|| A PERIOD FOR TRAVEL ||
A PERSONAL ACCOUNT OF WHAT REALLY TO EXPECT WHEN HITTING THE ROAD
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△ TRAVEL : THE VARIATIONS △ HOW TO : GETTING STARTED △ DIFFERENT MEANS OF TRAVEL : THE PROS AND CONS △ TRAVEL : THE BENEFITS △ TRAVEL : THE DANGERS △ METHODS OF TRAVELLING ON A BUDGET |
⫷ TRAVEL : THE VARIATIONS ⫸
NOT TO BE UNDERESTIMATED
Every traveller has a reason they pursue the road, be it for a period of time or a lifestyle choice.
Many view life as too short and the world too big to consider staying in one place.
Some view adventuring on experiences the point of life;
The thrilling combination of uncertainty and discovery the antidote for complacency.
Many others travel to escape from previous circumstances or a society they don't agree with.
It all has a place on the road.
Today travelling has never been easier, cheaper or more accessible for the public,
though despite this, truths regarding what to expect during an extended period on the road are far lacking.
For those looking to travel extensively who haven't done so before, it's essential to understand that you are very much
entering a new world with new understandings, a new dialogue, a lot of free time and many new wonderful people and adventures.. and without meaning to deter you,
as many new dangers as there are life-changing positives, regardless of your gender.
I've seen too many friends from the road fall into homelessness, drug addiction and depression to not speak openly about
what to expect.
The reason for this warning is because it's important to note that there are in fact two types of travelling/traveller between
which there are huge lifestyle differentials and depending on what type of travel you're pursuing, the advice of course varies.
First is the type of travelling/traveller we all know: sight-seeing, Kathmandu clothed, geared up, straight edge(-y).. generally just the kind of traveller who enjoys the occasional joint but maintains a set itinerary and return flight home. However it's the second type of travelling/traveller we're mainly here to talk about. Connected to a global counter-culture network of other full-time travellers and verging on what most would understand to be more 'hippie', 'this is my life now' travellers can be picking cherries
in Tasmania one season and travelling internationally for another picking season the next. It's a lifestyle. Exposed to both and
once belonging to the latter group, aka. working place to place but never off the road, I know that both have their positives and dangers, though it is mainly the benefits and dangers of the latter group that we'll be discussing. So let's go there.
Shout out to those who have continued to ask me to share in order to prepare. This article is for you and all would-be
travellers who swept up in the romanticism of travel, may not be aware of unexpected challenges along the way.'
⫷ GETTING STARTED ⫸
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△ FREE CAMPSITES
As simple as hitting the road may seem, knowing where to start is an important step. Do I just drive and see what happens? That of course can work, however if you aren't accustomed to gas stoves, lugging around your own water and wondering where to wash your clothes, free camp-sites are a great place to begin. Travelling between the vast amount of free campsites available in most countries through utilising apps such as WIKICAMPS, allows you to choose between campsites that offer varying facilities, amenities and environmental privileges. Apps such as WIKICAMPS allow you to choose sites depending on your needs that offer: HOT/COLD SHOWERS, POWER OUTLETS, MODERN/PIT TOILETS, COOKING FACILITIES, THE APPROVAL