I rarely visit the UK for tourism. It’s been ages since I worked there. I treat London as a transfer city and I sometimes change planes there. I’ve never been to Cornwall before and my only visit lasted no more than 12 hours and yet I consider it one of the most valuable travel lessons learnt. The first thought that comes to mind is: how on earth you are able to learn anything in such a short time? And I must say that I am the first to be skeptical so let me tell you my story. I went to Cornwall for one reason: to accompany my niece. She is minor so she needed an adult in order to travel. So we went together to London and continued our journey further west. We finally reached our destination: a small town in Cornwall where she spent a week with a British family to develop her linguistic skills. Before I left her I spent the entire day with the family who lives there and this was one of the best days in my life as a traveler. First, we received a warm welcome at the airport despite a horrible weather and a 45 minutes delay. Kate was waiting for us and although we have never met before we recognized each other in a second. We started a conversation that lasted until evening. She took us home where we met the whole family: her husband Andy and their four kids. And what a family they have! Do you know the feeling of being at home away from home? This is how we felt when we entered their house. We had a quick bite (scones with cream) and went for a walk. In a pouring rain, we visited a spectacular site: rocky cliffs and old mine remains. We had ice creams, we watched surfers, and we talked. Despite the weather, it was fun! Being with them was like a SPA for our souls. Gentle people who simply care for each other and for their guests made this day memorable. Through a conversation, laugh, endless stories and the way they treated us we felt like we wanted to stay in Cornwall forever. They told us about their everyday life, school, work, friends, family life and entertainment provided by this small corner of the world, with a true delight. Happy people living in a lovely place! I had an impression that they discovered the most important secret of life: being happy in a place where you are and at the time that is given to you. Eating dinner together with this family was a treat! I had to leave the very same day but I felt I learnt a lot about life, people and traveling. Cornwall became a land full of peace, joy, and happiness. Even if it was raining all day I remembered it as the sunniest part of the world. I felt blessed and happy that my niece stayed with them for the whole week, having the best holiday ever. I can’t wait to meet them again. Lesson learnt? It is not always possible to stay in one place for a long time for a variety of reasons but when it is not possible focus on people. They are one of the best “medium” of culture. They will tell you more about life in a place than a guidebook and they will grab your hand and show you the best places on earth: a happy home full of love. It’s priceless!  

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Meet Dan: he is an experienced runner and today he shares his tips on how to manage running while treveling. If you’re keen to travel the world as much as I am, there are obviously some important considerations worth taking into account before you begin your sojourn. You’ve probably already thought about the places you’d like to go visit, the must-see landmarks you don’t want to miss, where you’ll be staying, or even how you’re going to finance your worldwide travels. All of that goes without saying. However, something that many world travellers should be doing — but likely aren’t — is to think about their health over the course of their travels. Sure, you want to savor the locals’ eats and drinks, but what are you planning to do for your fitness routine while you’re on the go? Not everywhere you go will have a state-of-the-art gym, and it’s unlikely that you’re going to travel somewhere with your favorite spin bike in your bag. What’s an activity that you can do anywhere, at virtually any time (with safety precautions in mind, of course), and one that requires minimal equipment? In other words, what’s a perfect activity for you to maintain while you’re travelling? The answer: running. Below, I’ll provide some quick and easy tips for how you can manage your running habit while traveling. Do some research There is definitely some fun and added value to exploring your new locales by foot, but before venturing into the great unknown, it’ll behove you to do at least a tiny bit of research. More than anything, you’ll want to do this for your own safety. Ask the locals where you’re staying for some recommendations, and trust your gut. If something seems “off” to you, listen to your instincts and stay away. Run a local race  Some people really enjoy making vacations out of far-flung races, but even if you didn’t plan your travels around one particular race, when you get to a new location, it’s worth asking around and researching online to see if there’s a race going on while you’re in town. Some places host races year-round, virtually every weekend, while other places only have 1 or 2 big signature events each year. Regardless, races are a lot of fun and typically promote a great environment, and it’d be a great way to meet locals and find out more about the place you’re visiting. Follow the path Once you’ve gotten your bearings in your new destination, let your feet do the talking and see where the roads take you. Of course, bear in mind your own safety, and don’t venture out in the middle of the night, but if you have some free time, go off the beaten path to see what’s around you. It’ll help you master your new surroundings, and you’ll likely find that you get a new appreciation for your home away from home. Meet up with area runners Check out the internet before you get to your new destination to see if there are any local running groups or clubs that meet up regularly. If so, correspond with them prior to your arrival to find out if you’d be able to jump in at one of their workouts or group runs. By their very nature, runners are typically extraordinarily accommodating and friendly individuals, and even if there’s a language barrier, I can all but guarantee that you’ll have fun traversing the roads and trails with your newly-found