Honestly, I was a little scared to travel in the US as an Asian because of the aftermath of Covid. But, I received nothing but kindness and compassion from the people of Los Angeles and I am very appreciative of the help that they have given me! I could possibly meet people who are not as welcoming in the future but I am very grateful to have met wonderful people so far.
Jesse
I met Jesse at my Airbnb on the very first night of my stay. He brought me to the dealer to buy my motorcycle and also helped me with getting my motorcycle insurance. He rode in front of me from the dealer all the way back to the Airbnb because I was scared. Thank you Jesse.
Mark
Mark is the owner of the Airbnb that I was staying in. He brought me around LA to see the sights. He was also instrumental in helping me get my parts and accessories. He taught me to be more firm when requesting to get things done and that helped a lot. I almost could not get my parts installed because the earliest slot they had was a week later but because he talked to them, I got a service slot the very next day. I also forgot to bring my USB charger and battery tender wire for my service appointment and he brought them there. Thank you Mark!
2 Guys who got out of their car
I fell down at a stopped sign 2 mins away from my Airbnb and they got out of the car right away to help me pick the bike back up. Thank you 2 Guys who got out of their car.
Guy at Ralph’s supermarket
I did not take a picture of him but I would like to mention him. I was getting ready to leave the supermarket but my bike refused to start. He saw me struggling and came to help me. He got on the bike and figured out the problem right away. It turns out that my bike would not start if the kickstand is down and I did not know that because my previous bikes were never this smart. It’s a silly mistake of mine but I am so thankful he was there to help me figure this out. Thank you guy at Ralph’s supermarket.
Guy at the petrol station
It was my first time pumping petrol and I did not know the procedure. I asked a guy who was fixing the next kiosk and he came to help me straight away. He explained and showed me what I need to do. Thank you guy at the petrol station.
Roger and Fatima
When I was riding on the Rim of the World Highway, I met Roger and Fatima at one of the viewpoints. We chatted for a while and Fatima offered to let me stay at her place if I ever visited Michocán which is in México. I just met these people and it is really touching that they would offer to help me. Thank you Roger and Fatima.
Tarun
I met Tarun(guy in the middle) through Couchsurfing. When the service department told me that they could not finish installing all of my parts and accessories by the end of the day, he offered to let me stay the night at his place. On my last day in LA, he taught me how to change my engine oil and lubricate my chain. I’m also thankful towards his friend who let me use his place to service the bike(I’m sorry I spilled some engine oil on the pavement). Thank you Tarun and his friend!
Even though my stay in LA was only a short 2.5 weeks, I met so many incredible people. Thank you everyone who helped me, I really appreciate it.
The 10th of Oct 2021 was my last day in Singapore and it was a crazy one. These were the events that lead up to my one way flight to Los Angeles.
9:30am
I had a Covid booster appointment early in the morning at 9:30am. This was actually a surprise because I did not think I would be able to get the booster before leaving.
On the day before, I received a message from the Ministry of Health saying that I would be able to get the 3rd dose anytime from the next day onwards. I cannot believe the incredible timing and I am so relieved to be able to get extra protection before I leave.
11:30am
I came back to my friend’s (caryl’s) place to have my last meal with her.
I started to get emotional because without her I would not have been able to focus on planning my trip and I am so grateful to have her as a friend.
1:30pm
I was looking at my air ticket that morning and I realized something looked really suspicious.
I have always thought that my allowance was one luggage at 30kg max. This applied to all the countries except the USA where they require 2 bags at 23kg each. I know I should read it more carefully.
I was planning to bring everything in the red luggage but I realized I could not and I started to panic. Another friend of mine (Adele) was going to send me to the airport but I realized that I needed to go back to my parents house to take a second suitcase.
3pm
Adele brought me to my parents house and my mum gave me the suitcase. She was crying, smacked me on my arm and told me to come back to Singapore. I felt a little bad about it but I know that I have to follow my dreams.
