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Guest Post - SpaceHitch Project
After years of roaming from Istanbul to Beijing to Varna and everything in between, the thing that’s always bothered is how much I miss local items from each place I visit.
Guest Post - SpaceHitch Project
After years of roaming from Istanbul to Beijing to Varna and everything in between, the thing that’s always bothered me is how much I miss local items from each place I visit.
Local eatables, hot sauce, your favourite tooth floss, and of course, reasonably priced replacements for electronics and equipment. Nothing that will kill you, and if you really wanted, you could pay (MUCH) higher prices to buy the imports, although I was always suspicious if these were actually authentic. Plus you never knew how long they had been sitting on a cargo ship/warehouse and who touched them.
Like many of my traveling friends, I get bored staying in the same place for more than a few months and I don’t carry much when I go: clothes and a laptop, the essentials. It always bugged me there was no system in place to “Ask a Traveler to Help Bring Items”. Travelers are everywhere. If you could get in touch with all the people who come into your city, think about all the cool products you can request from around the world! Plus this would be without excessive import taxes, international shipping, or wondering who touched your goods along the way.
This year in 2014, my friends and I started a new project. It’s a website designed to make the lives of travelers a little easier and help locals everywhere connect with the globe. The project is called SpaceHitch and it helps travelers rent out their extra luggage space to people who need items from around the world. Maybe a product isn’t sold where you live, or it’s sold elsewhere cheaper, but if a traveler’s coming to your city, you can ask for help.
Think of it like hitchhiking, but instead of you hitchhiking in the extra seat of a car, the item you want is hitching a ride in the traveler’s extra bag space. Hitchhiking extra luggage space – SpaceHitch.
In exchange, local buyers can offer the traveler a service fee (like a tip) but we’ve found many travelers are kind enough to do it for free. They are often frequent travelers themselves and understand how hard needing something from abroad can be. Most people tend to ask for things like hot sauce or chocolate; small items from home that add a bit of flavour to ex-pat life.
The other aspect of our community is service exchange. Instead of a tip, the local buyer can offer to do something nice in return. This can range from a pick up from the airport, cooking a home made meal, taking the traveller out for drinks, anything really. You can even offer to host the traveler or if it’s just a layover, offer a place to deposit bags while they sightsee.
In this way, we build a community. People travel easier, and hopefully more, and on their trips, help locals connect with the world. Locals make the travelers’ trips a little easier, and travelers bring different pieces of the world to locals.
Thanks SpaceHitch guys for getting us involved in this great idea, we hope it takes off! We will definitely be signing up when the site launches fully :)
Thanks for reading!
Hannah and Taran here. We hail from Southern England, where we met online and are now realizing our mutual passion for travel here at Nomad'erHowFar. We discuss Nomadic Living, Simplifying your Life and Long-term Travel, to empower, motivate and inspire our readers. Get to know us here!
An English Girl in America: Backpacking at 18
Aged 18, myself and my best friend Fi, embarked on our first big adventure, out into the big bad scary beautiful world. We both took a gap year between college and university, and booked ourselves on a whirlwind month-long trip to the U S OF A.
An English-Girl in America: Backpacking at 18.
Updated 2016: This post is all about my first backpacking trip, aged 18. Now 25, I am travelling Australia for 2 years along with my partner Taran. Read our latest stories here.
Aged 18, myself and my best friend Fi, embarked on our first big adventure, out into the big bad scary beautiful world.
We both took a gap year between college and university, and booked ourselves on a whirlwind month-long trip to the U S OF A.
Firstly, it was super cool.
I had the best time and did NOT want to come home. I feel like something in me probably changed and my eyes had been opened to just how big this little old planet is.
WOW, I have changed A LOT since back then :) MARDI GRAS, NEW ORLEANS. Faithfully holding my travel guide.
We began our trip in February 2009, catching a plane into Boston Massachusetts, where we were met with 6 inches of snow, bitter cold, and some pretty amazing sights.
We meandered around the city on the train and by foot, exploring everything from Fenway Park (in my head I am reading that in a Bostonian accent, a bad one) to Harvard University to Starbucks, lots of Starbucks.