friends. Treadmill While running on a treadmill isn’t the most luxurious or glamorous way to run, runners everywhere will admit that it “gets the job done.” Particularly if you are traveling by yourself, if you’re in an area where you’re uncertain about your safety, or if you can’t run during daylight hours, hitting up a treadmill in a local hotel or gym is one way that you can ensure that you satisfy your mileage goals (and your safety). If you have detailed workouts to complete, taking to a treadmill can make nailing the workout much more manageable than figuring out how to do it in a foreign land. Know the rules of the roads (or sidewalks) One of the most important aspects of running while traveling is that the onus is on you, the visitor, to both know and heed the rules of the road/sidewalk where you’re traveling. It’ll be critical that you do everything you can to ensure your own safety abroad, and this includes even the most basic things like knowing local traffic rules and direction of travel. You may not be used to drivers being on the left, for example, or cars being on the right, but your ignorance don’t grant you a free pass when you’re running outdoors. You definitely don’t want to injure yourself (or someone else!) by your inattention to detail. While most places subscribe to the same red light/green light scenario, in many places, crosswalks are a luxury, stop signs are mere suggestions, and there are regular showdowns in traffic among pedestrians, vehicles, pedicabs, livestock, bicycles, mopeds, (and the list goes on). Make yourself into an informed runner and tourist before you go so you don’t fall victim to your own mistakes or stupidity. Mix it up Particularly if you are an endurance runner, it can be pretty tough to figure out ways to fit in a long distance run while you’re traveling. If you’re strapped for time or for distance, consider mixing up your runs into something shorter and more intense: think high intensity interval training (HIIT), sprints, or even speedwork, like tempo runs, mile repeats, half mile repeats, or quarters or 200m repeats. You can still manage to get in a solid workout and a satisfying sweat sesh, even if your mileage is significantly shorter than what you’d like, and as a bonus, you won’t be losing tons of travel and exploration time in the process. Traveling and running are both super fun and accessible hobbies, and one need...

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Four years ago I published the first post on this blog. It was about how it all started, the travelling thing. It goes back almost fifteen years when I studied in Milan. Little I knew but judging from my current perspective this was the first big breakthrough of my adult life. Suddenly the map of my world grew and showed many blank places that I wanted to explore. I was lucky to work as an academic for almost ten years. I feel privileged that my job brought me to the remote location of this globe. I travelled the world and participated in a variety of scientific conferences. The more I saw, the more I wanted to see. At the same time, my passion for the travel literature grew and I started a transformation of my home office into a library. I discovered the best travel book ever written. It is The Way of the World by Nicolas Bouvier. It still is my favourite book, even though I travelled around the world, followed his footsteps in Ireland and Japan, and turned into a philosopher of travelling. Eventually, the urge to explore the world became overwhelming. I used the end of my research contract at the University of Nottingham as an excuse for focusing on travelling per se. The travelling became my job, hobby and the way of life. I never turned it into an obsession or a mindless collection of places, national parks or countries. My travels were always slow, focused on meetings with people, reading books, or just hanging around, visiting the same place more than once, often in different seasons. Off the beaten track I went. The big question of why and how people travel always intrigued me. Naturally, my research brought me to a point when I wanted sharing my experiences with others. Thus, here is the big news: the first publication of my book called “Podróżując” (On Travelling) will be soon available in Polish. I wrote it to share my philosophy of travelling. By telling a story of the journey around the world, I explained many aspects related to anthropology, cultural studies, linguistics and social relations. Above all, thanks to my Polish language teacher, I spent countless hours on raising my linguistic competencies to make sure this book is simply beautiful, clear and easy to understand. For a while, I considered publishing it with an ordinary publishing house but then I realised that this book is not only about the thoughts, not only about the content. I thought that it should be published by myself to influence the whole process, decide on every small detail so it became a beautiful object. Instead of colourful pictures, you’ll find there a series of sketches by my artist friend Natalia. The cover designed by Jarek tells you a story about the journey that turns into the way of life. I devoted to this book almost two years of my life to make sure it meets the highest standards. In order to do so, I did not submit it to any random publishing house. The time has come. Ladies and gentlemen, here is the second big news: I established a publishing house. Yeah! Hurray! Together with my beloved husband, we created an enterprise called Null&Full. The company we have owned for a couple of years promotes conscious travelling. Under one umbrella it offers guided tours in Ferrara, runs this blog and finally, publishes travel literature. Our aim is to raise awareness and promote discussion about the modern travels. In our recently established publishing house, we shall focus all our efforts on finding the best pieces ever written, pick up sketches and illustrations, work on a layout, choose the right colours, and publish them as works of art. As for now, we publish our books in Polish but we shall do our best to publish the book “On Travelling” in English too. We will keep you informed regarding the process of translation and about the date of publication. We strongly believe this is another wonderful journey that we shall share with you. Keep your fingers crossed!    

