It’s something people have strong opinions on – should you wear activewear casually, in public. Should you wear lycra onto a plane? Personally, I’m a fan.
Activewear is the best travel wardrobe ever created, and I’m not ashamed to say it; leggings and a sports bra are the perfect clothes to travel in. It’s called athleisure, and while Paris your gym clothes might spark reactions from certain cliques, I probably think the same of women wearing stilettos to explore as they do of me (though kudos to their pain threshold – seriously!!).
Active wear is built to be comfy, easy to wash, odor resistant, and means you can pack less. Fabrics can take a beating while still looking fresh, and wearing it is practical, versatile and effortless. So when I’m asked ‘should you wear active wear while traveling?’ my response is a resouding ‘Hell Yes!’.
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One of the joys of travel is being able to directly contribute to the economies of the communities we visit, and shopping locally has always been a great way to do this.
It’s the joy of stumbling across charming little shops selling handmade jewelry and clothing you literally couldn’t find anywhere else. And seeing the joy on the face of the artisan when they make a sale.
There’s nothing quite like buying something directly from the hands that made it, and knowing that the community from which it came will be benefiting from 100% of the profits.
We often associate online shopping with faceless corporations, which is the complete opposite to the concept of buying locally, but given the current pandemic climate, more and more local businesses have started moving online.
While we’ve been forced to cancel our travel plans, and isolate in our own homes, the shopfronts we would have been buying our souvenirs from have been forced to close.
Online shopping has become the solution to supporting the communities we would have been contributing to, and still collecting our souvenirs and taste of other cultures even when we can’t leave home.
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Gone are the good old days where you could get away with cramming anything and everything into your luggage. Airlines worldwide are really cracking down on excess baggage lately, decreasing both the size and weight of baggage allowances.
Many airlines have begun charging for even a single checked bag and recently even carryon bags come with a fee. They say these changes are to ensure passenger safety, but whether this is true or simply revenue raising, there’s not much we can do!
We’ve all seen some of the crazy and ingenious hacks designed by fellow travellers to beat the system. From stuffing a suitcase worth of belongings into a large bulky jacket to wearing a half a dozen layers of clothing, there are many ways to sneak a bit more onboard than you’re allowed to.
In a perfect world we would be allowed to take whatever we want with us travelling, which begs the question; what would you take if there were no luggage restrictions and you had infinite space?!
This is my list …
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We’ve seen a particularly bad season of the travel bug this year; latest statistics reveal that the contagious disease continues to spread rapidly to the point where we may be facing a worldwide epidemic.
A highly infectious condition that leads to addiction, the travel bug threatens to broaden the mind and enrich the soul. It doesn’t discriminate, and threatens to take hold of people from all walks of life, both young, and old.
The highly addictive nature of this condition has led scientists to believe that there is no cure. So we have compiled a list of the warning signs that you, or someone you love, may be affected.
If you can identify with all 21, you may be too far gone.
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Travel is fun and exciting, and typically increases your happiness levels before, during and after the adventure.
Before your trip, a powerful source of joy is the anticipation in planning your adventure. Booking your trip, purchasing cool travel bags, and thinking about everything you will do has been proven to increase happiness for the days and weeks leading up to a trip through delayed gratification.
And of course there’s no doubt that during your travels you’re naturally excited, appreciative, less stressed, and more present; all emotions and states of being that lead to feelings of happiness.
Though what may surprise you is that it is increasingly noted that the changes experienced while traveling can last far longer than it takes for your tan to fade.
Traveling hаѕ a number of long lasting bеnеfitѕ on mental, emotional and physical health that can increase your overall level of happiness.
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Solo travel is an incredible, life changing experience, and I look back on my experiences as a solo traveler with extreme fondness. But like anything in life, travel has its ups and downs, and one particular experience that you’re also likely to encounter is loneliness.
Each of us is likely to experience loneliness in everyday life, but we rarely expect it when we’re traveling. Or for those of us who do expect it, the terrifying thought is what keeps you from getting on the plane.
And when the feeling inevitably creeps in, we feel uncomfortable talking about it, almost like it’s ungrateful to feel lonely while you’re on the trip of a lifetime.
I’ve heard travelers say things like they shouldn’t feel lonely because they’re in Paris. Or who wants to hear from a friend who is struggling with depression while vacationing on a gorgeous beach?