Boston was just like any typical bustling major City, like New York or London, but I liked the general atmosphere of the place.
We stayed at a fairly cool hostel and I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it was; being a backpacker was proving to be way more comfortable than I had imagined. Well, once you've taken your backpack off for the day.
I was cold and jet-lagged and happy.
HARVARD!
Doing a selfie, back when it was just, 'taking a photo of myself'.
Next up after Boston was New York, of course.
We had previously visited the Big Apple in 2007, with college, but this time, it was just us ladies, in the city that never sleeps.
This time we hostelled again, and booked ourselves into a private twin room, with a shared bathroom, but you had a key to use it and I don't think we saw anybody when we were there, so it was pretty sweet and entirely private.
We did end up however in the, shall we say, slightly more Ghetto side of town; the only place we could truly save the bucks.
It worked out quite well actually because it meant we could step out the door and walk the whole length and breadth of Central Park, something we hadn't done before. We realized how massive it actually was, and it felt truly awesome when we got to this sight:
The Jackie Kennedy Onassis Reservoir.
This super cool juxtaposition of the big reservoir with the city landscape behind, was one of those WOW moments, visually.
It was such a beautifully crisp day, unseasonably warm at 10 degrees, but still with this wintery appearance.
We tore ourselves away from the charm of Central Park and made our way down to the other NY haunts.
Looking like the epitome of a tourist, in my practical weather boots and coat. It was 10 degrees here.
I have since learned how to smile for photos.
We revisited Times Square, but also ventured further downtown, to see the Brooklyn Bridge, and check out the view of the Statue of Liberty.
During our trip we relied heavily on the ever-useful subway, and our feet, to get around. I slept soooo well those nights!
Whilst here we also went out to visit the Statue of Liberty!
But I suppose my favourite thing to do was Top of the Rock, where you go to the top of the Rockefeller centre and thus get to see the whole of NY including the park and the Empire State Building.
I really was determined to come back with awful photos of myself, but hey, this was a pre-instagram world folks.
Thanks for reading!
Hannah and Taran here. We hail from Southern England, where we met online and are now realizing our mutual passion for travel here at Nomad'erHowFar. We discuss Nomadic Living, Simplifying your Life and Long-term Travel, to empower, motivate and inspire our readers. Get to know us here!
Appy' Travels: Our Current Favourite Travel App!
My phone and i have a love-hate relationship; i love it too much and don't hate it enough, to ever put the darn thing down! But so shoot me, the overpriced, over hyped, over-synched things are very helpful when it comes to daydreaming about our travels!
Appy' Travels: Our Current Favourite Travel App!
My phone and I have a love-hate relationship; i love it too much and don't hate it enough, to ever put the darn thing down! But so shoot me, the overpriced, overhyped, over-synced things are very helpful when it comes to daydreaming about our travels!
This weekend we hosted some Couchsurfers (a whole other post coming soon!) and one of the visitors introduced us to the free app (also a website of course) Airbnb, which is available for android and iphone users. When using it, it got us to thinking, maybe we can fit in a little trip abroad this August, as opposed to just sticking to U.K.!
This app allows you to view hosts offering comfortable accommodation, across the world, in every place you can imagine. On their website it states that Airbnb "....connects people to unique travel experiences", which i am sure is true, but i just found it a nifty tool for browsing endlessly, getting more excited by the minute, then using another app to get flight prices, as travelling to some far-flung exotic locations now seemed more affordable and attainable thanks to the prospect of a cheap bed!
The prices which hosts charge for their accommodation range from affordable for a single budget traveller or couple, to slightly on the dearer side for groups, yet still reasonable. You can specify your nightly budget when you input your search, thus weeding out the realistic from the not-gonna-happen options.
What I found was that the quality of accommodation on offer was really good, and hosts are rated and reviewed by users, which means you can book with confidence in my opinion. I suppose these places are sort of a bridge between hostels and hotels, with many of the places on offer being that bit more unique and interesting, yet still very kind to the wallet. It was easy enough to find out the pricing and date availability for each host, with a handy little filter element also, which allows you to specify desired nearby amenities. I nearly booked about 5 different places there and then, despite an empty bank account! However do not fear, if you see a place you love then you can add it to your wish list, and you can even create separate wish lists for different destinations which is what i ended up doing, thanks to my decisiveness over where we want to visit!!
