This Caucasus country is becoming quite popular with travelers and digital nomads. Here’s a handy how-to guide for getting a SIM card in Georgia to stay online from Tbilisi to Omalo. Do You Need a SIM Card in Georgia? If you’re staying in the main cities only and/or for a couple of days – probably not, as free WiFi is pervasive and quite easy to come by – any cafe, restaurant will beam it, as will bus and metro stations in the capital “Tbilisi Loves You” network. However, it’s not always as smooth and reliable as one would wish, plusContinue reading
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Yinj Tan — Hitchhiker Spotlight 🔦
On Fridays, we put a hitchhiker in the *spotlight. This week it’s Yinj Tan! Scroll down to read hitchhiking stories from her journeys. This spotlight first appeared on the 2nd of October 2020 in the NOMADS – Hitchhiking Club About Yinj First hitch: I guess it was 2014, back when I was still working in Singapore. I went to a walk with a friend and a couchsurfer, we got really tired to walk to the bus stop and the couchsurfer saw some other people hitchhiking, so he also tried and a lady driving a Mercedes sports car stopped and gaveContinue reading
My Evolution of Packing: A History of My Baggage
I wasn’t always a backpacking traveler. Being from a tiny affluent country in Europe, it’s pretty normal to go on holidays abroad (privilege!) and I personally don’t know any of my fellow same-passport holders who haven’t been abroad. Travel has been a part of my life since birth. Normally, we’d travel by car, giving us plenty of room to bring Stuff™ and sometimes we’d go by airplane. Packing light or efficiently wasn’t a concern for the car trips Only for the plane, we’d have to really think about what to pack as there are limits to how much Stuff you can bring. 0. The Carry-A-Corpse Suitcase Amsterdam Schiphol Airport,Continue reading
Copán to Kapan: A Reflection on Nine Months of Travel
Today is one of those days on the road to reflect on what you’ve done, where you’ve been, and what is ahead of you. Reflection days are the worst and the best, but mainly the worst. Here’s to the last nine months on the road. Since the 29th of December 2013 – minus 10 days in my Passport Nation (PN) – I have been traveling 2,5 continents by anticipated happenstance, sporadic opportunity, and a shameful slice of manipulation. That is already nine months of growth, but it would be silly not to acknowledge the decline as well. Many things and people haveContinue reading
Last Days of Vake Park: WWII Memorial Statue, Tbilisi (Georgia)
Another sunny September day in beautiful Vake Park, Tbilisi, Georgia. James and I decided to hike up to the World War II memorial statue atop the hill to catch some sun rays. Before they’re gone again. These warm days are becoming rarer and rarer; many days are just too dreary to wander around Tbilisi much further away from my current tent. A few days ago I posted about the decay in Tbilisi, but today I’m feeling very cheery. I can’t believe it’s my first (and last) time going up to this WWII memorial statue… The path below looks directly northwardContinue reading
Vake Park, Tbilisi: Concrete and Urban Decay in Autumn
I’m loving Vake Park (ვაკის პარკი). It’s such a huge city park in Tbilisi with lots of small elevations, sculptures, fountains, and concrete paths. And it’s all fighting the battle between culture and nature. Nature is trying hard to decay that shit and reclaim the concrete, especially in autumn now. I think it’s quite beautiful. More beautiful than the more universally-accepted Lisi Lake. Despite its sometimes shabby looks, there are still many Tblisites (Tblisians?) coming here to enjoy a walk and some fresh air. Old men who’d probably be really good at chess, grandmothers with their grandchildren bored in theContinue reading
74 Kilometers of Potholes En Route to Tusheti, Georgia
I hitchhiked to Tusheti in northern Georgia with a random Czech traveler. The road was 74 kilometers long and it might just qualify for the road with the most potholes? Was the road one big pothole? Anyway, a four-wheel-drive vehicle was a requirement for even a short attempt at this road! I had started quite early in the daytime. This Czech guy showed up spontaneously at the same hitchhiking spot and we decided to join forces. During the long wait, he played my guitar awesomely. This made the wait quite good. You can see in the picture that the firstContinue reading
Khinkali! The Best Food in Georgia?
Khinkali is one example of the myriad of awesome food you can find in Georgia. Shrooms, cheese, potatoes, meat, and more are all represented in this dumpling. I ate these somewhere back in Tbilisi after hitchhiking around the eastern part of Georgia (Mtskheta-Mianeti and Kakheti—specifically in Tusheti) for a short while. I know my food photography leaves much to be desired, but my main reason besides the khinkali was to use their WiFi (next time, I’ll simply get a Georgian SIM card to not be so dependent on restaurant WiFi). Food photography aside, just believe me when I say khinkaliContinue reading
Lisi Lake + Vake Park in Tbilisi, Georgia
Back in Tbilisi, Georgia. Went for a swim at Lisi Lake yesterday where this dog ruled the territory. It’s nice to come back to this lake. Afterward, my drivers asked me if I had a place to stay in Tbilisi. So they drove me from Lisi Lake to Vake Park, where they know people with whom I’d supposedly have things in common with. I am sleeping in Vake Park in my tent. There is a small community of travelers and people who protest the building of a new hotel there. Vake Park is apparently one of Tbilisi’s last green spacesContinue reading