OF OPEN FIRES, DOGS ALLOWED, RIVER NEARBY, NUDITY WELCOME (a 'Natural Site' usually implied by two symbols of people with leaves over their extremities) or WIFI AVAILABLE. From my own experience it's a fantastic way to acclimatise to living out of a vehicle or backpack with what's provided and a different order to the day. △ VOLUNTEER WORK VIA. WWOOFING / WORKAWAY When starting out on the road, a great way to cut costs and remove the pressure of affording accommodation and food is Volunteering, aka. working for meals and board. WWOOFING (Willing Workers on Organic Farms), WORKAWAY and HELPX are all international organisations that for highly reasonable annual memberships provide you with tens of thousands of volunteer options at organic home-stays, farms, emerging cooperatives, hostels, hotels and retreats. This is a fantastic way to meet other travellers and save coin while seeing various locations. Whether you're working with alpacas farm or assisting with health retreat workshops, there is also the option of earning a wage in addition to the accommodation and food provided depending on the host. As a veteran WWOOFER and WORKAWAY-er myself, these are definitely options to consider. |
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⫷ DIFFERENT MEANS OF TRAVEL ⫸ AN ACCOUNT OF PROS AND CONS TRAVELLING : BY VEHICLE |
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PROS △ A TRANSIENT SERVICE : A VEHICLE CAN PROVIDE THE PERFECT SPACE FOR ON-THE-ROAD BUSINESSES. △ 'I KNOW WHERE I'M SLEEPING TONIGHT' : OWNING A VEHICLE ALLEVIATES PRESSURE TO EXCHANGE WORK FOR ACCOMMODATION. △ SAFETY : A VEHICLE ENSURES AN INCREASED LEVEL OF SAFETY AND SECURITY, ESPECIALLY WHEN IN NEAR-ISOLATED AREAS. △ SPACE FOR A PET : A VEHICLE CAN NICELY PROVIDE THE NECESSARY SPACE FOR CERTAIN ANIMAL COMPANIONS. |
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CONS △ ALL EGGS IN ONE BASKET : COMBINING YOUR HOME AND VEHICLE MEANS YOU COULD LOSE BOTH IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG. △ NOT ALL PROFESSIONS SUIT VEHICLE-LIVING : IF YOU'RE A SURFER, FOOD ENTHUSIAST OR PRODUCT SALESMAN IT CAN WORK. IN MY CASE, A MOVING VEHICLE CONTAINING OIL PAINTINGS WAS AT TIMES, LESS THAN IDEAL. △ A HIGHER RISK OF BREAKAGES : WHEN YOUR MOVING HOME TAKES ON SHARP CORNERS AND POT-HOLES, THINGS CAN QUICKLY GO ARY. MAKING SURE EVERYTHING IS SECURE BEFORE DRIVING IS ESSENTIAL.. THOUGH IT'S EASIER SAID THAN DONE. |
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TRAVELLING : BY BACKPACK |
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PROS △ $$$ SAVER : IF STAYING THRIFTY IS YOUR GOAL, A BACKPACK DISCOURAGES UNNECESSARY PURCHASES, FORCING YOU TO PACK AND KEEP LESS. △ COMPLETE FLEXIBILITY : WITH EVERYTHING WITH YOU AT ALL TIMES, YOU'RE FREE TO JUMP ON OPPORTUNITIES AS THEY ARISE + YOUR NOT GOING TO FORGET EQUIPMENT OR SUPPLIES WHEN VENTURING OUT. △ SUPER MOBILITY : FORGET WHEELING A SUITCASE UP STAIR CASES AND THROUGH BUSH TRACKS. WANT TO CAMP OFF-ROAD OR INTO THE MOUNTAINS? A VAN WON'T ALWAYS GET YOU THERE. |
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CONS △ RESTRICTED AMENITIES : LIMITED PACKING SPACE DOES HAVE IT'S BENEFITS.. THAT IS, UNTIL AN IMPROMPTU EVENT OR SITUATION REQUIRES MORE THAN YOU HAVE ON YOUR BACK △ WEIGHT CAN BE AN ISSUE: EVEN THE LIGHTEST PACKERS CAN GROW TIRED OF WEIGHT CONSTANTLY CARRIED ON THEIR HIPS, SHOULDERS AND BACK FULL TIME. IT'S ALL DOWN TO THE INDIVIDUAL. △ CONSTANT PACKING/UNPACKING : UNLESS YOU PURCHASE A FRONT-ZIP BACKPACK (WHICH I HIGHLY RECOMMEND), THE ARDUOUS TASK OF FINDING THAT ONE SHIRT BURIED AT THE BOTTOM OF YOUR BAG CAN OVER TIME FEEL HIGHLY INCONVENIENT. |
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TRAVELLING : BY BICYCLE |
