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."

Creating your own reality through manifestation and trusting the universe, 100%

Some of the most valuable lessons we've learned through our travels are to let go (of fears, negative thought patterns, money insecurities, etc...) and to trust that the universe has our backs, always. It's fundamental and essential to be in a constant state of knowing that everything will unfold naturally and perfectly along the way... even without our ego's constant interference... gasp! ;)

Also-- to realize that we are constantly manifesting absolutely everyone around us, everything that surrounds us and everything that we experience in this 3-dimensional reality-- that is important, too.

Once you become consciously aware that you are in complete control of creating every moment of your own reality, a dimensional shift takes place-- you are all of a sudden responsible for everything that you experience (including your emotions-- so, don't worry, be happy!) and the physical plane that once felt so dense and so solid begins to feel a whole lot lighter. You might realize that the possibilities truly are infinite, that we do live in a benevolent, joyful, beautiful universe, and that experimenting with conscious manifestation can be a lot of fun!

Isn't the meaning of life, after all, to enjoy it?

__________________________________

Things have really unfolded on our journey since my last entry:

Last Thursday Davi dropped us off in the center of Reykjavik. The city is incredible, definitely the most beautiful and the cleanest one I've ever visited. (I'll be posting pictures asap, unfortunately the connection is too weak to do it at the moment.) We had a great time walking around the city sightseeing and reading our books at cafes for most of the day. We pitched our tent behind a hostel and camped out for the night, it was great. When we woke up on Friday we decided to take a bus to a small town 15 km outside of the city called Mosfellsbaer, where we could be closer to nature. The town was magical! And the gigantic mountains that we could see in the distance were stunning. After pitching our tent on the most beautiful hillside, we got pizza and explored the town until midnight with the sun shining down on us the whole time. The following day we hiked around the area for hours, we spent time at waterfalls, next to rivers, in green fields and in horse pastures. That night we made a tiny little campfire in one of the fields to cook our dinner over, we made carrot/lentil soup. When we woke up on Sunday it was raining, luckily we had previously arranged to pack up and leave later on that day to go to a girl's house who we found on couchsurfing, Evelyn. The bus ride was only about 30 minutes, and we got dropped off right in front of her house on the beach. We arrived to Evelyn's house soaking wet from the rain and she instantly welcomed us into her home and offered to make us dinner; we ate a soupy, spicy mixture of beans and yams on spelt tortillas, it was delicious! She moved here from Switzerland a few years ago to teach kindergarten; she is adorable and hilarious and her precious accent makes conversations that much more fun (especially when she asks us things like "So, what is your village like in Virginia... are there dangerous animals there, in your forest?" We instantly connected with her and staying at her house feels the same as spending the night at a good friend's. Today we lounged around for most of the day drinking tea and reading, when the sky cleared up around 3 we went for a walk down the coastline for hours. I've never seen so much tumbled sea glass on a beach in my life! I'm excited that now I have a super colorful collection. When we got back to her house after the walk, Tristan and I made dinner for everyone-- spicy carrot/lentil/sweetpotato/coconut milk soup! Evelyn seemed to enjoy it and it was super satisfying after a long cold walk. After dinner Evelyn offered to take us horseback riding on the beach with one of her horses; we were out there until 11:00 pm it was INCREDIBLE! I will definitely be posting pictures soon...

Arctic paradise

Our plane landed in Keflavik around 6:20 am yesterday morning. As soon as I stepped out of the airport and took my first breath of fresh, arctic air, I instantly knew I was exactly where I was supposed to be in that moment. There is something so magical and so still about the arctic that you really can't grasp through understanding, it's more of a feeling that you have to experience by being here. I've felt that sense of magic since that first breath I took yesterday morning.

Davi, our couchsurfing host, picked us up from the airport bright and early. He is seven feet tall with ice blue eyes, bleach blonde hair and a gigantic smile. He asked us if we'd like to take the scenic route back to his home. We couldn't think of anything we'd like more. The Icelandic countryside we drove through was breathtaking, unlike any country-side I'd ever seen before, which is saying a lot since I spend most of my time in the country-side back home. There is a thick layer of squishy, green moss covering the ground all over, lots of hills, and mountains to be seen in the distance and the furriest sheep I've ever seen in my life.