Overall, I liked the use of ease and the appearance of the app, and the website, and will definitely be browsing some more. My only criticism therefore is that there are just so many cool host options all over the world, you might struggle to get past browsing stage! :)
(This is not a sponsored post, merely sharing a useful tool we recently discovered!)
Thanks for reading!
Hannah and Taran here. We hail from Southern England, where we met online and are now realizing our mutual passion for travel here at Nomad'erHowFar. We discuss Nomadic Living, Simplifying your Life and Long-term Travel, to empower, motivate and inspire our readers. Get to know us here!
We've Been Nominated For The Liebster Award!!
What an honor, our first nomination for a Liebster award! Thanks to Travelling Weasels for nominating us :)
We've Been Nominated For The Liebster Award!!
What an honor, our first nomination for a Liebster award! Thanks to Travelling Weasels for nominating us :)
The rules are:
- Thank the person who nominated you and provide a link to his or her blog.
- Answer the 10 questions by the nominee before you.
- Nominate 10 of your favourite blogs and notify them of their nomination.
- Come up with 10 questions for your nominees to answer.
Well, here are our 10 answers..
Which travel blog is your favourite blog and why?
Haha! Hard question.. We are kinda new to the blogging game, and discover great new blogs all the time. But one we will mention is AroundForHappiness, their personality and the casual, funny tone of their blog posts is a really great to read. Also it's been great to discover another young travelling couple, in Travelling Weasels! We have already got some valuable info from reading their site.
What made you decide to start your own travel blog?
Well it was a bit of a quick decision after agreeing on plans to travel Australia for 2 years. We wanted to be able to let friends and family see our adventures, but then it turned into something bigger than that and we are loving it!
What do you love most about travelling?
Meeting new people, seeing new places, living on the road, and just generally having a great time!
How long do you want to travel for?
Indefinitely :) We are planning 2 years in Oz, but also have plans to go straight to South East Asia after that and then maybe America.. But we are just going to go with the flow :)
Where do you want to go the most and why?
I (Taran) really want to go visit Restoration Island in Oz! Its a small island owned by 1 guy, hopefully we can score a visit.
I (Hannah) obviously cannot wait to visit all of Oz in general, but i also cannot wait to visit the Daintree rainforest in Port Douglas. The place i always wanted to visit was the Grand Canyon, and i ticked that off 5 years ago! So Oz has to top that for me.
How many countries have you been to?
Chilling out on L.A boulevard in 2008!
We are yet to visit any countries together but we've both been to America, Turkey and Spain. Other places one or the other of us have visited are The Netherlands, France, Greece and a few more I'm sure, but we would have to get out the photo albums haha!
How many countries have you lived in?
We have both only ever lived in England :( But we aim to change that!!
What's your favourite country that you've been to and why?
I think we would both have to say America, it was great meeting such friendly people and seeing the greats sights and lifestyle L.A has to offer.
What's the best thing that ever happened to you whilst travelling?
Well I (Taran) am yet to actually go travelling.. But whilst on a 1 week mates holiday to Spain we all wandered down to the local town, I managed to convince everyone to climb over some rocks on the beach and follow some little paths around the cliff edge which led us back to our beach hotel after about an hour.. It was much better exploring than just walking bk along the road!
Leaving the city, and heading round the cliffs.
What thing have you done whilst travelling that you think is overrated?
Relaxing, I mean we don't mind just chilling out, but when your in a new place with limited time, you might as well make the most of it and see as much as possible!
Well there ya go! Now, we nominate..
2. Travel Hacks
5. MyTanFeet
8. Wotazoo
9. HoneyTrek
And our questions are..
1. How long have you been travelling or how long do you want to travel for?
2. Whats the weirdest thing that's happened whilst you've been travelling?
3. How have you lived whilst travelling? Hostels, Couchsurfing, Hotels, On the street? Haha!
4. What jobs have you done whilst travelling?
5. Whats the best/weirdest food you have eaten whilst abroad?
6. What was your favourite animal you saw in the wild whilst travelling?
7. Where have you stayed the longest and why?
8. At what age will you stop travelling and join the rest of society.. ?
9. Where have been the best/worst places you have slept?
10. If you could have one superpower, what would it be haha!
Be sure to let us know when you finish so we can read your answers! And enjoy!!