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PROS △ EXERCISE : IF PHYSICAL FITNESS WHILE TRAVELLING IS YOUR GOAL, THEN THERE'S NO BETTER WAY TO GET INTO SHAPE WHILST ENJOYING THE FACT THAT YOUR BODY GOT YOU TO YOUR NEXT DESTINATION. △ NO MISSING THE VIEW : THERE'S NO BEATING COMPLETE IMMERSION IN INCREDIBLE SCENERY, FRESH AIR AND NATURE WHILE GOING FROM A TO B. △ TIME AND TRAVEL MANAGEMENT : JUST LIKE TRAVELLING BY VEHICLE, COMMUTING BY BIKE ALLOWS YOU COMPLETE CONTROL OVER YOUR OWN TRAVELLING TIMETABLE RATHER THAN THAT OF TRAINS OR BUSES. |
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CONS △ IT'S NO WALK IN THE PARK : THINK STEEP UPHILLS, TRAFFIC, CROWDED STREETS AND WEIGHTED BICYCLES. PHYSICAL FITNESS IS ESSENTIAL OR YOU'RE NOT GOING TO GET VERY FAR. △ WEATHER : WEATHER CONDITIONS CAN EFFECT YOUR TRAVELLING ENJOYMENT OR ABILITY TO TRAVEL AT ALL. △ BICYCLE MAINTENANCE : KNOW-HOW IS ESSENTIAL, WHETHER IT BE ODD NOISES COMING FROM THE GEARS, TYRES ARE RUBBING ON THE BREAKS, OR ONE OF MANY TYRE PUNCTURES, YOU'LL NEED TO KNOW HOW TO FIX IT. |
⫷ BENEFITS ALONG THE WAY ⫸
REWARDS OF THE ROAD, VIA. THE TRAVELLERS THEMSELVES.
△ NEW EXPERIENCES
Let's start with the obvious. When you travel you are obviously in search ckyard has been the sea, the mountains and the rainforest.
Instead of working only one job, I have worked on farms, in factories and fields.
△ THE EXISTENCE OF AN EXTENSIVE COUNTER-CULTURE OF FULL-TIME TRAVELLERS
During my 4 years on the road, I stumbled upon and soon tapped in to a counter culture/network of youths and adults across the world who live exclusively to travel. It's a subculture that's so connected despite demographic or country of origin, that if you yourself have travelled extensively, there's a huge chance we know the same people. "Oh you know Fabian? We harvested cherries together two years ago in Tasmania. Awesome guy." ... standard conversation with a new travel mate. the existence of an extensive, highly enticing counter-culture and wonderful world of characters
There's no denying it. There is a rush that encompasses you when you first hit the road
△ ENCOURAGES DOWNSIZING AND LIVING WITH MINIMAL POSSESSIONS
△ RESTORES FAITH IN MANKIND
With open arms and hearts I have been invited into the lives of countless individuals and families and in turn learned more about people and our many approaches to life. Bring new understandings and perspectives. Adventures, work tasks.
△ EMBRACING THE BEAUTY OF CHANGE
Change, it's an unchangeable aspect of life.. and yet when you think about it, it's something we seldom welcome unless we actually want it. A period of travel however is one of the best examples I've encountered that properly demonstrates how Change is something, not only to be embraced but trusted. For example, seasoned travellers learn over time never to be melancholy saying farewell so often to the many new, wonderful people we connect with along the way. "It's not goodbye, it's see you later," we say. We know there are only new people with new lessons meant for us around the corner. Another example is that inexplainable urge you feel every now and then telling you to move on from a location. You feel it in your gut and you learn to trust it as you learn pretty quickly that there are paradises around the corner that you wouldn't have found by a direct route. You see, the beautiful thing about a period of travel is that so much of our travel lives are reliant on the reality that things must change and with that change only come more boxes to tick, things to see, people to meet, things to accomplish, perspectives to understand and virtues to grow. And doesn't life make more sense that way?
