PolarisSONE

Chinese-Canadian here, parents wanted to put me in one of these to "toughen" me up, and I was like fuck no. Did you have fun? Was it a worthwhile experience? Would you do it again?

And that Chinese girl is a cutie, did you hit on her :P?

Totally on my bucket list, furthest I've been is Panmunjom and the DMZ. How hard was it to get to NK? I am a Chinese from HK, with Canadian citizenship. I am guess I will have to ditch my Canadian passport and use my China Immigration Card to get a visa somewhere in China, probably close to the border?

And, not related to your NK trip I guess, but I started becoming interested in traveling alone or with a friend or two, and have only made short trips to places I am comfortable with. What is the best way to ensure one's safety when traveling? A trip across Europe, staying in hostels and such, sound amazing, but I am always nervous about thieves or muggers when I am traveling.

How do you get past language barriers? I can only speak 3 languages (two of them being Cantonese and Mandarin, which I guess doesn't count), and last time I went to a foreign country it was super difficult to explore, and it was only successful because I had the help of the internet and lots and lots of planning beforehand. I kind of like the "improvisation" traveling idea, like arriving at a place, having a few places you HAVE to visit, but the rest of the time is just wandering. However, I can't fathom how one can do this if they don't speak the language.

And yes, please do tell how you're getting ready for Iran and Iceland!