The weather is pleasantly chilly here. Blue skies are all we've seen so far and the sun has continued to shine day and night, which is quite the spectacle.

Iceland is the only country in the world with a 100% literacy rate; also, EVERYONE is bilingual, which is handy because Icelandic is a super complex language. The people here are different from those back home, they are generally very enthusiastic about life, friendly, and you never see them in a hurry. Life is slowed down here, this country vibrates on a different frequency, which is refreshing. You can actually feel the slowed-down frequency-shift when you're walking around the city, it's a soothing feeling, and it puts the excitement back into each moment.

We spent most of yesterday lounging around on moss beds (which are actually way more comfortable than man-made beds) and exploring the small town of Keflavik on foot. We bought some fresh, baked goods from a nearby "bakari" and spent time with our host family, their kids, and their amazing dog, Rosa. 

Soon after waking up today we began trekking to the Blue Lagoon (about 20 km or 12 miles from our host's home.) After a pit-stop at the bakari and another 20 minutes of walking with our thumbs out, a man driving an Icelandic Candy truck stopped to pick us up. He offered to drop us off right at the entrance of the Blue Lagoon and bidded us farewell with some Icelandic candy, it couldn't have worked out better. The Blue Lagoon is spectacular... not even worth trying to describe in words, I'll just post the pictures. We spent the entire day there, the water is an incredible shade of turquoise and the temperature stays at a consistent 100 degrees year-round. There is silica mud in the lagoon that you can use as a face-mask, it is supposed to have healing properties, but mostly it's just fun. If it weren't for the pricey entrance fee, I'd want to go everyday.

Travel light, live light, spread the light, be the light.

So time has been whizzing by at this crazy-fast, accelerating speed in 2012... and suddenly, out of nowhere, we only have 5 days left until we begin our 90-day backpacking trip/homestay in Iceland!!

I have never, ever, ever been more excited about anything in my entire life.

Lots of people have asked us the same question since we bought our plane tickets two months ago: "Why Iceland?" Yeah, it's a completely random place to visit, but every facet of this place is freakin' beautiful!! WHy not!?

Watch this video, and maybe it will help you understand why we were guided to go here, and why we are SO STOKED about it.



We don't have much of an "itinerary" for this trip. Spontaneity is the key to our traveling; learning to let go, go with the flow, and trusting that the universe has super-magical things in store for us behind every door we open is the main idea.

Our rudimentary plan for this trip: We will be landing at the international airport in Keflavik (a town 40 miles outside of Reykjavik) around 7:00 am on July 24. We have already arranged to couchsurf with a lovely family in Keflavik for the first two nights. The Blue Lagoon is in Keflavik, so we will definitely be spending one of our days there. The third day is when we will begin our big trek. The first 3 weeks of our trip will be spent hitchhiking 386 km to the most northernly city in the country, Akureyri. While on the road, we plan on couch-surfing and camping out in our tent everynight. Hostels aren't really our thing, and we're looking forward to spending lots of quality time with good ol' mother nurture. We hope to make it to Akureyri by August 10, which is when we've arranged to begin our home stay with an amazing family that we found through the organization helpx.  The family has invited us to stay with them for 2 months; they have an Icelandic horse farm, which we will be in charge of tending to in exchange for meals and a room to stay in.

We are not bringing much "stuff" with us on this trip: one backpack each, a tent, a sleeping bag, some blankets, some food, and lots of thick, fuzzy socks.

Our main goals and aspirations for this trip include: to live in the moment, to live simply and minimally, to camp underneath the northern lights and the midnight sun as often as we can, to connect with the people of Iceland and their culture, to spend as much time as possible visiting the many natural wonders of this country (volcanoes, geysers, waterfalls, glaciers, mountains, etc) and to befriend an elf...