△ INCREASES RESOURCEFULNESS AND SKILL VARIATION
Some people think to travel the world you have to be rich. Others think you can only travel to one place and then the dream is over and home to the 9-5 you must return. But that's not how real long-term travellers do it, because for our passion for this lifestyle and it's rewards we have learnt to be versatile, flexible and multi-talented. We work place to place and that's the way we like it. We aren't stuck, we do not stagnate and we get to see the whole world. As mentioned above, I have worked on farms, factories and fields, but I have also assisted with festivals and workshops, worked in stores, pubs, restaurants and cafes, held exhibitions and also seminars. My fellow roamers of the world might be in South America next week and then volunteering up in the Swiss Alps a few months later. We each design our own journey and end up with more talents and skills under our belt over a few years than we could have ever achieved where we came from.
△ BONDS THAT LAST A LIFETIME
There's little doubt that so much of the beauty of travelling comes from the people you meet along the way. They share and make our experiences, change our minds, challenge us and in a sense, seem to always be the right people for you for whatever you're going through at that time. Now don't get me wrong, before I hit the road, I had friends, lots of friends, but there was something palpably different to the connections I seemed to make when travelling and there could be many reasons for this. Perhaps it's because in an effort to meet others on the sometimes lonely road, unconsciously our kindest, least judgemental selves shine through and we therefore meet that best in others who're unconsciously doing the same thing and then go onto know and support only this in each other. Perhaps it's also the element of walking such an unknown, occasionally perturbing path with others that cements the true bond, like the friendships made during a bid for survival.. they are bonds that last forever. Or perhaps it's also In my own experience, there has always seemed to be a concentration of extremely open, loving souls on the road. That's how it is on the road, the other travellers you meet aren't just friends, they become your sisters and brothers. Now I'm not saying your journey and the people you meet are predestined and designed for your growth, the jury will rightfully always be out on that one, all I AM saying is for some reason the people you Do meet, DO serve hugely important chapters and understandings in your life and h
△ COURAGE
Some people go their whole lives with anxiety about new places and people, when in fact they only needed to get used to these situations and desensitised to what people can throw at them. Shedding fear is a huge part of growing as a traveller in order to keep going. Travel is not just how far or long you go, but how much you travel in your own growth.Because the truth is a life like this isn't exactly for the faint hearted. Not always knowing where you're going next or where you're going to sleep, for some people I'm sure this sounds like a nightmare, but for others, it's the stuff that makes life interesting. Travelling life builds resilience to struggle as you learn to continuously pick yourself up from whatever life throws at you and to keep looking around the next corner.
△ LONG-TERM TRAVEL ACCELERATES SELF-GROWTH,
SELF-UNDERSTANDING & SELF-CONNECTION
△ A GLOBAL FEELING OF HOME AND CONNECTION TO MANY DIFFERENT PLACES
△ ENCOURAGES EXPOSURE TO NATURE
⫷ TRAVEL : THE DANGERS ⫸
IT'S TIME TO GET REAL. AS IDYLLIC AS LIFE ON THE ROAD WITH A NEW CAST OF CHARACTERS CAN BE,
THERE ARE UNPRECEDENTED DANGERS BEHIND THE CURTAIN FAR MORE UNEXPECTED THAN A GUY PICKING OFF HITCH-HIKERS..
⫷ TRAVEL : THE DANGERS ⫸
IT'S TIME TO GET REAL. AS IDYLLIC AS LIFE ON THE ROAD WITH A NEW CAST OF CHARACTERS CAN BE,
THERE ARE UNPRECEDENTED DANGERS BEHIND THE CURTAIN FAR MORE UNEXPECTED THAN A GUY PICKING OFF HITCH-HIKERS..
△ POST-TRAVEL DEPRESSION
Unfortunately returning home after travel isn't always one of the best experiences for many, especially if you've been travelling for a longer period of time. First of all, let it be known that travel is a drug itself, in that it can be highly addictive and that there are most certainly remissions. PTD is a form of depression activated often upon resuming a comparatively, less-than satisfying, previously known life, work schedule or living arrangement.
