Milly, I guess I'm two years on from you, now 20, sitting in front of a computer here at uni, trying to finish an essay. Taking a gap year was absolutely fab for me. You'll love it. Flying from London you will shit (sorry) yourself. Forget all the rubbish about finding yourself, just have fun and meet friends. Doesn't sound too great when I put it like that but I promise it is. Here's a little advice that probably won't make too much sense until you get there. The joy of travelling is that everybody shares experiences.

Vancouver is superb. I spent four months in Canada, and Vancouver was the place I'd most want to go back to. When you tire of it, hop on a ferry to Victoria on Victoria Island. A beautiful ride as you meander through beautiful islands where the poetic live. If I won £1m I might consider it! Plus check out the music scene - I got to see some great bands.

Bali is cool if you know what you are doing. Miss out the south (Kuta and all) and visit Lovina in the north of the island. One of the most memorable things I ever did was go on a fisherman's boat at five in the morning and jet out into the sea to see the jumping dolphins as the sun rose. Do it! Sure, it's touristy, but still worth doing. Malaysia is so easy you'll never want to leave. I had to drag myself away from there. I could write pages on it, but I don't even know if you are going there. I spent a week in Hong Kong. You'll be shocked at how expensive everything is, but love it all the same. Do visit Machau and China. Definitely visit The Peak at night. I've seen loads of skylines and this is by far the best. Oh and Singapore. I hated it, but that was just my experience. Hope you have a better time than me. Way too sanitised. People literally worship money there!

Anyway, I'm being kicked out of the computer cluster now. Have a wicked time. All the best. Just remember to relax. Things go wrong, but what does it matter?