But it’s time to put an end to the notion that exciting cities or lovely scenery act as a magical force-field to loneliness, because it’s not true. Acknowledging that you’re allowed to feel lonely when you’re traveling is extremely important, because it then empowers you to beat it.
And you can beat it.
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As I’m sure you can imagine, telling my family and friends that I planned to travel solo for 12 months was met with considerable concern. A bright-eyed but relatively naive 18-year-old, I was fresh out of high school, and a number of relatives who believed the trip was irresponsible launched a full-scale campaign to stop me (their efforts were in vain).
But after having extensively traveled at 18 & 19, I would actually argue the opposite. I would argue that encouraging travel is one of the most responsible things you can do for a girl in her teens.
If I have one regret from my teenage years it’s that I didn’t travel sooner. So whether you’re a teenage girl yourself, or a parent wondering if you should send your daughter overseas, from personal experience, the following are 7 compelling reasons why every girl should travel in their teens.
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Ever since same-sex marriage was legalized in the Netherlands in 2001 (props to the Netherlands for always being at the front of progressive change), the legalization of same-sex marriage has snowballed throughout the world.
28 countries (26 with another two pending) now legally recognize the right for same sex couples to marry, so if you’re part of the LGBTQI community, and want to travel, live overseas, or plan a destination wedding, these countries will recognize your right.
More than 760 million people now live in countries where same-sex marriage is legal, and I encourage all travelers to support those countries at the forefront of equality and recognition of human rights. I also have one thing to say to my own country, in a slogan they coined: Australia, where the bloody hell are you?
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It’s always difficult to resist the urge to purchase a brand new iPhone or a snazzy watch, but there are many reasons why you should put that credit card away.
In addition to saving your money for a rainy day, spending large amounts of money on material goods is often deemed as unnecessary. Why you may ask? Well, there have been many experiments conducted that prove spending money on experiences instead of things result in more overall happiness.
Here are a couple of reasons why you should forget about the latest fashion or accessories and spend your hard-earned cash on travelling.
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I’ve been avoiding the words “permanent base” for a good two years now. Even though that’s exactly how we’ve been living, I’ve been avoiding the phrase like the plague.
And in a way, it might be because I was ashamed. Ashamed of trading in a life of full time travel when being a digital nomad is all the craze. Worried I wouldn’t be seen as a “real traveler” if we weren’t living the lifestyle every single day. Anxious that we would be judged by pretentious travelers, because we weren’t traveling in the right way.
But there is no right or wrong way to travel, and I reject the notion that we should compare the way we experience the world to other people and worry if it measures up. Travel is a personal journey and an individual experience, and it really doesn’t matter where your travel style falls in the whole tourist vs traveler debate.
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In an ideal world, everyone would have enough money to travel. But in reality that’s not the case. And for many people, their best option for travel is taking out a personal loan.
And in many situations there’s nothing wrong with that. Personal loans are a great way to reach a short term goal, and with better interest rates than credit cards, are a much safer way to fund your holiday. However you do need to approach this sensibly. Banks see the yawning gap between reality and aspirations as a tremendous opportunity, and you need to be smart enough to borrow responsibly.
So if you’re considering taking out a personal loan for travel, make sure you’ve understood the following.
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It was a seemingly endless campaign that was at times very aggressive and bad tempered. Accusations flew between the two sides, there was even a battle of flotillas outside the Houses of Parliament. And, eventually, the unthinkable did happen against all the odds and the UK voted to leave the EU.
In the aftermath of this seismic shift there’s a great deal to be resolved, not least when the country will actually have to leave the EU. Some effects have already been felt although whether these are just temporary blips is a matter of debate. What is more certain is that once the split has occurred there will be many areas of life that will be affected.
A key one will be travel within the EU and there have been certain predictions about precisely how it could be affected.
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There is something that has been weighing on my mind recently. I’m sure most people with access to social media have seen the plethora of negative statements people are making about Muslims and Islam.
For the past year in the United States we’ve been seeing an upsurge in the animosity towards Muslims and the Islamic faith. Yes, this has been happening for over a decade now, but now that we’re accepting more refugees and increasing the Muslim presence in our country, the rhetoric has changed.
But before you write your next “Muslims are the scum of the earth” comment or share that hate-filled blog post, perhaps you should think about what you’re doing. Because, honestly, you’re saying the same things the terrorists are and, from where I’m sitting, you’re not much different from them.
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