The minute I realised I could say No and
people would still say Hey and share their
embarrassing stories with me the next day
was liberating ? I mean some of them were so
drunk I could have pretended I was there.
Say No if you don?t want to do something.
You came out on this trip to do you, so do
you. I can promise you are probably not
missing anything you can?t do at some other
stage.
People actually respect you a little more.
You?ll do things you actually want to and
enjoy yourself a whole tonne more.
COMMUNICATIONISALOTMORETHAN
SPOKENWORDS,SOMETIMESIT?SDANCING
OUTWHATYOUWANTORSIMPLYMAKING
CHICKENNOISES?..
I?ve travelled to more than 25 countries ?
which is insane when I think about it ? and
every single one is completely different from
one another ? as you?d expect right?
A language barrier is a challenge yes, but it
should never be a reason not to go
somewhere. It should never be a negative, I
mean, English is my first (and only language)
and I completely take advantage of that. The
majority of native English speakers will
never learn another language?
Yet as I travel around the world I meet
people from all over the world, from all
walks of life, from the ridiculously pool to
the extremely rich and they all give English
(or another language) a shot.
So don?t be af raid t o compl et el y
immerse yoursel f in a dif f erent
cul t ure wit h a dif f erent l anguage, t ry
t o l earn some of t heir l anguage?
Ot herwise t he next best opt ion is
hand gest ures, dances, pret t y much
?hey, l et ?s pl ay charades?, you?l l
become pret t y popul ar pret t y f ast .
WHENEVERI NEEDTHEM,MYFRIENDSAND
FAMILYBACKHOMEDON?TACTUALLYFEEL
LIKEAMILLIONMILESAWAY?.
One of my biggest f ears was get t ing home
sick and want ing t o come home. Which
woul d not be an easy choice or opt ion
considering I?m l it eral l y t he f urt hest away
f rom home I coul d possibl y get .
At home I would speak to my Dad every
other day, my sisters and I were close and
were like my best friends, my mum was
always around as I lived with her and my best
friend and I ? although in different cities ?
talked every day, went on holidays together,
made plans and saw each other when we
could.
I still talk to my best friend almost every day.
It?s amazing how you forget when you go
travelling technology doesn?t become
non-existent. In Asia it was tricky but a nice
break. In New Zealand, I have a Sim Card,
with data, just like home. AMAZING.
If I need a chat I can call, text, Skype,
Facebook, snapchat my way back into their
lives.
So even though I?m 13hrs ahead on the other
side of the world, everyone I need from
home is still there when I need them.
YOUTHINKYOUWILLBUDGET,BUTIN
FACT,YOUWILLPROBABLYTOTALLY
FORGETANDSPENDTHEMAJORITYOF
YOURMONEYALOTFASTERTHAN
INITIALLYPLANNED?
Unless you are Insanely good at forward
planning ? or can predict the future ? I can
guarantee that once you get going, after
(max) two weeks, your budget will start to
fall apart a little bit.
Sure you will have weeks when you spend
almost nothing, live off ramen noodles and
soy sauce, hitch hiking your way around or
sleeping in the cheapest hostels. But you?ll
also have weeks where you try the local