Two Backpackers

6 Things To Leave Off Your Packing List

| by Ayngelina | 56 Comments » | Guest Post, Travel Gear, Travel Tips, Trip Planning

When you finally take the leap to travel long term, one of the first things on your mind is all the things you think you need to buy for your trip.  The travel gadget industry is making a fortune from us thinking that we have to pack a lifetime of gear into our tiny backpacks.

Pack List

I remember the excitement, scouring the internet for packing lists, creating a ridiculously long and expensive what to pack list.

And before you march to your favourite outdoor adventure store armed with a list of outrageously expensive travel gear you absolutely must have to be a true and authentic backpacker, you may want to rethink these ones. (more…)

Backpacking the Grand Canyon

| by Jason | 18 Comments » | Adventures, North America, United States

Backpacking Classmates

We were looking for a challenging outdoor adventure, but we knew we didn’t exactly have the experience to do it safely on our own.  Once we decided on our destination, the Grand Canyon, we began researching guided hikes and camping.

The Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon is a World Heritage Site which encompasses 1,218,375 acres and lies on the Colorado Plateau in northwestern Arizona.  Our goal was to experience the Canyon to the fullest; that can only be done by hiking to the very bottom.

The Grand Canyon National Park offers a variety of choices to experience the inside of the Canyon; guided tours, mule trips, river trips, hiking and camping.  If you are interested in backpacking and camping on your own, you must acquire a backcountry permit.  The permits are very challenging to obtain due to the volume of requests, but the organizations conducting the guided hikes all have access to those permits. (more…)

Returning Home Culture Shock?

| by Jason | 29 Comments » | Reflections

Getting Up To Speed On Current Events in the US

Since we have returned home the question most often asked of us is, “Do you have culture shock?”  In a close second place is, “What are you going to do now?”  I will address the first one in this article.

“Shock” is an extreme word and feels like an exaggeration to me.  The phrase “Shock and Awe” comes to mind, and since 2024, I have just felt guilty using the term to describe something I have gone through.  Honestly, I am not in anyway shocked since I have returned home, I would just say I am more aware, much more aware. (more…)

How We Paid For A Year Of Travel

| by Aracely | 53 Comments » | Travel Tips, Trip Planning

Working at the Beach in San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua

Perhaps you are expecting me to reveal a secret formula or quick way to make money that gives you the means to travel round the world for a year.  I’m sorry, we do not have one.

You might also enjoy reading… Can Blogging Pay for My Travels?

It’s similar to asking a trainer or nutritionist what’s the best way to loose weight and their response is always, “eat healthy and exercise,” uh, what a bummer.  Who wants to do that!  We never want to do the work we just want to bask in the results. (more…)

Budget Travel: The Good, Bad, And The Ugly

| by Aracely | 43 Comments » | Reflections

Cocktails At Playa Blanca Colombia

It seems all of us in the travel blogging community agree that travel is good.  The majority of posts that are produced within the industry are intended to  either sell the reader on the idea that travel is one of the most amazing activities one can partake-in and that they too should travel, or momentarily take them into a world of travel fantasy (as Gary Arndt from Everything-Everywhere.com likes to put it, travel porn.)  In both cases, the story of travel is almost always good.  However, there is indeed a bad and ugly side to travel, more specifically, to budget travel.

There are different styles of travel and each gives the traveler a completely different experience.  Usually, the type of style can be defined by how much money is being spent on that experience.  For example, a luxurious trip to a five star hotel in Rome will be completely different than backpacking through Southeast Asia.  That said, the following issues apply to a budget traveler and only to most places of the world, mainly to the less developed world. (more…)

10 Lessons Learned While Traveling

| by Aracely | 49 Comments » | Reflections, Travel Tips

Jason Jumping Over a Land Cruiser on the Uyuni, Bolivia Salt Flats

It is hard to believe it has been 270 days (9 whole months) that we have been on the road.  Nine months of moving around, nine months of living out of our backpacks, nine months of not seeing family and friends, of hostels, of street food, of meeting strangers, of making friends, nine whole months of travel.  The worst for me has been the nine months of worrying about where I last left my passport.

We have definitely traveled further, taken more pictures, and had many more adventures and mishaps since our 6 Month Summary.  This time around we would like to share a few pictures that you would normally not get to see, and with them some important lessons learned while on the road. (more…)

6 Month Travel Summary

| by Aracely | 9 Comments » | Reflections, Travel by Numbers, Travel Tips, Trip Planning

Ecuador to Peru Border Crossing

On August 27, 2024 we boarded a plane to Guatemala City, Guatemala, the beginning of our year long round the world journey. As of today we have been on the road for 180 days, half our planned trip. Below is a summary of interesting statistics and experiences from our travels through Central and South America.
(more…)