Deviating the norm is all about remaining true to your authentic self. This means constantly looking within to identify which path or direction you'd like to take on your journey. Solo travel is the best kind of travel for becoming an expert at tuning into your own needs and desires. When you allow those innermost needs and wants to lead you, you evade the guidance of some prescribed norm or the expectations of others.
As a solo traveler, I feel out a new place by looking within and deciding on my own time when it's right to move on to a new destination. I quickly felt out of place when I arrived in Ubud. I wasn't connecting to it in the way I had thought I would—and that's okay! Not every place we go will be a good fit. I came to appreciate many aspects of Ubud during my stay. However, there were two prominent features that were missing for me: a body of water and mountains. I realized these features are truly the bread and butter to my happiness as a solo traveler. Now was the time to embrace it.
I'm an out and proud tech nerd. I love when all of my devices sync up perfectly, run smoothly, and produce quality results—and I go mad when they don't! So you better believe I had one of the most seamless tech setups I could muster for my travels.
In this post, I finally share with you exactly what my tech setup entailed for my 15 months of travel around the world.* You'll get to find out how I took a photograph on my digital camera and made it jump to my phone, to my cloud storage, and then onto my laptop in one fell swoop.
Of course, I include pros and cons for the big stuff and you'll also learn about all the little accessories, apps, and additional pro-tips and tricks I applied to make this tech work to my great advantage. My secret? Move out of the way Macbooks, it all starts with the Windows Surface!
Many travelers visit Ubud in Bali, Indonesia because of its well-known spiritual- and health-conscious atmosphere.
I focused my time on experiencing a handful of these mind-body-spirit activities. This post describes what to expect from these experiences, why I chose to focus on them, and how you can experience each on your own!
From yoga retreats to eco-green cafes, you will not be short of rejuvenating activities during your stay in Ubud.
I have an affinity for infinity pools. It's an obsession, really. This obsession started before I ever even left for my round-the-world trip. I have a Pinterest account to which I would pin photos from Bali every now and then. These usually consisted of luxury resorts with infinity pools. Now I was wandering around Nusa Lembongan and exploring Nusa Ceningan off the coast of Bali. I had made it my mission to find the best resorts with pools to crash. And I mean crash because I had no intentions of actually paying to stay at any of them!
I visited these resorts for the day and then, after I was through, I went back to my cheap-o accommodation to sleep! I call it: Winning at life. In this post, I share the awesome places I found to stay around the islands—without even staying there! Before long, you could be doing the same thing on a budget. Just like me, you'll feel like you've been transported into one of those Pinterest photos making everyone back home wonder how you could ever afford such luxury.
I did my research before arriving in Bali. I only had 2 weeks there before I would return to the USA. I had to make it count. I found out the best diving in Bali was located on the smaller islands to the east. In particular, Nusa Lembongan would have exactly what I wanted. I found out ahead of time as much as I could about how to get there. I landed at Ngurah Rai International Airport in Denpasar at 2 in the afternoon. In only a couple hours, I was across the Badung Strait sipping a mango smoothie on the sand and watching the red sun dip over the sea.
Below I've put together a little question and answer style post about what I learned, both from my prior research and from my first-hand experience, getting from the airport to Nusa Lembongan. There's lots of advice on how to make this process go smoothly if you ever decide to go! If not, you'll get a look at the whole experience which includes insane drivers, unsafe boats, and digging through a mountain of flip flops.
First of all, hiiii!! I'm back in the USA! And Happy Thanksgiving to all of my friends and family who celebrate! Since I am back in New York, I've decided to do an update on my packing list after 14+ months of traveling around the world. I first posted about the contents of my one bag over a year ago. Looking back, it's actually amazing how little the contents changed. I suppose this speaks to how well I did my research before I left! *Patting self on back*
The items that did change are quite interesting. Well, I think they're interesting. Anyway, bear with me as I describe the contents of my bag. What's been added. What's been removed. Then I'll give you a downloadable finalized packing list for long-term world travel. It's in checklist format so you can easily use it to help you prepare for your own trip! Yay!
I’ve visited many cities during my travels, falling in love over and over again with each. Cities like Reykjavik, Berlin, Chiang Mai, Wellington, and Melbourne all captured my heart in different ways. But I did not fall in love with any of these cities like I fell in love with Singapore.
The Singapore Government poured $35 million into one area of the city—Marina Bay. Money well spent, as the product is a masterpiece of architectural wonders, floral landscaping, and waterfront beautification. I could not stop snapping photos during my few hours spent between flights here. Marina Bay easily left me in awe with the city as a whole. Now I know I must go back—especially to see it at night and to stay at its mesmerizing, world class hotel.
I know I said I was going to stop doing these. But this update seemed too important not to share! Yes, surprise! I am heading back to New York! We all knew this day had to come sometime considering this is a year(ish) of deviation tour. Well, it's about time, as it's been over 14 months since I left New York.
Three days ago, I departed from Auckland, New Zealand and began a series of flights taking me to Bali, Indonesia. Today marks my first full day in Bali! Wooo! I've had Bali in my sights since before I left NY last September. Jono and I even considered it for our destination together until we decided on Niue. I am now traveling solo again and loving it! But it's also good to be following a path that will ultimately lead me home.