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In previous posts of The Science of Travel series I explained a few important arguments and I also had a look at the evolution of mass tourism. This post is focused on visual consumption and one of the most widespread argument a traveler versus a tourist. Visual consumption Before we discuss an issue of a traveler versus a tourist let’s focus on a very important problem of visual consumption. Along with the development of photography, the nature of travels has irreversibly changed. Until humans traveled because they were forced to do so (in search for food, new land, for commerce, out of curiosity or to discover faraway regions) and even in the age of Grand Tour, the travel was focused on a discourse. People who traveled talked or wrote about it, or quarrel about it, if you like, and made numerous attempts to described it, but they never could show the others what they saw. The widespread cheap cameras have changed it. Since more and more people could afford to travel and to photograph themselves in front of the popular sites, they could not only prove their presence in the important places but they also contributed to spread the views and incite anticipation. Through showing and watching the pictures, all famous sites lost their mystery. Literally ALL people know how the monument or a site looks like BEFORE they actually see it. A popularization of cameras was a turning point. Instead of talking about the places people started showing the pictures. At the same time, they became visual consumers. In present times, it is mainly about watching, seeing, staring, and browsing, rather than just talking about it. A traveler or a tourist? Having said that we are all visual consumers, I shall point out that when science started considering tourism an important element of human life in the 70s, there was a consensus that we are all tourists. The group of tourists was, in major part, uniform and all tourists were treated in the same way. The early definition clearly stated that a tourist is a person who physically moves from one place to another with no obligation to do so. So far, so good. There were dozens of different categories within a group called tourists and I will share one below to illustrate the way science categorized people who travel. I am pretty sure that you will find one or more category you fill in. Here are four basic groups of tourists by Cohen (1974): The Organized Mass Tourist The Individual Mass Tourist The Explorer The Drifter The first group consists of all people who prefer familiar surrounding and well-known rules. They are traveling with the travel agencies and stay in chain hotels. Such tourists are the perfect customers of the sea cruises. The Organized Mass Tourism is related to the phenomenon called Disneyization. Based on the famous Disney theme parks the science observes the tourism that instead of showing you a place it CREATES a place that you travel to. The tourist, instead of experiencing ‘the other’ is kept in the environmental bubble. These tourists travel far but they stay in the same familiar place. The Individual Mass Tourist is pretty similar to the first group. They follow the mainstream travel destinations, visit most popular sites, consume them visually and they sometimes make an attempt to leave the bubble they live in. On the contrary to organized mass tourists, they sometimes leave the environmental bubble in order to experience something new. They keep, however, very close to the familiar surrounding so they could go back there if anything  unpleasant happens. Such tourist uses services of the travel agencies but he/she is not strictly assigned to a group and has a relative freedom of deciding what to do and where to go. The Explorers are people eager to meet ‘the other’, to switch their previous environment, to explore and to learn new things. They organize the trip themselves and they mix well-known travel destinations with off the beaten track sites. Although the explorers are eager to experience new and exotic things, they are not ready to completely abandon their habits. When they find a situation that challenges their habits and behaviors they go back to the previous safe environment. They have no intention to immerse into the host society. They also keep their basic needs as transportation and accommodation as familiar and reliable as possible. They visually consume a place, one after another, with no plan to stay for long. The last group of drifters is consisted of the people who abandon their previous lives. These are the ‘hippies‘ who leave everything familiar behind. They travel off the beaten paths, do not sleep in the hotels, do not eat in the restaurants. They focus on the local environment, make an attempt to live like a local and melt into the new place entirely. They have no return ticket and no intention of going back. Many of drifters felt unfulfilled in their previous lives thus through the travels they find a new mental and spiritual center. They are driven by the strong contestation of the order in their home society. Contrary to the explorers, the drifters attempt not only to know ‘the other’ but also to develop an empathy and deep understanding. A good example of drifters are people who left their homelands and moved to a kibbutz. This is what the science in the 70s argued about. Although this is considered a classic categorization of tourists is has been contested by the young researchers. The scientists are now more aware of the internal diversification of the tourist groups and, as a consequence, there is a continuous argument on who is a tourist and who is not. What do you think about the division between a tourist and a traveler? Do you feel one of them? If so which one? Please, comment below which type of a traveler you are. Disclosure: all posts ‘The Science of Travel’ are based on scientific literature. The authors of the books and...

