Plus if at all possible don%26#39;t get legless and out of control because then you do stupid things which might have severe consequences in Asia.

We have been to thailand and cambodia several times. Your son will have such a great time. The people in both countries are wonderful, very warm and welcoming. We have never had any problems in either place. But remember they are both poor countries especially Cambodia and be careful with your belongings. Be careful walking the streets on your own at night (as you would anywhere). We were told that if you see a crowd gathering, always avoid it - the first night we were in Phnom Penh a riot took place!! just act sensibly and don%26#39;t put yourself in a vulnerable position and respect their customs. We were also told not to do any long distance travel by road at night. All basic stuff really. There is a bar/restaurant in PP called the FCC where lots of travellers meet which is always worth a visit. Reading a good guide book will really prepare them too.

We have been to thailand and cambodia several times. Your son will have such a great time. The people in both countries are wonderful, very warm and welcoming. We have never had any problems in either place. But remember they are both poor countries especially Cambodia and be careful with your belongings. Be careful walking the streets on your own at night (as you would anywhere). We were told that if you see a crowd gathering, always avoid it - the first night we were in Phnom Penh a riot took place!! just act sensibly and don%26#39;t put yourself in a vulnerable position and respect their customs. We were also told not to do any long distance travel by road at night. All basic stuff really. There is a bar/restaurant in PP called the FCC where lots of travellers meet which is always worth a visit. Reading a good guide book will really prepare them too.

Our son did a similiar trip with just one mate when he was at uni.Loved it so much he took his wife back for her birthday.

Now our best friend comes from Birmingham and worked in Manchester.Her stories would have made me much more afraid if he had decided to visit those 2 cities!

As everyone says you just have to learn to chill out.Unfortunately it is a dangerous world at times even when living at home.