△ SPIRITUAL ELITISM
You've all experienced it before. Joe comes back from travelling and all of a sudden he's a self-proclaimed Shaman because he did DMT one too many times and discovered Alan Watts. Now Joe thinks he has the antidote to any problem any peer may have and let's be honest, can act like a total tool. Unfortunately for travellers who are weary of this ego-trip, it's all to common for an interesting percentage of young men who hit the road. During my 4 years travelling I must have met over 50 self-proclaimed Shaman under the age of 28, and you can't miss them because they'll always be telling everyone what they are. Now don't get me wrong, some of these guys were lovely people, the others however.. I think they are
△ A SLOW SLIP INTO HOMELESSNESS
"I can't go back." How many times did I hear that on the road? As to be expected, there is a dark side to days of so much enjoyment while travelling and it rears it's ugly head in the form of not wanting the feeling of freedom to end and This addiction to free time comes with the very real risk of of not wanting to work or contribute at all. One friend in particular broke my heart with his journey. Let's call him David. I met David as a vibrant, positive, head-on-his-shoulders guy in his early 30s during my first year on the road. A year later he was pushing a trolley through the back streets of Byron Bay. Another 7 months later I ran into him sitting under a tree around noon in Mullumbimby, bearded up, a half-finished bottle of Jack Daniels in his hand. This is a very real danger for travellers who just can't handle a lifestyle of so much freedom and the 'What is a weekend? What is a holiday? Days don't need names' philosophy.
△ 'RE-BORN' PREDATORS
During my time on the road, I unfortunately encountered certain individuals who took pride and have defended using their false spiritual elitism to specifically target and lure young women, some as young as 17 into sexual acts and intercourse. Moreover, an interesting percentage of these men were middle aged, born-again hippies, who hit the road after such tumultuous events as a divorce or mid-life crisis and dive head first into embracing and promoting the notion of 'free love', which is all well and good as a philosophy, but not so noble when targeting vulnerable young women by falsely advertising yourself as a guru, medicine man or shaman. It's a sad truth but one to be very weary of as a young female traveller, especially when the antagonist has a frequent penchant for psycho-active drugs which will in certain travelling circles seem apart of the decor, but if mismanaged can create highly dangerous situations and behaviour. This behaviour is also of course not only restricted to older men. My own run-ins over the years with young 'peace warrior types' who at any chance possible would proudly stand in front of a crowd and profess brotherhood and respect for their fellow man one moment and then turn around to shamelessly come-on to you in front of your boyfriend the next.
△ UN-TAPPED DRUG USE
There's no explanation needed, experimentation with drugs have and always will be a facet of the travelling/hippie experience, but take note, there is a difference between puffing on joints/trying recreational substances in a safe environment with good people.. and smoking DMT, GHB and worse-offenders to 'expand your mind' every day. The negative effects are real and delving too deep to often change for the worst, many once happy, optimistic, peaceful people. Know the difference. Be safe.
△ RETURNING HOME
Divides can grow between individuals and old friends. This can happen when the traveller makes the mistake of acting superior to their old friends or the friends choose to resent the traveller for travelling and make assumptions about their experiences. It's a double-edged sword and it can break relationships. Travellers: If your think any of your experiences make you better than anyone else, you have learnt nothing. Old friends: If you can't be happy, proud or supportive of your friend trying new things and walking a different path, you'll find yourself without them because they've got better friends now.
⫷ THE MANY METHODS OF TRAVELLING ON A BUDGET ⫸
WHY YOU DON'T NEED BIG $$$ TO SEE THE WORLD
△ VOLUNTEERING DIRECTLY FOR FOOD AND ACCOMODATION
As discussed above, Volunteering remains a great way to beat the buck. When it comes to Volunteering directly for food and accommodation,
△ HOUSE SITTING
What if I told you there were couples who had travelled the world for 8 years without paying for accommodation?
Such was my discovery when I had the thought of looking to house-sit in a location I wanted to see, but being low
on funds didn't have the means
throughout the duration of my stay.
A fantastic option for those also wanting to take a break from the pressures of the road (where will I next find wifi, power
outlets etc.) while not leaving it.
△ SKILL EXCHANGE
△ FREE CAMPSITES
△ WORKING PLACE TO PLACE
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