Thanks for reading!
Hannah and Taran here. We hail from Southern England, where we met online and are now realizing our mutual passion for travel here at Nomad'erHowFar. We discuss Nomadic Living, Simplifying your Life and Long-term Travel, to empower, motivate and inspire our readers. Get to know us here!
Crantock Camping: Cornwall Mini-Break
Armed with snacks, good music and happy faces, we made the 5 hour drive down to Crantock Cornwall one gloomy Thursday evening, arriving at midnight to a chilly campsite.
This was us just about to set-off for a short Easter break to our favourite place in the U.K., Cornwall.
Armed with snacks, good music and happy faces, we made the 5 hour drive down there on Thursday evening, arriving at midnight to a chilly campsite. We have spoke often about Crantock and how stunning a place it is, and so we decided to spend our brief time off work down there, camping in our new 6 berth tent, at Quarryfield's campsite (£7 per person per night, good facilities, shop, bar/restaurant, right near the beach so saving on parking). Our friends Nic and Sean also came along and made the weekend awesome.
Friday and Saturday were filled with glorious sunshine and so we made our way down to the sands, so Taran could test out his newly spray-painted surfboard; he designed and painted it himself. Looks pretty sweet if I do say so myself! Despite his wet-suit his hands pretty much froze, hence why I stayed cosy on the beach in our beach tent!
As you can see Crantock is one dreamy beach! I really recommend it for a bit of surfing or just a relaxing afternoon; you can dip your feet in if you dare, as a river also flows along one side of the beach, perfect for crabbing and exploring rock-pools.
After Taran froze his little hands off in the sea, we set about playing some badminton, but the wind had other ideas, it was a pretty hilarious failure of a game. We then chilled out some more, then Taran and i went to explore the sand-dunes, and i got sand in unspeakable places whilst doing so. After a sunny few hours on the beach, we then made our way back to the campsite and got some grub in from the local supermarket! Friday was such a relaxed day, really peaceful and summery!
Saturday brought more sunshine and we knew we had to make the most of it, as Sunday's weather forecast was dire! So as I said earlier, there is a River, called the River Gannel, which runs down onto Crantock beach. Well the river actually drains completely during the day, which allowed us to walk right up it, and make our way toward Newquay on foot. Quite a trek, uphill in parts, but it was really an exhilarating walk if a tad breezy. We visited Newquay's bustling centre, stopping off for a traditional cornish pastie and then a cider overlooking the beach.
We really recommend The Fort Inn, just up from the main shopping street, for awesome views of the beach over lunch and a pint; i can't speak for the food, but the place was very busy and it looked good, and I'd say it is worth a visit for the views alone. We then treated ourselves to some locally made fudge, and I bought some jewellery and a scarf from our local favourite shop, Razzamatazz. Great little store full of eclectic, spiritual and psychedelic goodies.
River Gannel
Saturday evening was spent huddled round a fire, sipping beer and cider, munching on yummy snacks, and was just the epitome of chill time. Sunday, as predicted, was wet and windy, and we spent much of it huddled in our respective tents, reading, watching the crazy weather, which turned out fairly relaxing in itself. We did venture out however to the local bar/restaurant situated just outside of Crantock Village, called The Bowgie Inn.
Our meal was really nice, plentiful portions and friendly service; we all felt stuffed after our huge roast dinners! Then we had yummy dessert, because of course humans have two stomachs, one for the main and one for afters, course... We then relaxed on the sofas and caught some football. The central theme here is definitely the word 'relax'; I felt so downright laid-back the whole weekend, with no technological distractions and no real connection to the stresses of work or home.
Monday was a sad day, because we had to go home. But we made the long drive a bit more interesting but going via the countryside, and passing through South Devon, and visiting Dartmoor National Park.
The park covers a large area approx 368 square miles, and contains 241 square miles of granite surface, the largest expanse of it Britain. Aside from its obvious grandeur and geological splendour, it's just pretty cool to see. Sheep roam free, whilst prisoners stayed locked up in the infamous Dartmoor prison, and the views for miles are just breathtaking.