4:30pm
I went back to Caryl’s house to repack everything into 2 suitcases of 23kg each.
AND I had to say goodbye to her. I didn’t expect to cry but I did. I’m going to miss her soooo much.
5:30pm
Adele dropped me off at the airport and I said goodbye to her as well. I’m so thankful for her help throughout the day, without her I would not have been able to get so many things done.
5:45pm
I was queuing up to check in for my flight.
Try to find me haha.
At the counter, I encountered some problems. The lady at the counter told me that I could not get into the country through ESTA(90 days visa waiver program) if I did not have a return ticket. She asked me if I was asked to buy a return ticket on the US side, would I be able to do so, and I said yes but I would rather not. She was satisfied with my reply and I was able to check in.
Zach, Brian and Andre came to send me off😭😭😭
7:50pm
I got on the plane and it was so surreal. Mostly because I think it is crazy that I do not know whether I will ever go back to Singapore.
Bonus
This was the best flight I have ever taken!! No one was in my row, in front or behind me. I was able to stretch out fully and I actually managed to sleep – best flight of my life.
My last day in Singapore was action-packed. I had so many things to do that I did not feel nervous even though I should have been. IT was only when I got on the plane when I realized that this could possibly be the last time I’ll ever be in Singapore. It’s absolutely crazy, but I’m so excited. It’s a day I will remember for the rest of my life.
Even though I have been contemplating for over a year on whether I should leave normal life and start travelling full time, it was only in July which was 3 months ago that I decided to do so.
Is it possible to prepare for an indefinite motorcycle trip in such a short amount of time? Read on to see the steps I took and whether I managed to complete them.
Selling most of my possessions
I had to sell most of my belongings because I currently intend to travel for as long as I can. I only kept what I needed for the trip and also a few extra things to get my old life started if I were to go back to Singapore. I was not able to sell my clothes so I donated the bulk of them to Giving & Taking Free Stuff. They take useful small items and send them to the poor in Philippines.
Was 3 months enough? I did manage to sell what I wanted to but if I were to have more time, I would have been able to sell everything at the price I wanted especially in regards to big-ticket items like my motorcycle and piano. I would say start as early as possible if you want to leave indefinitely.
Vaccinations
I took a crazy number of vaccinations in a short period of 3 months: Yellow Fever, Tetanus, Polio, Hepatitis A, Rabies, Gardasil-9, the latest influenza shot and the Covid-19 booster shot. There was even a day where I had 3 injections at the same time.
Was 3 months enough? No it was not. I needed a period of at least 6 months to complete all the vaccinations fully. Right now, I have to take the 2nd shot of Hepatitis A and the 3rd shot of Gardasil-9 in Mexico.
Death Matters
Before I left, I filled up the Advanced Medical Directive(AMD) Form which allows me to decide if I would like to receive treatments if I were to suffer from any terminal illness in the future. I also appointed someone as my Lasting Power of Attorney(LPA) where I will give that person the power to decide how I would be taken care of if I were to lose my mental capacity. Lastly, I made my CPF nominations and wrote my will.
Thank you Juvena for reminding and assisting me with this.
Was 3 months enough? Yes. However, I waited till the very last week to arrange all of these matters and there was a delay in the approval of the AMD and LPA as they both required the forms to be sent by post. It also takes a period of 3 weeks for the LPA to be approved once received. I would say, a period of at least a month would be needed.
Motorcycle maintenance
I tried asking my mechanic if he would be willing to teach me but he totally ignored me. I could not find anyone else to teach me as well. The only thing I had to guide me was the Yamaha mt-03 handbook and advice from Andre who is a fellow rider who has done a long distance trip. Even with that, I definitely need hands-on experience.
Was 3 months enough? No, because no one was willing to teach me. But I will try to learn along my trip.
Keeping updated with the latest Covid-19 requirements and restrictions
Covid-19 has made it really difficult to travel. Right now land borders are open from the USAto Colombia. However most of South America remains closed. What I hope is that by the time I reach South America, land borders would be open.