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I regularly follow BBC Travel and read the articles published there. This is a good source of information. They publish beautiful pictures and I generally enjoy reading the articles and posts on their site. But for the last couple of months, among few other themes, BBC Travel has been running a series of articles called ‘How I quit my job to travel’. As an experienced traveler and a travel blogger here are my thoughts on this ‘quitting the rat race’. How I quit my job to travel All of the BBC Travel articles I am discussing, basically tell the story of people who decided to quit their job and travel the world. The series presents them as ‘leaders’ of the contemporary world, as ‘trendsetters’ and people whose ideas are not only worth our admiration but that we should also follow their example. The major part of the articles published in this series present the reality in a misleadingly simplistic way. Ordinary life and work is presented as negative, boring and unwanted while traveling is presented as a joyful, fulfilling and harmonious activity. This is wrong. To me, it seems like madness to criticize and imply that the majority of the population of the western world ‘waste their time’ working from-nine-to-five. It always surprises me how easy and quickly there is an equal sign between an ordinary job and boredom. When a respected medium like the BBC repeats this month after month, I find it not only naive but also offensive to all workers. I wonder is it really necessary to make people feel bad about their ordinary lives with their routines, roots, and connections with their local community? Change your life The stories described in BBC Travel often run like this: a girl or a couple get bored with their job or go through a crisis and as a result, they decide to completely change their life. The leading characters quit their job and for the next months and/or years their main and only activity is traveling. What strikes me is the conclusion that a perfect remedy to everyday hardship is travel. This idea is only a temporary shortcut. I can easily relate to the need to change your life. I’m all for it! In fact, I strongly believe that regular work on your character, virtues and habits is the best way to become a better person. But why on earth would the only solution to boredom be leaving everything behind and traveling? How about looking at your local community and the needs of your neighbors? Making a difference in a place where you come from rather than having to leave to make a difference? Making new friends just around the corner can be a journey of discovery, why not try it? How about visiting a library? Acting as a guide in your hometown? Doing some sport with the kids in the neighborhood! The list is limited only by you. There is no need to travel thousands of miles or to quit your job to discover that people are friendly or that they need your help. Disappointingly, I feel that the BBC Travel articles leave no doubt that there is ONLY ONE right solution. That solution is ‘Quitting my job = pure happiness.’ Tha fact is, that the big change described by the leading characters of these articles concerns a career switch from their former job to blogging, rather than a total freedom. Just another job The travelers and bloggers presented in the BBC series declare that at the moment their main income comes from writing posts and reviews, visiting the places they get invited, and so on. Whilst blogging is presented as a total freedom by all the travelers featured by on this BBC Travel series, the reality of blogging is rather the opposite. Bloggers have many concerns that can follow them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. In addition to writing, editing, photographing, and maintaining a website, they must be active on multiple social media platforms. Bloggers care about numbers and must cultivate  likes, traffic, reach and milestones as well as being responsive their readers’ and customers’ feedback. Bloggers all have deadlines to follow and customers to please; they often don’t just simply pick the places they wish to go; they need to follow the invitations they get. If blogger  would like to go to a particular place, the vast majority cannot afford to do so straight out, and must find the relevant contacts and then pitch a proposal. If it is successful, there are negotiations, what writing/photography/video work will be done is contracted, and there are social media sharing targets to meet.  I would consider this reality a rather limited version of freedom to the ones presented by ‘I Quit My Job To Travel’. In their articles, all of the bloggers unanimously praised their recently gained freedom. I think that many of them do realize how difficult and time-consuming this job is, and how limited their real choices are, but for some reason they say very little about it. There is silence about times of being burnt out by traveling, and no mention of times being tired; similar to how they may have felt in nine-to-five jobs. Obviously, it is the fantasy of ‘living the dream’ that sells rather the balanced reality: blogging is work with ups and downs to it like any other. It is true bloggers are not always sitting behind the desk for eight hours a day five days a week, but implying travel bloggers get total freedom for next to no work is far from true. Here is what I think: blogging is just like any other career and it is unfair to try to convince people it is otherwise. The good news The good news is that traveling around the world and blogging about it is just a job like any other job. Dear Hard Workers, next time you are reading a similar article that is...