We arrived home exhausted around tea- time and the post-holiday blues immediately set in. I think we will forever associate Crantock with having lots of fun on the gorgeous beach, taking in the stunning views and sunsets, and then being fabulously lazy and chilled. We literally cannot wait to return, which we will be doing for 9 days in June, when hopefully it will have hotted up enough for both of us to brave the sea for some more awesome surf!
We are Taran & Hannah, and come from the South of England. After meeting online, we realized our mutual passion for travelling. Follow us, as we prepare to travel the world and set off on little more than our wits and a few £s, and maybe get inspired to see a little more of the world as well.
Why I Want To Be A Nomad: Hannah's Thoughts
This time next year, Taran and I will hopefully be upping sticks and bogging off abroad, indefinitely. That is the whole basis of this website of course. But this isn't a decision or a whim that came easily for me, even if Mr. Laidback (Taran) found it much simpler a path to choose..
This time next year, Taran and I will hopefully be upping sticks and bogging off abroad, indefinitely.
That is the whole basis of this website of course.
But this isn't a decision or a whim that came easily for me, even if Mr. Laidback (Taran) found it a much simpler path to choose.
I think anyone who's known me a long time, would describe me as dependable, someone who likes tidiness, routine, predictability, and a sense of safety.
Whilst I'd agree, I'd also like to reject these aspects of myself.
Underneath my veneer of order, control and reliability, there's endless ants in my pants; I want to explore, be excited, enthusiastic, and experience more than what my current life and surroundings can offer.
I get bored quickly and like to be entertained, something Taran thinks is only made worse by my constant surfing of social media; what am I looking for exactly in my endless scrolling? I think I am just trying to be inspired, and current life isn't doing that for me.
Always been known to daydream, and to be a bit of a philosopher (oh dear) I really do crave a life that challenges me, and allows me to focus on something other than the dull-drums of a repetitive (safe) life that England offers.
I think we can all believe ourselves too scared or let ourselves get so comfortable, we forget our true inner desires.
Don't get me wrong, I know people who's inner and outer desire is a well-paid job, nice holidays, a smart house and cosy evenings by the fire, and I would never argue with this choice of lifestyle.
Of course life needs balance, work and play, relaxation and challenge. I just would say that the life others might choose, already bores me, at the age of 23.
I neither have a normal “9-to-5” job nor do I pay a mortgage or aspire to have one. I don't particularly want children (right now), or marriage (it's literally a piece of paper), but I would never criticise those who do.
The world is a big place, full of problems, but also full of beauty, and I want to experience cultures that are alien to me, see sights that blow my mind; I just want to do more than what is easily and readily available to me. That's all it is; I want to eat all the pie, not just taste one teeny bit.
It will be a struggle.
It will be an adjustment full of compromise and most likely, me being homesick. But I believe we can all adapt to a change in surroundings, even more so if we have chosen it for ourselves because it equals something amazing that fulfils our desires and enriches our lives.
So I may be off travelling but I will still appreciate a made bed (albeit in a tent), a cider on the beach (it will be in Australia though), and a bit of social media (I'll be the annoying person instagram-ing every place I visit).
Yo!
We are Taran & Hannah from the South of England. After meeting online, we realized our mutual passion for travelling. Follow us, as we prepare to travel the world and set off on little more than our wits and a few £s, and maybe get inspired to see a little more of the world as well.
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What inspires you to want to travel the world?
The 'Spend-Less' Series: How to Lower your Food Bill and Save over £1000 a year!
Treating yourself is said to boost your mood and give you a buzz. These are definitely reasons as to why I have always enjoyed spending
Treating yourself is said to boost your mood and give you a buzz. These are definitely reasons as to why I have always enjoyed spending; whether it be on a nice evening meal or on some new clothes each season. Unfortunately, I am guilty of still wanting to spend my money, despite nowadays being far less wealthy than I once was. During my student days, I had a job as well as student loans, so I thought nothing of popping into the nearest shops in between lectures, buying something new and shiny.
