All posts tagged: Travel

How to eat vegetarian while traveling

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My first foray into eating a vegetarian diet was in college. My vegetarianism lasted about a semester and ended with a bacon feast. Given the limited vegetarian options available in the dining hall, and my sub-par cooking skills, it’s no wonder I didn’t make it past finals week. Fast forward a decade and I decided to give vegetarianism another chance. I was midway through an around the world backpacking trip, and going meat free seemed like a fairly easy choice. Southeast Asia offered plenty of vegetarian street food options, and I wasn’t too keen to eat meat after seeing fly-covered carcasses in outdoor markets, sans refrigeration. Add a general preference for vegetarian food plus concern for the environment and the weird realization that some people in Vietnam ate dogs, but kept pigs as pets… deciding to go meat free was easy. Here’s a few tips for surviving a long term backpacking trip as a vegetarian: Know your local cuisine Depending on where you go in the world, eating vegetarian could be super simple (India) or …

Photo credit: Fabian Von Holzen

How to stay fit and healthy while you travel the world

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After four months of backpacking around Europe and Southeast Asia, the truth was staring at me in the mirror. Were those dimples on my thighs? Yikes. Thanks to a budget backpacker diet that consisted mostly of rice, noodles and fried street food, I had lost lean muscle definition and gained flab. With kale salads, green juices and Whole Foods a far off dream, I knew I had to find a travel lifestyle that was both healthy and sustainable. After all, when you’re on a long term backpacking trip around the world, indulging like you’re on a short-term vacation isn’t doing your body any favors. Over the next few months, I tested out different strategies with the goal of feeling great while traveling. The changes weren’t instant, but I gradually found myself feeling stronger, leaner and more energized. The following eight ideas are my tried-and-true methods for staying fit and healthy while backpacking around the world: 1. Eat fist-sized portions I’m the last person to ever support depriving yourself of food when you’re hungry. Nope, a girl’s gotta …

Why I decided to keep traveling

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‘Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray.’ -Rumi

When I arrived in Bali in early January 2017, I planned to spend five weeks exploring the island of the gods. Little did I know, but my experiences in Bali would change the course of the next year of my life, inspiring a last-minute decision to cancel my return ticket back to California.

8 important lessons I learned from traveling the world

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As I contemplate the last four months of world travel, I realize I’ve learned a lot from the experience of backpacking across Europe and Southeast Asia. I’ve discovered places that eclipsed my wildest imaginings, explored modern cities and ancient ruins, watched sunrises and sunsets with newfound friends, climbed literal and figurative mountains and stripped away layers to reveal a stronger, smarter and braver version of myself.

I know I’ll want to remember a few of the lessons I’ve learned along the way, so here’s eight of the important ones…

Too broke to travel? 7 travel hacks to get you there sooner

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At least once a week, somebody tells me “I wish I could travel too, but I don’t have the money.” Well, guess what?  It’s a lie. Stop telling yourself this convenient story and get out there and start exploring the world. As I write this, I’m cozied up at a hip cafe in Canggu, Bali eating divine vegan food. I drove here on a motorbike I got for free, five minutes from the surf/yoga camp I’m staying at (also for free). This afternoon, I’ll drop in at a discounted yoga class before meeting friends for sunset at the beach. All together, my awesome day will cost less than $15…and it could even be free, if I chose to take advantage of the restaurant back at the camp (but I have a weakness for trendy eateries, which Canggu is overflowing with). So, without further ado, here are seven resources to help you stretch even a small amount of cash into months or even years abroad: Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOFing) Browse hundreds of listings from organic farms …

Pinch me, I’m dreaming…twelve days exploring magical Myanmar

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As 2016 came to an end, I hopped from Vietnam to Myanmar (formerly Burma) to explore this incredible country where ancient tradition is just beginning to meet the modern world. Due to an ongoing civil war, much of the country is still off-limits to foreigners, but a bourgeoning tourism industry and recent democratic elections indicate things are changing rapidly. With cheerful shouts of “Min-ga-la-ba!” (hello) echoing down every street, the friendly and optimistic Burmese people are the true gem of this beautiful country, which sits between Thailand, Laos, China, India and Bangladesh. Myanmar is a diverse place. The country is home to more than 100 ethnic groups, although almost 98 percent of the population identifies as Buddhist. Indeed, there are nearly 500,000 buddhist monks in Myanmar. Whether you are shopping in a bustling market or visiting a temple, the sight of the monks’ saffron robes is a common one. Here’s a few of my favorite photographs (and memories) from the twelve days I spent in beautiful Myanamar. I expected that watching the sunrise over the thousands of ancient …

Ancient temples, island escapes and mountaintop monasteries: 7 days in Greece

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One of the biggest challenges I had while planning my trip to Europe was how to spend seven days in Greece. The ferry connections were bewildering, and since I was visiting in the off-season (November), it was even harder to determine whether certain ferries were running.

This itinerary offers a little bit of everything –the history and awe-inspiring sights of Athens, the scenery and hiking of incredible Meteora, plus the must-see island of Santorini.

Why travel solo? 10 reasons to take on the world by yourself

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I’ll admit it —when I first decided I was going to travel alone through Europe and Southeast Asia, I was terrified. The thought of spending four months by myself, traveling through foreign countries surrounded by a bunch of strangers who didn’t speak the same language sounded…scary. Friends and family telling me how dangerous the world was didn’t help much —according to popular opinion, if I wasn’t killed in a terrorist attack or raped in a dark alley, I would be lucky to arrive back in San Francisco as a travel-hardened survivor of sexual harassment, rampant pickpockets and mosquito-born illness.

Epic hike: the monasteries of Meteora, Greece

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If you ever get the chance to visit the stunning rock formations and monasteries of Meteora, Greece, don’t miss it. Meteora, which literally means “middle of the sky,” “suspended in air,” or “in the heavens” is a region of spectacular monolithic stone pillars in northern Greece. Occupied by monks since the 14th century, the six gravity-defying Greek Orthodox monasteries of Meteora sit high above the village of Kalambaka, offering a vista of Greek religious history, eye-popping scenery and confounding structural engineering. You’ll find yourself wondering, “How on earth did they do that?” at every turn.  Apparently, God doesn’t require a building permit. Getting there There are daily bus connections and trains from Athens, and bus connections to Thessaloniki, Delphi and many other cities in Greece. I recommend using the website Rome2Rio to map out your transportation. If you’re visiting Meteora on the weekend or during high season, it’s smart to book your transportation ahead. Once you arrive in Kalambaka,  it’s a half day hike to visit all of the monasteries via the trail that connects them, …