i went off to Oz for one year after finishing college.
worked nights at M&S for a few months and managed to save up a fair amount of cash. i then managed to spunk it all in two or three months prior to flying out there. i had £800 when i arrived. didn't have any more than that for the whole trip. meant i couldn't do many things but it did mean that since i was living fairly rough most of the time i had a few 'out there' experiences.
came back and had itchy feet. i ouldn't stomach working for those dicks at aldi so took my old bike, bought a BOB trailer and went off across france and germany. really cheap way of travelling. even more so if you pitch your tent somewhere quiet and get up early before anyone has a chance to notice.
i regret going all the way to Oz as i realised whilst cycling through france that there was so much to see right on my doorstep. Oz is a great place, but it is a little cliché along with the whole NZ and asia backpacking thing.
i'd suggest buying a decent 2 man
tent, a BOB trailer and flying out with your MTB (with slicks and some folding knobblies) to southern portugal in feb/march and start winding your way up from there. either up through portugal and across the top of spain or along the south through the costas. then across france to the alps. prehaps do a season there in the summer if time isn't pressing. then go south and ride along the Appenines through italy. obviously stopping here and there to savour some european singletrack.
hey, **** it. why turn back. just keep riding. i wish i had
-EDIT- re. the
and the tent thing. the
was for the tight, sun kissed, peachy bummed birds you're bound to meet.....