It became something of a bad habit, and seeing as I always used to go with my best friend, we both enabled each other, and would usually treat ourselves to lunch as well. This is how I would define a change in mindset when it comes spending, and it's all to do with the word mentioned above; Habit. As I can admit, I developed bad spending habits, whether it was spending a little too much in Primark or treating myself to things on a weekly basis to the point where they weren't really treats anymore. But since my aspirations have changed, and long-term travel is now the goal, i have had to face my bad habits and change them. Now you too face this choice, of continuing with existing bad habits, or changing to new, positive habits, with the focus being saving for your travels.
So in Part 1 of the Spend Less Series, I discuss bad habits when it comes to spending on food, that are easy to fall into, and the steps I took to stop doing these things and haemorrhaging valuable pennies! The result was a significant reduction in my monthly spending, helping towards clearing my debts quicker, and saving up even more for my travels!
Bad habit 1:
Buying food throughout the week at the local convenience shop as opposed to setting aside the time to write a list and do just one weekly shop.
Now I am convinced this is something all the worst spending offenders would admit to, and why this is so bad is because the spending seems small at the time, but really adds up. Nipping into the shop also leads to impulse spending, especially when shops position lots of tempting goodies and deals right in the queue area, and us consumers fall for it every time! Unless you just avoid such shops in the first place. Set aside some time, maybe a sunday evening, and write out a list which contains only the things you actually need for that week; write down some meal ideas and then check your kitchen for ingredients, to ensure you don't buy duplicate products and waste pennies that way. Then use this list when you shop, try to move quickly around the store, trying not to linger too much, as this is when you might stray from the list and make impulse buys! I guarantee this will save you money on a weekly basis.
Bad habit 2:
Ordering takeaway's every weekend.
This all goes back to the idea of treats, and many of us associate our weekends with the time to let go a little bit, maybe loosening the diet, and then ordering a pizza or a Chinese or Indian meal. Well sorry to tell you (what you already know), but having this as a weekly thing, really is going to make a dent in your bank balance. I think people find it so easy to defend weekly takeaways because they want it so much, or tell themselves they do, and so mentally they write-off the cost of it and just enjoy it. This is fine, of course that is the definition of a treat, not really worrying over the price of something. But yet again this is where serious savings can be made. A typical Chinese or Indian meal could add up to £20, a pizza deal could add up to a slightly cheaper £10. So say you have a takeaway even just twice a month, that amounts to around £500 a year. Thats one expensive dinner! This also relates back to Bad Habit 1, whereby you may end up ordering a takeaway because you didn't take the time to plan your dinners for the week, and come 7pm that after a busy day, slumped on the sofa, that long-forgotten ready meal deep in the freezer sounds far less yummy than the pizza your friends are tucking into!
Bad habit 3:
Not making a packed lunch, because you left it too late or didn't buy enough food in your weekly food shop.
I used to be fall victim to this bad habit very often, and it was all down to my lack of preparation! Now I make packed lunches which have a lunch-time food as well as several snacks to keep me going. I understand why people fail to make a lunch, and I sometimes think people do it on purpose, because the food in the work canteen is just not going to measure up to your sandwich. I get it, we'd all like to dine like kings every day if we could, but purchasing a meal deal from a supermarket every day, for example, could cost £3 a time, so if you do this every day, you potentially spend £60 a month on lunch!! Thats £720 a year...
So what do I do to undo these bad habits and save money on food spending?:
TOP TIP 1:
Make a shopping list every week; stick to it, buy only what is listed, and buy the cheapest versions of things wherever you can.
TOP TIP 2:
Include treats in your weekly shop. If you know that you will be craving a cider by Wednesday, or a chocolate infusion by Friday, make sure you buy these when you do the weekly shop. As I said, those little trips to the local convenience store really do lead to excess impulse spending.
TOP TIP 3:
Limit yourself to one takeaway a month. Try to make your own version, or buy less expensive supermarket versions, of your favourite takeaway meals. That way you can still eat the foods you love on the weekend but you get rid of the luxury element associated with spending money on something which is delivered all cooked and ready to your door.
TOP TIP 4:
Make a balanced but tasty packed lunch each night before the working day.
