Long-term travelers receive the same questions all the time about this dreadful topic called “budgeting your trip”. I am the last person to have solid advice for you because I practice no-budget travel. I cringe upon hearing the B-word and the following nonquestions: “How do you fund your travels?” “What’s your daily budget?” “(How much) Do you save for your travels?” My answer to all of them is either “I don’t know” or “who cares?” This is absolutely the most boring topic of travel, and that’s why I’m usually reluctant to share my views. So here goes nothing: First ofContinue reading
hitchhiking
Maltese Hitchhiking Route (Approximated)
Take a peek at my next approximated hitchhiking route, bringing me to Malta! It’s three times when I’ll have to hitch a boat: Albania to Italy, Italy to Sicily, and Sicily to Malta. How? I have no clue yet. I’ll see it once I arrive at the next step in the Maltese hitchhiking journey. I’m starting in Belgrade (Serbia), then make my way through Bosnia and Herzegovina—a new country for me. After that, it’s time for a return visit to (perhaps Croatia and) Montenegro and then I’ll see Albania for the first time. In Italy, I’m expecting to see BariContinue reading
Crafting Cyrillic Hitchhiking Signs (Negotin, Serbia)
When hitchhiking with a dear friend of mine in Serbia, it was time to make some new hitchhiking signs. For domestic use, it can be nice to write hitchhiking signs in the Cyrillic alphabet. Like this Београд (Belgrade) sign I was crafting at a café in Negotin. This is not really an area where you expect a non-Serbian driver to stop and pick you up. Also, I love, love, love the Cyrillic script. In the end, hitchhiking in Russia for an extended period of time is still my biggest dream. Unlike some of my dreams, I don’t think this one isContinue reading
AMA: Were you afraid of hitchhiking alone in Central and South America?
A new question for my Ask Me Anything (AMA)! This person wrote the following message about hitchhiking alone in Central and South America: Hello Iris, I guess you got million times this question but it’d be fantastic if you could help with your advice. I need to get rid of my doubts and I finally push myself to follow my dream of hitchhiking Central and South America. I’m planning to do a similar route to what you have done. However, as a solo woman, I’m concerned about safety in these countries. Were you ever afraid of hitchhiking alone? How didContinue reading
Transfăgărășan Highway: Does Jeremy Clarkson Pick Up Hitchhikers?
Now that he’s fired from Top Gear, perhaps Jeremy Clarkson has some free time now to pick up a hitchhiker at the Transfăgărășan Highway in Romania? I mean, he does say that “this is the best road in the world”. I’m also accustomed to hitchhiking with problematic people. So… I basically hitchhiked to the start of the Transfăgărășan Highway just to take this photo (and make this joke). A month ago, Jeremy Clarkson still worked at Top Gear. I’d hoped to put out a little call to action to hitchhike with the crew of Top Gear. It’s a program IContinue reading
AMA: Why do you think people are afraid to live free and trust one another?
A new question for my Ask Me Anything (AMA)! This person wrote the following message about the inability of many people to live free and trust people: I love your life and the way you see people. Why do you think people are afraid to live free and trust one another? My response: Oof, that’s a difficult one. I’m not sure if I know much about living free. I don’t really feel free. But I’m also not very focused on the pursuit of freedom. Trusting people is one of the most difficult things to achieve and maintain I guess, andContinue reading
Sibiu to Timișoara: A Fluffy Hitchhiking Companion in Romania
When hitchhiking from pleasant Sibiu to Timișoara, I had a very lucky ride. The driver couple had this very sweet dog that I shared the back seat with. I know, I know… the dog looks like she’s not having a great time or is quite hungover. But I swear the dog was just enjoying my scritches. As this huge dog was a source of heat, I soon had to take off my winter hat, gloves, scarf, and coat to make this work. I’ve been wanting to travel to Timișoara since that first summer hitchhiking trip around Europe in 2013. I’d heard goodContinue reading
Sibiu, Romania: Spontaneous Couchsurfing + German Influences Everywhere
“Hey! I’m looking for a pub or some place with WiFi and beer at the small square so I can find a couchsurfing host. Do you know one?” “Oh you can stay at my apartment! Do you speak German?” Meet Adelheid, my most spontaneous couchsurfing host ever in Sibiu Romania! Two days of fun and hospitality Did you know that Sibiu in Romania historically had a big German community? Their name is Rumäniendeutsche. Hence the German influences around town. It even has a German alternative name. Are you ready? It’s Hermannstadt, I shit you not. That’s honestly the most German nameContinue reading
Speed Hitchhiking with a Documentary Filmmaker
We’ve got 900 kilometers to go to Belgrade! These few days I’m hitchhiking with an aspiring documentary filmmaker from the Netherlands. She contacted me a few weeks ago since she’s making a documentary about hitchhikers in the 21st century. Something like that. Of course, I’m interested in participating. So I invited her to come hitchhiking with me from Maastricht in the Netherlands to Belgrade in Serbia. We stayed at my friend’s place in Maastricht and then departed for Belgrade. I told her it would take a maximum of two days to complete the trip. Her documentary tools are a cameraContinue reading