What’s below?

• What’s on the site?
• A (Somewhat) Brief History of My Travels
• Why have I started a blog?
• Future Plans
• How I approach travel
• Why always Europe?
• Where are you going?
• Tell me what you want to see

What’s on the site?

• Stories of my weird and wonderful adventures, connecting with people and exploration.
• Fantastic cities, abandoned places and vistas that could make you weep.
• Thoughts and advice on everything I’ve leant on how to travel successfully; not just solo and on a budget.
• An honest account of it all.

Currently I prefer backpacking/budget travel. As a traveller we’re always learning; visiting these pages you’ll get to see and learn from my successes and (most importantly) my mistakes. I don’t have all of the answers but I’ll let you know as soon as I figure them out; whether it be to pick the odd-numbered seat on Ukrainian sleeper trains or how the seasons affect what you need to pack, it’ll all be on here.

The plan is to give you an insight into what life is like in each country and provide the tools to visit for yourself and have your own adventures.

A (Somewhat) Brief History of My Travels

At university my friends planned a four week interrailing trip through central Europe and I joined them for two weeks starting in Prague. Never having left the UK it opened my eyes to new adventures and experiences; I’ve been hooked ever since. My first ever flight was solo and I had to navigate to and around the city where I’d meet my friends in a few days to come. I loved every second of it. As soon as I returned I started to think about where I would go next.

My course was pretty demanding so I couldn’t take a week off to get away but I realised that I could have a weekend city break; the question was to where? I narrowed it to Europe to find a cheap flight, pulled up a map, closed my eyes and wherever my finger landed I’d go - Stockholm it was. I asked a few friends to join me but it was during term time and at short notice no one came. I booked the flight on the Wednesday and flew on the Friday. This was the start of something awesome.

From then on I would save money I earned working part time as a teaching assistant and found cheap flights across Europe to go away whenever I had the chance. At a hostel on my second solo trip to Copenhagen I fell into a whirlwind romance which continued for the next two years and was the primary reason for moving to Australia. Six months after moving to Melbourne it didn’t work out and I reached a rare point in one’s life: all of my responsibilities ended simultaneously. I finished my job contract, our landlord wanted the apartment back and newly single I was left with the burning question: what next? Well.. travel!! It was as clear to me as the Adriatic. I had an overwhelming curiosity and thirst for adventure which I could now explore.

I cycled the Great Ocean Road and spent the next three months touring Australia; as winter set in I flew back to Europe to walk 750km across Spain on the Camino de Santiago (Camino del Norte).

This is when I become solidified in the travelling lifestyle.

After a month's continuous hike, throwing tomatoes at strangers in Buñol and another exploring more of Spain, I arrived in the Balkans where I’d spend the next three months learning about the former Yugoslavia and what lies in southern Europe.

A few months later I was back out again but this time in Romania and Moldova where I met up with a close friend; we visited the autonomous region Transnistria, which is a self proclaimed state stuck in the Soviet times (intentionally). Next up was three months in Ukraine where I cautiously entered the conflict zone Donetsk to see first hand what it was like for people living in a warzone under ceasefire and it could possibly be emerging state.

And then some…

Why have I started a blog?

1. For me - Originally I wrote everything in a Moleskine notebook and I wanted a record of the journey to look back on in the future; an account of all the adventures and wonderful people that I’ve met. To document the thoughts and feelings of challenging myself and experiencing the world beyond the average day to day.

   From the notebook I upgraded to sharing the story EVERYDAY on Instagram. My friends enjoyed reading it and slowly the account grew to 10,000 at which point I was sure that I was onto something.




2. For you - I want to share everything that I have learnt to help you make the best of every trip. To go beyond travel guides and share the knowledge that’ll help you grow as an independent traveller, with the tools to go anywhere and do anything.

   One aim is to show that no matter what your budget you can travel; I lived off $3/day for 6 weeks and had an unforgettable experience.




3. For everyone - No matter what your interests, whether it be to read stories of adventure and connecting with people in far-away places, or practical advice and information on short or long-term travel, there’ll be plenty of thoughts and information here.

   The ultimate aim is a source of entertainment and information. Tell me what you want to read and where your interests lie and I’ll do my best to deliver.



4. The story - I really enjoy storytelling, I just love it. I never knew how much I enjoyed sharing the tales until I started consistently writing about it all using Instagram; I’d frequently exceed the character limit of the platform! But the things I share there are a fraction of the tale and it doesn’t provide me with the format to write about what can help people begin or develop as travellers.

Future Plans

Right now I’m working full-time on producing articles and books on what I have experienced and learnt. Some of them are fun and lighthearted but others are very real, hard hitting situations like visiting the conflict zone in Donetsk.

Travel
Currently I have a fascination with Eastern Europe and will most likely visit Belarus and the Baltics. I’m also very curious about the Caucasus so my general direction is east. It’s more of a case of how much time do I have and what can I afford. Eventually I’ll get to them all (I hope!).

Website
Expect many many articles, photo galleries and possibly some books. I have enough ideas to produce content for the next few years. Over time this will become a repository for travel knowledge, wisdom and stories.

How I approach travel

People say not to plan and let life happen whilst on the road. This isn’t the best answer for me but it could be for you. By that I mean I need a mix of both. If you have two weeks and go with the flow it’ll be amazing, but I’m trying to dig deep and travel to learn as much as I can and experience all there is - which requires research.

I heavily research a country before visiting and make a rough route to follow which will change within a few days of arriving. Meeting locals and other travellers gives new insight and opportunities which influence what I’ll do. I plan month at a time which country I’ll be in and then roughly by week which city I’ll visit; it can change at a moments notice (unless I’ve agreed to meet a friend).

One of my aims is for you to click on a country tab and always see multiple destinations; not just the capital. From the style I have chosen I cannot truly experience or see a country by visiting one place; for an introduction I like to spend a month or more exploring and then I can share with you where I’d visit again and what were the highlights.

Sometimes you’ll see friends come along for an adventure or I’ll join up with people I meet on the road; it’s predominantly solo travel but that's not a rule - I really enjoy having friends come along. It’s not an unattainable crazy adventure lifestyle and if someone wants to join me I more than often say yes.

Why always Europe?

It’s not!! I started in Australia but that’s ancient history. People always ask why don’t I go further to South East Asia or the Americas and to me it’s quite simple; have you seen how big Europe is? There are 50 countries and over a half-dozen autonomous states within Europe!! I think that’ll keep me busy for a while.

Where are you going?

Hopefully to a blog entry or to read a little of my travel diary.

I am genuinely interested in where you want to go in the world and why. If it’s for a holiday, great! Have fun, kick back and relax. If it’s to explore ancient ruins, hike a mountain or free dive into the blue let's talk about it. The best way to learn about the world is to talk to those in it. I bet you’ve been to a heap of places I haven’t; even if it’s your hometown, you’ll be an expert on somewhere. Let’s share knowledge and ideas.

Tell me what you want to see

What would you like to read about and in particular, what information are you curious of that’s hard to find? Talk to me about what you're interested in and I'll try to deliver.

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