TOP TIP 5:
Set yourself a weekly budget for food; this includes your takeaway if you choose to have one, as well as any treats or lunches or dinners. My figure is £30, I never go above this.
NOW, I realize, all these things will take time to become firm habits and behaviours that you will enjoy adhering to, but always remember what motivates you, each time you reach for the takeaway menu or decide on a Tesco trip at 10pm at night.
Thanks for reading :)
Hannah & Taran x
Yo!
We are Taran & Hannah from the South of England. After meeting online, we realized our mutual passion for travelling. Follow us, as we prepare to travel the world and set off on little more than our wits and a few £s, and maybe get inspired to see a little more of the world as well.
The Place That Left Me Speechless
I was lucky enough to spend a month travelling America at the age of 18. I took a year 'out' between College and University, and chose to leave the comfort zone of yearly european family holidays and venture out a tad further, to the states, just myself and a close friend...
The Place That Left Me Speechless
Updated 2016: This post is about my first backpacking trip aged 18. You can read about my most recent adventures here.
I was lucky enough to spend a month travelling North America at the age of 18.
I took a year 'out' between College and University, and chose to leave the comfort zone of yearly European family holidays and venture out a tad further, to the States, just myself and my close friend Fi
We began our journey in Boston, which was covered in inches and inches of snow, so opposite to the weather we then experienced the rest of the trip.
America had an unseasonably warm February in 2009, so our whole journey, from East coast to West coast, was filled with warm and sunny days.
It was truly lovely to get so lucky on my first 'big' trip away as a 'big' girl. We traveled using Amtrak which takes you through all the major places you'd want to see, and some absolutely random places, which we did stay in, albeit for one night! For the most part we saw what everyone else should see when visiting the states and we loved every minute.
New Orleans brought true introspection; the parallel between the buzzing and lively nature of the French Quarter in the run up to Mardi Gras, with the scenes of devastation which still remained after hurricane Katrina.
Tennessee brought the truly surreal experience of visiting Graceland, New York was, well, New York, which is always pretty damn cool!
Eventually we touched down in Flagstaff Arizona, small seemingly sleepy but nonetheless pretty town, which would be our base for a trip to the Grand Canyon.
A friendly guy helped us to our hostel, which was our first taste of Is-he-gonna-kill-us-oh-no-he's-actually-being-kind...
FLAGSTAFF, ARIZONA
The tour bus from our hostel to the Grand Canyon was driven by a really cool young guy from the hostel, who drove us along the sun-kissed and breezy highways, blasting Kings of Leon, getting to know us a bit better, all being from different places all over the world.
When we arrived at the Canyon, and got out the van, the driver made us close our eyes until we got closer to the edge (by edge I mean, a barrier between us and certain death) and then, wow, there it was.
A vastness and space so gargantuan, and beautiful and crazy.
The different layers of colour, of age, how deep the canyons are, being able to actually get very close to the edge, as I did in the picture.
We spent a good few hours here, taking in the sight from different sides and then we took a short hike down into it, which admittedly tired me out completely; we didn't make it all the way down at all.
But nevertheless, sitting down at the top, just taking in the view, was truly amazing, and it was definitely the only place I have ever visited which left me speechless. And at peace and alive. All at the same time.
Check out my other post on my US trip here.
Thanks for reading!
Hannah and Taran here. We hail from Southern England, where we met online and are now realizing our mutual passion for travel here at Nomad'erHowFar. We discuss Nomadic Living, Simplifying your Life and Long-term Travel, to empower, motivate and inspire our readers. Get to know us here!
The First Step to Nomadic Life
If your lifestyle choices and behaviour are incongruous with your nomadic aspirations, then something has to change, right away!
The First Step to Nomadic Life
UPDATED 2016: This was the first post on Nomad'er How Far, written over 2 years ago when travel remained a pipe dream for us. Well, the dream did come true and you can read our more recent adventures here. But first, let's start at the beginning...
So, you fancy a little trip around the world?
Not so little, a big one, maybe a year?...
Now if you are anything like me and like to dream of when you will win the lottery (despite not even playing it), you have grand plans and an even grander hole in your bank balance.
