Paraná, Brazil: Off-road Carona (Hitchhiking)

Hitchhiking in the Paraná State of Brazil! It was so rainy that the nice asphalted road washed away a few days ago. So the truck driver Rodriguez – who had a double carriage! – took the off-road detour through the soybean fields on this slippery red earth. He was in a hurry, so he had no problem overtaking other trucks here while smoking. Once you’re off the highways, hitchhiking in Brazil is pretty doable. That’s my first impression. The stupid comforts of the NomadCruise have long disappeared from my memory. But I do notice my lack of Portuguese skills are making thingsContinue reading

Sarandë to Vlorë: Albanian Coastal Hitch

Goodbye Sarandë and hello Vlorë! Though this road was desolate and there was only a little bit of shade left to stand in at noon, I caught a direct ride with a truck driver from Berat on this amazing coastal route. Tea and Tears But before I caught a ride to Vlorë, I had to walk along this road in the sunshine. It was quite a long walk. With the heat getting to my brain, I made a stop at a building on the south-west side of the road that I hoped would be a shop of some kind. IContinue reading

Trusting One’s Gut Feeling: Four Truckers, One Hitchhiker (Turkey)

I took this hitchselfie with my four Kurdish truck drivers while hitchhiking in southeastern Turkey. I don’t remember exactly where this was. But from the date I posted it, I’m assuming it was somewhere between Şanlıurfa and Gaziantep. Somehow in my mind, this happened between Batman and Diyarbakır or Van and Batman. I don’t remember exactly and I can’t find the original photo! Anyway, this is a short story about trusting one’s gut feeling when hitchhiking. Anyway, this truck stopped to pick me up in the morning. I said hello in Turkish and asked where they were headed. They wereContinue reading