When you’re hitchhiking home and some nice Italian guy gives you a box of chocolates! As you might have heard, I’m not wild about chocolate. I think it can be okay and the Ferrero Rocher stuff is a nice energy boost. So I told the guy to keep his chocolates, but it seems like he had stacks and stacks of boxes and he insisted. Perhaps it was a benign smuggling business, who knows. Funny thing: in Europe, I receive chocolate from drivers all the time. It’s such a pattern across countries. Like, why do car owners buy too much chocolateContinue reading
The Netherlands
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
Rest in Peace, Dear Hiking Boots
Dear Lowa hiking boots. You’ve served me well in the years mid-2013 till the end of 2014. I have taken you to three continents and tried to treat you the way you deserve to be treated. I’m sorry to have walked holes in you. It was hard saying goodbye and retiring you. You were great for tiny feet. Your replacements still have to prove themselves. I still love you. I know, it’s just a possession, part of my hitchhiking gear. They can’t live forever. But I always find it really hard to find proper hiking boots that look badass. TheseContinue reading
Waterproofing my Backpack Before the Next Trip
Waterproofing my backpack before the next trip. This is important maintenance work! I’m doing a lot of preparation works from my mom’s home before I head out again. I’ve been at my mom’s place for a few days since hitchhiking home for Christmas from Istanbul. Though I love catching up with my family here, I can’t stay for new years because I don’t like to be in this country during that time. The reason? They’ve got this insane fireworks culture in the Netherlands. Everyone can buy fireworks and light them up themselves, which wouldn’t be a problem if there weren’tContinue reading
Ashley the Sleeping Dog (My Mom’s)
My dog falling asleep in my coat near the cheese. It’s so cute it hurts. Her name is Ashley and she’s been with my mom’s side of the family since I was ten or elevenish. I grew up with her and taught her tricks. I still remember the stink on my fingers of the dog treats I gave to her when she did a good roll or jump. There are loads of memories here. I kind of realized that I never write much about what life looks like when I’m at my family’s. When I’m at my mom’s my daysContinue reading
Istanbul – Maastricht in 60 Hours: I Hitchhiked Home for Christmas!
I made it home in time for Christmas! Remember my post when I announced I’d try to #HitchhikeHomeForChristmas from Istanbul to the Netherlands in 48 hours? Well, it took me 60 hours to arrive in Maastricht. Not great, not terrible. And definitely on time for family visits and admiring my mom’s tree. So… what happened? Well, I had a flying start on the 19th of December. My buddy from Istanbul paid for a taxi ride to a public transport stop so I could get further out of the city. I started hitchhiking to the Bulgarian border at Erdine. Through BulgariaContinue reading
Hometown Sunset, (Loosdrecht, the Netherlands)
I’ve arrived back in my hometown and will need to sleep for a month after that journey. Wow! But during my waking hours, I can sometimes appreciate the beautiful sunset skies during this windy and cold time of the year in Loosdrecht. For the rest, my days here before and during Christmas are filled with family visits. There’s quite some catching up to do, especially with my grandparents. I have two grandmas and one grandpa that live in this town, all within cycling distance within my hometown. It’s so Dutch, yes. It’s always a little frightening to ride a bikeContinue reading
Hitchhiking Home for Christmas: Istanbul to the Netherlands in 48 hours?
This is my attempt at hitchhiking home for Christmas. I’m currently staying with friends in Istanbul, Turkey. From here, I’ll need to go to my mom’s place in the Netherlands before December 24th (I think? When is Christmas?). I’m going to try to hitchhike first to Maastricht in the Netherlands. That’s where I started studying and then dropped out in November 2013. It feels a little weird that my hitchhiking adventure through Iran and Turkey, and Georgia and Armenia before that, is ending. Somehow, I can’t really do anything without making it a bit of a challenge. So I’ll tryContinue reading