I have been it all; part-time checkout girl, a teenager spending all my money on cheap clothes; scruffy student, spending all my money on cheap clothes..., customer advisor in a bank, spending all my money on cheap clothes.
Ah, ok, so something of a trend that caught on at a young age and stayed put well into my 20's.
However, thing's are a little different now. Now, a 23-year-old self-employed grown-up, a business owner, running a small pet-care company in my local area, I now spend all my money on dog treats and petrol...
Times have-a changed.
Yes my circumstances have become a little more stretched, and disposable income is not a term i am now familiar with, but that hasn't stopped me dreaming BIG.
I want to travel and work abroad, and do it for as long as I possibly can.
Wherever you currently are in your life, your path remains undecided, malleable and somewhat in your control.
If your lifestyle choices and behaviour are incongruous with your nomadic aspirations, then something has to change, right away!
Prioritize Your Debts.
Do you have debts hanging over your shoulders?
Do you owe something on your credit card, or a lingering student overdraft you just pretend does not exist?
Maybe you have been putting off doing that balance transfer and are paying back almost nothing.
Maybe you keep choosing to buy more and more, piling on the debt! Well it is time to face the debt situation, head-on.
Make it your priority to clear these debts/ stop building them, because:
1. You cannot save effectively whilst trying to also clear debts.
2. You will find deep satisfaction in knowing that your hard-earned savings are purely growing to make your travel dreams come true, not line the credit card companies pockets.
3. You can't travel with debt! You want to be focusing on enjoying those savings on amazing day trips to the Great Barrier Reef, not fumbling around trying to make debt repayments. Plus income is totally changeable and unpredictable during working travel, so debt, well, that stuff will drag you down.
You can make sure you leave debt behind and here's how:
List Your Debts
Be honest, and write down each and every debt, be it between you and a creditor, or even small amounts owed to family or friends.
List them from smallest to largest. Note what you currently repay and work out how many months it would take to clear debts paying only this amount monthly.
The financial flexibility that can come with travel can't really ever be truly experienced if we embark on amazing adventures but don't square off certain financial burdens first.
Analyse Your Spending
Honestly review how you spend your money. I prefer to keep receipts and write down the amounts I spend and relate them a specific category, but if you don't do this then use your recent paper or online statement for reference.
Even just a quick scan on your transaction list on online banking may provide some shocking discoveries.
When you spend something, maybe a small amount for example, you weigh that up in low terms, and neglect to add it on to all the other things you have recently spent money on; you aren't thinking of the bigger picture each time you spend.
Re-direct Your Income
It's time to realize that you have to redirect some of your income flow to clearing debts or nothing will change. You will continue on the same path and not create a new destination and a healthy set of habits designed to get you there.
You need to reassess how much you need those things or activities which you view as essential treats or fun. You need to imagine yourself experiencing worse financial circumstances, the kind where you are forced to find other cheaper or creative ways to fill your free time, because there doesn't have to be a correlation between how fulfilled you are and how much money you are making at a given time.
For example, when I made a decent income at a bank I was also suffering from depression, and when I was the poorest I had ever been, I was also finding love and inner peace.
Crazy how we can scramble our way to happiness despite our financial situation.
So I suggest you wholeheartedly use this mindset to channel your energy toward using your money differently; it should be seen as a tool to get out of debt and into your chosen dream, not a short-cut to momentary gratification.
Start Small
It makes sense to focus on clearing the smaller debts purely so you reach a positive stage in your overall goals sooner. Plus, when you remove the smaller obstacles you gain the momentum needed to muscle through the bigger debts. Once the clutter of the small numbers are removed you can focus larger chunks of money toward one large debt.
Celebrate each and every debt that's cleared, and recognize each success as proof that with time, effort and energy, you can create a better life, whatever that might look like.
So first things first on this journey to nomadic life, start being wiser and more thrifty with your pennies, and throw them at your debts. Then the fun of saving and scrimping can begin...
Thanks for reading!
Hannah and Taran here. We hail from Southern England, where we met online and are now realizing our mutual passion for travel here at NomaderHowFar. We discuss Nomadic Living, Simplifying your Life and Long-term Travel, to empower, motivate and inspire our readers. Get to know us here!
Taran & Makoto here, together we form Nomader How Far photography.
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