Was 3 months enough? Obviously not. Entry restrictions and requirements are constantly changing and I have to keep up with them.
Finding out the total amount of time I can stay in each country
As a Singaporean, our passport gives us access to a total of 192 destinations.Out of all the countries I intend to travel through in the Americas, only Bolivia requires me to get a visa on arrival. Right now, the total duration I can stay without any extension is 3 years and 9 months.
Was 3 months enough? Definitely. Information was readily available on the MFA website. This should not take more than a couple of hours.
Researching on ways to reduce my travel expenses
I am going to try my best to save as much money as possible. The only way to do this while travelling is to do Workaways or Couchsurfing. It is simple to set up a profile but the hard part is to write in to hosts and get their approval.
Was 3 months enough? It was enough for me to create my profiles and send in requests for my first 2 weeks. However, I will need to constantly be requesting and searching for hosts along my journey.
Trying to ensure that I can buy a motorcycle in L.A
This was really difficult because I was told that riding season is coming to an end and it would be very difficult to buy the Yamaha mt-03. It was also difficult to contact them as most of them did not have WhatsApp and calling them would obviously incur charges.
Even with a deposit, I would only be able to reserve the bike for 6 hours and paying for the bike in full before I see it in person was not an option for me.
Was 3 months enough? Yes if you are willing to risk buying the motorcycle before you see it in person.
Finding the right gear for me
To start off, Singapore does not have many options for women’s motorcycle gear. I tried on Klim’s Artemis women collection from Regina Specialties but unfortunately, while the jacket was a perfect fit, my hips and butt were just too big. They offered to order in a bigger pants size but the pants were already too long at the size that was too tight for me so I knew that getting a size up would not work anyway. I also tried the men’s Hardanger one piece suit but unfortunately it did not fit as well. By the way, do look for Andy at Regina Specialties if you want to get anything motorcycle related – he has been nothing but helpful and accommodating.
My second option was the Revit Sand 4 H2O. However, it is not available in Singapore. The only way I could purchase it was to order it from Cyclegear and get it shipped to one of the stores near my Airbnb in Los Angeles. Even in L.A. it is impossible for me to find a store where they have all the sizes for Revit available to try on the spot.
While finding the right jacket and pants was difficult, I was able to buy my gloves and shoes in Singapore. I bought the Klim Women Adventure GTX Short Black Glove from Regina Specialties and the SIDI GORE-TEX BOOTS GAVIA LADY GORE-TEX BLACK from Chong Aik International.
Was 3 months enough? Yes and No. I managed to buy half the gear I needed in Singapore but still needed to go to Los Angeles to buy my jacket and pants.
Finding the right equipment for emergency situations
I want to be as prepared as possible in the worst case situations. For me, my worst case scenario would be that I got into an accident, I am injured, the motorcycle is not able to start and I am in the middle of nowhere with no one in sight.
I wanted to get the ACR at first but after much consideration, I decided that even though it is more expensive to get the Garmin, it is more practical to get it. The Garmin has 2 features that I want and that would be multiple SOS requests and the ability to track my location and share it with friends and family.
Was 3 months enough?Yes, to do the research. But to get any of the 2, I would have to pay for shipping. Instead I plan to get it at the REI store in Los Angeles.
Saying goodbye to friends and family
This was really difficult for me and I wish I could have the power to teleport back and forth.
Was 3 months enough? I do not think one can put a time for this – it is never enough. What I would like to say is that, sometimes we are so caught up in our own lives that we forget to keep in touch with our close ones. Make the effort to do so before it is too late.
So, what is the final verdict?
Well, I think if I give myself too much time to plan, nothing will ever get done. I am very happy that I got a good amount of things done before the trip and I know I will be able to get the rest sorted along the way. If you are planning to do something like me, perhaps plan at least 6 months in advance so that you can complete the vaccinations before you go. Other than that, I think, the amount of time I had was sufficient.
Crazy but Alive 