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Read the previous post. One morning we got invited to participate in cooking with the family we rent the apartment from. The mother and the daughter were waiting for us at 9:00 am in their apartments. There was also a silent father present who, with a kind interest, was watching his daughter and wife running the show. This was not the first time I participated in Italian cooking classes. It was still special because of the whole family present on site. I could observe and experience two generations’ meeting in the kitchen and the way these two extraordinary women work together. The Book I started a conversation with a question about the books I borrowed from them a few days before: a series published by the local paper with photos and description of the local traditional costumes. After a question why they stopped buying the books at part 4 the two women turned into furious beasts. They were so unhappy about the pictures, lack of care, terribly wrong details and, most of all, the sort of pictures taken. In some photos, the models were in aggressive poses and it worked poorly with traditional costumes. Both women showed their disappointment and thus we cold experience how important the tradition is for them. I couldn’t agree more. Although the albums were printed on high-quality paper and with an eye-catching hardcover, the narrative and the concept of making the traditional costumes ‘up-to-date’ was so wrong! This was poorly done. Somebody attempted to bring the tradition closer to the present times but failed. Due to copyrights I cannot insert here any pictures of these books taken on site. Soon, we left the books and focused on cooking.  The Cooking It all started with the preparation of a wooden table and bringing the ingredients. First, Maria Efisia – the mother – prepared filling of the ravioli. They used a particular kind of cheese called ricotta and although you can buy it all over Italy the one in Sardegna contains not only the milk of a sheep but at the final stage of the process, unlikely elsewhere in Italy, the farmers add more cow’s milk. This extra care results in extremely mild and delicate cheese. Thus, with few yolks, saffron, and nutmeg, a very tasty filling was formed. We, then, could focus on preparing the pasta and, what takes most of the time, rolling and forming the ravioli. Along the process, when our hands were occupied, Maria Efisia was telling us about their family and village, about tough times and few joys they have. She was extremely proud of her actions that saved old baskets made out of cane.  The story In the late 60s, people run mad about modern plastic objects and they were throwing away all that was old and hand made. It includes a total refurbishment of the local church which we saw last Sunday and which today looks like after a fire that destroyed everything that was ancient. Maria Efisia on the contrary: she was conserving not only the heritage of her family but also went to the courtyards where her neighbours were throwing away their old stuff away. She showed us her collection of baskets used in cooking. As this was hand made, the current price is really high so when she showed us her treasures she was holding them as something precious. Maria Efisia was emphasising how expensive these objects currently are. Watching this woman attachment to the past it felt very special. Although she showed us the most important things for her she did it as a person who realises that the past will never come back. She feels like a real hero in the contemporary times who struggles and fights against the odds in order to preserve the history of the family and the place. Miraculously, her family has always been and still is into the farming business, thus, the worst crisis that hit the island after mining business collapsed, bypassed them. It was touching to watch their struggle. They all are very proud of living in the same place for 7 generations, their hospitality is legendary. They, just like hundreds of others, struggle to find their place in the contemporary society. They feel very far from the mainstream society and the things that happen in Rome – on the continent, as they say. Contrary to the rest of Italy, where people tend to be optimistic, here you hear a tone of despair. People here know they live in the peripheries and that the politicians in Rome or Brussels care very little about their wellbeing. Some of them feel left behind and for some of them this is a call to act and to take care for themselves. I’d say that people in Sardinia are focused on survival with a strong flavour of tradition and their own identity. And so, talking through the history and presence, we successfully produced about 300 ravioli. They were all stored in old baskets in layers interlarded with a clean table cloth. It was left until the next day when we got invited for a dinner. The Dinner We came in the late evening. The whole family was there and so, with no further delay, we started the feast. The hospitality of this Sardinian family was overwhelming. The food was so good that after starters I ate enough but there was still the first and the second course, meat and the dessert with coffee. I skipped the meat but it smelled so delicious that I got a dog bag and I could taste it the next day. This was a very pleasant day. I learned not only the new recipes and cooking skills but also a history of the family from Fluminimaggiore. I also had an opportunity to watch their pride and hospitality from a close distance. Altogether this was a marvellous experience. More about Sardinia soon.  

