Backpacking: The Reality of the Nomadic Lifestyle
You might like the sound of backpacking and travelling. You see all of the amazing photos on social media and think “I’d love to do that!” or “I want photos just like that!”. Unfortunately what you see isn’t necessarily capturing the truth or the whole picture. See my ‘Why Social Media Lies‘ post for more.
There are different types of travelling for sure, and a lot of people may opt for the suitcase/ luxury/ organised sightseeing type holiday, but for those who go for more of a DIY backpack theme it is very different. I will be discussing backpacking rather than luxury travel in this post.
I’m going to be blunt here…if you’re a bit of a princess, backpacking probably isn’t for you. Of course you can still travel and experience new cultures by choosing an alternative option mentioned above, but the reality of backpacking is not pretty.
Backpacking is Hard Work
You have to carry your life on your back, up and down stairs, around crowded cities not knowing where you’re going. You’re bound to get super sweaty and grimey, and potentially not being able to shower properly for days/ weeks.
Toilets
Public toilets are another thing…in Asia it tends to be a hole/trough in the floor, and in the outback it’s a case of just squatting and hoping you miss your foot! (See the Toilets Abroad: How to survive post for more – It’s more useful than you would expect!)
Backpacking is Exhausting
• If you’re not eating less, you’re probably eating more which means you’re running out of money more quickly. This means more stress and maybe more weight gain which means more physical stress.
WiFi
Sometimes the wifi isn’t great or available so you have to just wing it. Or you can look in book/ leaflets /speak to people to get recommendations (which is more advisable sometimes because you get insider knowledge!). Don’t think you can rely on the internet- especially in China where they don’t have any reliable search engines in English and block a lot of sites including anything Google.
Burning Out
You may feel like if you stop and have a rest day you are wasting time and money…initially that was the case but we soon learnt that we’d burn out quickly unless we have a day or two every now and then to rejuvenate. We even took a ‘holiday’ from travelling a few times which was well needed!
Backpack Issues
It’s super important to get a backpack that suits you well, otherwise you’ll end up with all sorts of issues and problems. It was a couple of months until I adjusted my backpack and it made a HUGE difference to the ease of carrying it. It’s also important to make sure you are strong enough to carry the load that is on your back because you may be carrying it for miles and if you can’t cope you may find yourself in a spot of bother. (Post coming soon for more on backpack tips and how to maintain a healthy back).
