Vagabond-style travel revives the soul

Naturally, much has unfolded on our journey since I last wrote 11 days ago, but to sum up what we have done since then: we have hitchhiked/hiked over 600 kilometers and camped out in our tent for most of these nights, cooked ourselves one meal per day over a campfire, hitched some extremely memorable and fun car-rides from all different types of people from all over the world, hung out underneath 2 beautiful, massive waterfalls, conquered the eastfjords, hiked up a 1000 meter crater, eaten approximately 2 jars of peanut butter by the spoonful, stumbled upon a thriving community vegetable garden during one of our walks and feasted on all types of organic green goods, and we have connected with some of the most kindred, beautiful human beings on Earth.

Right now we are couchsurfing in a town called Hofn (pronounced "Hup"... this language is crazy)  which lies on the southeast coast. Our host is Agata, a 19 year-old girl who moved here from Poland last year. Her flat is so warm and cozy-- it's the perfect escape from all this rainy weather we've had lately. Agata has this incredible, contagious energy, it's such a blessing that we got to stay with her. She is so independent and her story is so inspiring, she told us that she spent June-August of 2011 hitchhiking alone from Poland to Denmark (she slept on benches at petrol stations everynight!) then she took the ferry from Denmark to Iceland so that she could work here for 2 years, she plans to go back home to her family in 2013. She is hosting us even though she works 12-hour shifts 6 days a week (no joke! this chick is hardworking) at the Hotel down the road. She got home at midnight last night and we all stayed up until 2:00 am sharing stories of our adventures and the random acts of kindness that we've encountered along the way. 

We all agreed that Vagabond-style travel (traveling minimally and simply and spontaneously and free of plans and expectations) has the ability to reveal the most beautiful face of life and humanity to you-- when you trust 100% that the universe will take care of you in an unfamiliar place, it's as if the universe conspires to make the most unpredictable, magical and beautiful things align themselves to happen just for YOU!

on an island, in a fjord, on an island

I can hardly contain my excitement over where I am in this exact moment... we are on Hrisey Island couchsurfing with a wonderful, kindred (fisher)man for the next couple of nights and we are having an amazing time! We arrived to his house last night after 6 hours of driving, 2 hours of hitch-hiking, and a freezing/fun ferry ride. This place is ridiculously beautiful and perfect in every way. Vidir is the name of our host, he lives alone in his massive, beautiful house and has a huge hot tub on his patio with a great view of the snow-capped mountains. He is so warm and hospitable; he told us that last week he had 19 couchsurfers staying with him at once! Last night there were seven of us here: a girl and a guy from germany, a guy from italy, a lady from columbia, the two of us, and Vidir. Vidir provided the fish for dinner, and the Italian guy, Luc, cooked it and we all gathered around the huge dinner table and ate together. Afterwards, we all got in the hot tub and soaked and talked until well past midnight. I love all of these people! This morning we hiked around the island... these are some of the photos we snapped...

 

How to travel the world for free! (or on an extremely minimal budget)

How do I know this is possible? Because I've done it myself!!


The number one misconception people have about travel is that you need a lot of money to do it, but that is completely and utterly untrue! When you are in an unfamiliar place all you need is a roof (or something of the sort) over your head to protect you from bad weather, some clean water to drink when you are thirsty, some food when you are hungry, a place to sleep when you are tired, and happiness! Although we are conditioned to believe that (most of) these things always cost money, there are plenty of ways to obtain these things for free.


Of course, our method of travel isn't for everyone, but we find it to be much more of an adventure when money is taken out of the picture. So, here are some tips so that you can get started on your free travels!


1. Couchsurfing is one of our favorites. The best part isn't even that this organization hooks you up with a free place to sleep for the night, but rather that this site allows you to connect with locals in the area where you are traveling and helps create lifelong memories and friends. Set up your free profile now and browse the profiles of hosts in the destination of your dreams, then GO! Members indicate on their profiles if they have room for you to stay a night with them (or two, or three, or four, or even for a month.. really!) There are also references from previous surfers that you can review while you're deciding who to stay with. We've created a rainbow of experiences through couchsurfing, and all of them have been incredibly positive! We've done all sorts of things with couchsurfing hosts all over the world from swimming with dolphins in the open ocean to living on a commune for a month in Costa Rica to snorkeling in the most beautiful coral reefs in Hawaii to spending a morning driving around the Icelandic countryside to riding Icelandic horses on beaches to just connecting over a cup of tea for hours :) When you are done with your travels, you can host travelers at your home and show them around!


2. WWOOF and HelpX list a range of opportunities for travelers ALL over the world! Through these sites you will find an array of homestays, farmstays, B&B's, lodges, hostels, etc., who offer free food and shelter in exchange for volunteer work; you can do long or short stays. We have used both of these organizations before and our experiences have been so wonderful!


3. Bring your tent when you travel. Then, find the most beautiful spot you can and pitch it. Camping is free and so much fun!


4. Buy your food from grocery stores and cook it yourself! Eating out really adds up fast. Most hostels/campsites will allow campers to use their kitchens for free. If there isn't a kitchen nearby, find some kindling and build a campfire to cook over. Just make sure you remember to bring your cooking pots and pans.


5. Or better yet... Forage for your food! This is definitely easiest to do when you are in the tropics and surrounded by fruit/coconut trees in all directions, but even if you are not, there are edible plants, berries, and grasses everywhere and bodies of water with loads of fish.Just make sure you remember your edible plants guide and your hand reel.We once filled up a backpack with 40 pounds of avocados in Hawaii from a tree we stumbled across in the jungle!


6. Hitchhiking. Transportation costs can add up fast. Hitchhiking has a bad rep for being sketchy, so do this with a friend and use your best judgement before hopping in the car with anyone. But you will find that most of the time it is the kindest, most caring people who will scoop you.


7. Stay close to nature. Cities require money because they are built on money. When you are in nature, you are free, and so is everything around you.


8. Believe in the law of attraction, and know that you are free! So play the part, and leave your possessions behind. Don't worry about bringing a ton of clothes, you won't need them. If you are worried about what you will do when they get dirty, don't-- you can always hand-wash them in a sink, and hang them on a line to dry, simple! Travel light, live light.


9. Hike, swim, explore, discover. Cliches must hold enough truth to stick around for as long as they do-- the best things in life really are free! Avoid tourist traps, you can find activities wherever you are that are free and are just as much fun as the ones that cost loads of money.


10. 11. 12. Have an open mind! (Beggars can't be choosers...) Smile often! (It will attract magical things in your direction) And practice the powers of manifestation! (Ask and you shall receive)


Most importantly, have fun!




An Egyptian man we met in Costa Rica told us "The amount of money you have doesn't matter, it's all in how you manage it."