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Last winter I completed a journey around the world. If you followed my adventures, you are aware that I was staying mainly in so-called AirBnB. As many people are looking for reviews and impressions I’ve decided to share my experiences of all AirBnB I stayed at. The overall impression is positive so you might find this review biased but I assure you that this is not s sponsored post nor the content was any other way influenced by a host involved. I don’t feel like an expert in AirBnB but I have few tricks that will help you if you’re looking for one. To all who has no idea what AirBnB stands for: it is an alternative accommodation in apartments of houses provided by the locals. There is a variety of types of accommodation, but this should create a sort of ‘home-like’ atmosphere. What I like the most about AirBnB is the connection with a place through the people you’re staying with. I absolutely love it! Also, the feeling that the accommodation is as close to the ‘normal’ home as possible. And last, but not least, kitchen facilities (when available), so not only you save the money on dining out, but this is also a great opportunity to share time with your hosts. I found AirBnB accommodation most helpful in long term traveling, when after few weeks you just start hating the hotels. It was a lifesaving strategy in my RTW trip! Bearing this in mind, here are 6 rules on how to pick up the best AirBnB. Rule 1: read the description & watch the pictures In all cases, the description and pictures were highly relevant. There was not even one apartment I was surprised about when I entered. The number of rooms, bathrooms and all the facilities was always correct. Thus, I urge you to read the description and stick to the information provided. I met some people who, despite reading the description, they are sometimes hoping for more. It is not fair and, at the end of the day, you might find yourself disappointed. Rule 2: room is always cheaper than the whole apartment If you are looking to save your money, narrow down the research engine on Air BnB site to ‘Private Rooms’. Do not include ‘Entire Place’ as this is always a more expensive version. I used them all: a room with shared bathroom, a room with ensuite bathroom, whole apartment and a separate house in the garden. Out of my experience, the choice should be influenced by the purpose of your visit. If you are focused on ‘living like a local’ I would encourage you to share the apartment with the owners. If you are planning more private stay focused on relax, reading books and solitude go for the apartment on your own. Rule 3: check ‘interaction with guests’ AirBnB service allows you to ask about the type of interactions with the guests preferred by the hosts. I consider this to be crucial in picking up the right place for you. There is a whole variety within this option: starting with interaction limited to ‘online’ one in Japan, through ‘casual’ in Pacific Islands, up to ‘we will treat you like a family member’ in New Zealand. Each of them is great, but it is crucial for you to know in advance so you could make a good decision you’ll be happy with. I personally enjoyed one of my stays in New Zealand where the owners not only had a dinner with me every evening and let me meet their family but also took me to their yacht so I could meet their friends. It was great that they were very clear about their attitude from the very beginning and I was happy about it at the stage of picking up a place to stay. Rule 4: fix the details BEFORE you pay Here is one is a bit negative experience I had, but it was due to the fault of us as guests. We rented an apartment in 4 friends in Greece and it was not clear how much is the stay of the third and the fourth person. We assumed, wrongly, that the total price for 2 people staying in the apartment will  not double when 4 people will stay. How silly of us! And at the end of the day, we had to pay some extra money we were not prepared to. Make sure you’re clear about the number of people who are coming. It sometimes does not influence the total price and sometimes it does. Rule 5: read the comments Always read the comments of previous users! Always! And also, leave a comment as precise and clear as you can. While usually people are honest about their apartment and their expectations regarding their guests’ behavior, there is a slight chance that it is their wishful thinking rather than a reality. Slight. Thus, make sure that a place that you wish to rent is suitable for you by reading comments. I had only one case when I was not happy about my stay in AirBnB and it was due to the owner’s meddling. There was no way to know about it in advance because as few as 3 reviews and it was a risk to rent it. I hope that my comment will help others to be prepared for these sort of issues. Remember: the more comments there are, the less risky the choice is. Rule 6: make an effort to introducing yourself As the AirBnB hosts can reject your request for staying with them, make sure the description of your journey and the purpose of your visit is clearly stated. If you are staying in a place to attend a music festival and will come back home at 4 a.m. every day be honest about it! Searching AirBnB is like matchmaking: you need to find a good partner. Otherwise, this will not work! Perhaps the owner goes to this very same festival too, and...

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Over and over again the travelers argue that one of the best things about traveling is living the dream that was impossible in their daily life dominated by a routine. Every now and then the routine is blamed for the general unhappiness, dullness or even depression. Selling your house and car and starting a journey is considered not only the best antidote for this sickness but, most of the time, as an act of courage. But if you think for a while this proves to be far from healthy logic and, for sure, from the human knowledge on behavior and learning. It made me think, why travelers hate routine so much and here are few thoughts on this issue out of my own experience as a long term traveler. A Routine In most cases, the routine involves boring regular job from 9:00 to 17:00, followed by a conclusion that people who perform their duties on an everyday basis are tired, burnt out and unhappy. A routine emphasizes doing the same things every day with no pleasure out of it. And writers are very quick in judging how unhappy these people are and how terribly they are wasting their time. Quite skillfully writers and bloggers follow this logic to a smooth discovery: you should change it! I wholeheartedly agree with the need for a change but with what I’m having difficulties to agree on is that travels make it for you. Before I’ll go further in the discussing the illusion of this belief, let me stop for a while and show you how the routine is good for you. Every possible guide on healthy lifestyle argues about healthy sleep habits, proper diet, physical activities and healthy relationships. If you feel that you are missing something in your life, if you feel down, if you realized that your current status is not something you dreamed about, you can change it. Anytime, really. And there is no need to sell everything and travel. On the contrary: travel will make all of the above more difficult to introduce a change into your life. Mission impossible To make a real difference in your life, like building any healthy habit, you need time, patience and recurrence. Out of the three, the last one is a decisive factor if the process of improvement is successful. Philosophy of zen argues that you need as many as 21 days of repeated action to turn it into a habit.  Three weeks is a long time. And if you change your hotel or even country twice during that time you effort of changing things looks like mission impossible. Thus, people prefer to believe that instead of a regular effort and recurrence of their actions there is an alternative solution. A travel comes handy. Preferably one year long and round the world. It definitely brakes the routine, but it is much less successful in helping you keeping good habits, personal growth, and a meaningful life. An Illusion What happens if you travel continuously for months or years? First thing is that you cut the ties that connected you with the place you lived in and people you lived with. Sure, you keep telling stories about the city you come from to all people you meet along the way and you are trying to keep your family and friends informed about travels but let’s face it: it is different. And you might feel quite happy about it until you realize you belong neither here nor there. Some people need years to realize that a lifestyle focused on continuous travel makes you very distant from ‘normal’ people and their ‘boring’ lives. And it is true for both: people you left at home and also exotic and new people you meet when you travel. And some day you simply realize that even those who are left at home have changed and that there is nothing to talk about with them. Perhaps you experience it when you go home for couple of weeks and after only a few days, when the emotions cool down, apart of telling fantastic stories there is not much left out of the things you had in common. The best is the enemy of the good You may say that everything has a price to pay and particular difficulties referred to long term traveling is no different. True. But have you really thought about it before you decided that full time traveling is what solves all your problems? A routine gives you a sense of stability, security, and continuity. All conditions that you need for your personal development. I’m not saying that travels make personal development impossible, but I’m arguing it makes it harder. “I like challenges” – you may say. Perhaps you do. If so, why don’t you try to work on yourself first, in your every day and “boring” life and travel when all your serious problems were sorted out. Personal development, becoming a better person and having a positive attitude towards the world and the people is important. Start before you go.  

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My mind is still on my recent travel around the world. I was reading my notes again, thinking of writing the first chapter of the book and watching the pictures I took. It will take me a while to fully understand and define all results of this long-term travel, but this should not prevent further traveling. It is a funny feeling to think about the previous travel while going on another one but there is nothing I can do about it. Why? Because… Tbex is coming! That’s right! Only a few months have passed since the last conference in Athens but tomorrow morning I’m traveling to Barcelona and to Lloret de Mar. This time, however, I’m participating the event as a speaker which make the whole experience quite different. I’ll be one of the forty bloggers invited to share their knowledge, experience and expertise on blogging and traveling. I’m going to discuss an interesting issue of blogging in English when it is not your first language and how this influence building a community around your blog. I co-present with two outstanding ladies: Pola Henderson and Lanora Mueller. It should be possible to watch the presentation afterward and I’ll keep you posted on where it is (if you’re interested in this issue, of course). Italy, where else? Just when I get back from Spain, I’m heading south to Ferrara. It is like a routine, isn’t it? This time I am particularly excited because not only I’m running cooking classes for the Americans but I’m meeting my Canadian friends! Justin and Lauren that you are familiar with through an interview I made few years ago will be my guests in Ferrara. It should be FUN! The Dolomites There is no way I’m going to survive this year without any mountain trekking! Last year was pretty rich in trekking activities but since I started traveling around the world, not so much. So I’m quite determined to stay for a week in the Dolomites with my best friends and just get immersed in the pure beauty of this UNESCO World Heritage Site. But the most interesting travel I’ll pursue this year, is the 2-week stay in Sardegna. Sardegna It is fascinating for a variety of reasons: first, because this is an island and if you are reading this blog long enough, you know I like islands, lighthouses, and rocky terrains. Second, because it is my first time there, which always rises emotions. Third, because Sardegna is a truly fascinating place, which merges so many traditions. Fourth, because it is not excessively popular tourist destination which guarantees silence and solitude, and lastly because I’m going there with my friend who has been visiting the island for the last 30 years. It altogether guarantees a memorable time and surely fantastic content I will share with you as soon as I’m back. So here are my travel plans for next couple of months. I had to turn down few other opportunities, including a press trip to Prague, but I believe I made the right choice. I’m leaving myself a couple of weeks free from traveling, just to stay at home, enjoy my friends and family company, and perhaps get to write the book. What are your travel plans for this summer? Write in the comments.  

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The real journey is a serious matter. If you wish to experience the world through all you senses you need to leave your comfort zone behind and be prepared for the challenges you have never faced before. I am traveling for years now, and traveling is both: a breathtaking experience and a very difficult process at the same time. The real journey gets to you and it changes you. This is important to keep a good balance between the new and old things, to keep track of the events and make the most of your journey. I find my travels powerful and fulfilling for many reasons, one of which is a constant update of the way I see the world. And my way of doing it is through writing. Since I remember, I have been always writing down some thoughts on accidentally found napkins, chewing gum wrappings, maps, folders and postcards. And it was never enough space to write everything I wanted. It eventually became annoying to my friends as my postcards were unreadable! The need for a travel notebook became pressing. I remember the first time I bought a typical travel notebook. This was at the Venice (Italy) airport and I was taking a plane to Boston (USA), with a short stop in Zurich (Switzerland), to visit Nova Scotia (Canada). I saw it in a bookstore and it got me from the first sight. It was six years ago and since then the pile of notebooks on my desk has been steadily growing. To Capture a Moment Taking pictures is one thing. Remembering your journey is quite another. Although I am taking hundreds of photos and making some short clips it should never substitute the real memories. I agree that some beautiful spots are impossible to describe, but the pictures taken have a nasty side effect: when you watch it hundred times they slowly take place of the way you remembered things. I went to the Swedish part of Lapland once and took my notebook with me making notes every day, running a sort of travel diary. Despite taking 800 pictures in 10 days the most precious thing was still the content of my notebook. When I read it after three months since I got back from Lapland I was surprised how quick I was forgetting things. Short stories or funny words- it all brings your memories back. To Keep Track of the Journey If you travel once a year it is easy to remember places visited, people met and things seen. If you drive 25,000 km in four months it is much less so. It’s not that I record every second of my travels. Rather, I capture the memorable events so I could get back to them when I needed. Writing things down make it possible to re-enter your experience after years have passed. The written word, more than a simple picture, brings you back to a situation described in every detail. Details impossible to capture in a photo but so much more important! To Evaluate My Experiences Having a habit of writing down the events of the day allows you to think about them again. Often, when days are packed with places and people you can’t follow them in a real time. The journey forces you to stay attached to a present rather than consider the general issues. Writing things down is a good opportunity to cope with emotions and reflections accumulated during the day. When doing notes it happens to me that I realize I wish to meet someone again or visit the same place twice. The advantage of daily writing is that it is sometimes possible to do it while you’re still there, rather than regretting this after getting back home. To Get Involved This might be weird, but people tend to start a conversation about my writing. It happened few times that other travelers were interested in my making notes and they started to ask questions about it which- obviously- often turned out to be an interesting exchange of our travel experiences. This is also true for keeping in touch after you get back home: having addresses written down in a place where you won’t lost them is crucial. I’m still in touch with a bunch of people met when I travelled here and there. No need to write embarrassing things about losing somebody’s card BEFORE I started using a travel notebook. To Escape Well, there are some difficult moments when you travel, no doubt about it. Even if they don’t happen often it is still important to have your own mode to deal with unpleasant aspects of travelling. If the new place is overwhelming, is shouting at you with vivid colors and unbearable noise you can always turn to writing. It distracts your attention from annoying person or event and helps you to calm down when things get nasty. I’m not saying that writing resolves every travel problem but in my case it helped me too many times to not appreciate it. To Write My Own Story My notebook is my own version of my story. And it gives me enormous pleasure to watch somebody reading it. My closest friends enjoy this privilege and I totally love the moment when they read something funny I wrote the day before and suddenly they laugh. And I get rewarded for the effort I made when I travelled and wrote everything down. Because their smile is priceless.  

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