Whales and dolphins bring in the majority of the few thousand tourists who visit Niue every year. This South Pacific island country and “coral atoll” has the ideal conditions for seeing (and hearing) these beautiful marine creatures who play within 50 meters off shore. It’s also one of the few places in the world allowing visitors the chance at getting in the water to swim with whales in their natural habitat!
The whales and dolphins were a bit too preoccupied to swim with us during my time in Niue. But I had an amazing experience seeing them almost every day and closer than I ever have before. I also became a bit of an expert on the tours offering the chance to swim with them. While the tour company we used turned out to be a huge disappointment, the other one we heard about may be your ticket to a better experience!
Never heard of Niue (pronounced “new-ay”)? I hadn’t heard of this island country either until about 2 months ago when I booked my trip there. Niue is a tiny little island in the South Pacific—and it’s so special you’re going to be longing to go by the end of this post.
People don’t come to Niue for its beaches and resorts—there’s only one sandy beach and one resort there! Instead, the few visitors to the “Rock of Polynesia” fly there for its exceptional diving and snorkeling, its unbelievable geography and coastal views, and its vibrant culture and friendly people. These and many other unique characteristics have easily made Niue my favorite travel destination yet! I wish I had known to put it on my bucket list sooner.
I spent the last month in Australia and now I’m in New Zealand again. Say what?! That’s right. I had a great time in Australia. I did a ton of adventuring, visited friends, and saw so much wildlife and marine life. I can’t wait to share it all through many posts in the coming months.
Ultimately, my Aussie adventure was destined to be a jam-packed one, but a short one. I set out with an agenda: deviate to illuminate. As intended, some revelations helped me realize the most important things to me so I could return to New Zealand to pursue them.
The Ninety Mile Beach is one of the most unusual highways I’ve ever driven. At low tide it becomes a legitimate highway. It’s an alternative to state highway 1 and often a scenic route for tour buses.
But the 90 mile beach can be as dangerous as it is beautiful.
The tide can catch tourists off their guard resulting in their vehicles stuck in the sand and an unexpected overnight stay in the dunes behind the beach. Luckily, my kiwi friend, Jono, and I had deliberately worked an overnight stay into our Ninety Mile Beach plans. With plenty of fish to catch from the beach and another food source under our feet in the sand, we had all we needed to survive several days on one of New Zealand’s most beautiful and remote beaches.
I’m all about finding my own fun while traveling—and at low cost. Part of deviating is looking for ways to explore a new place without paying for a tour guide to show you around. Sometimes self-guided tours take you to unique places that turn out to be just as good as the tours or better!
This was the case the day Jono and I arrived in Paihia in Northland New Zealand. We had a whole day free to fill with whatever we chose. So we went snorkeling in the Bay of Islands on our own for just $20 each. Here’s how.
I have been traveling for as long as it takes to carry a baby to term. Which begs the question—have I birthed any major plans for future travel destinations?
The answer is yes. But I am not quite ready to reveal them. All I will say is there are plans in the mix. In the meantime, I am trying to remind myself to stay in the moment and fully appreciate everything I have come to learn and love about New Zealand after over half a year here.
A ferry ride, hitch-hiking, housesitting and couchsurfing had brought me not only to the South Island but to a point where I was ready for another road trip adventure! Many camping road trips around the North Island had made me an expert at this point. I had all the gear necessary. I even lined up my mode of transportation for the next month—a funny green car begging for a pet name. The only thing I had left to do was find a travel partner!
Once I found one, the first road trip of New Zealand’s South Island began. We jumped in the waves at a beachside campsite, drove on the scenic route overlooking the Northern fjords, and wild camped beside a cool, clean river behind farmland. This was the beginning of my adventures with Frogger the car.
Sometimes, deviating the norm can be a bit disorienting. When you’re trying to travel authentically, allowing yourself to be internally driven to seek alternative, lesser beaten paths, there are no footprints in which to follow. There’s no itinerary, no tour guide, no rules about how you should travel, where you should go next, or when it’s time to move on. It’s new. It’s exciting. It’s open to possibility. And sometimes it’s confusing—because you’re confused.
Last time I checked in, I talked about how I was applying for jobs here in New Zealand. I’ve continued doing this with little success over the last month. So I had to take a step back and evaluate why I was applying to jobs in the first place. Was it for the money? The experience? The excuse to settle down for a while? After discussing with a friend back home, I have reconnected with my authentic travel flow by deciding to do something I’m very excited about: live in Hawke’s Bay New Zealand and work as a volunteer for a while. It’s new. It’s exciting. It’s open to possibility.
There are lots of ways to get around New Zealand. So far I’ve only really talked about traveling with other travelers who have bought a car, buying one yourself, or renting a car. But there’s another way: Hitching a ride with a local! Some travelers search for ride shares around New Zealand using online listings like Carpoolnz or Catchalift. I have tried this before without much success. Hitch hiking better suits the spontaneity of the on-the-go travel lifestyle and it can be a safe alternative if done cautiously.
The best part is the potential to connect with friendly locals. For example, I was lucky enough to get a ride from a few locals on my way to Christchurch for my second house-sit. Even better, they were not only locals but Maori descendants—the native people of New Zealand. I love talking to and hanging out with all kiwis, but these are a special group of people who have a culture all their own from a time long before Europeans arrived on the shores.
“Want to come with us to Raglan for New Years?” Jenny, my couchsurf host, asked me after less than 24 hours into staying with her and her two roommates. A couple, Calle, a Swedish guy and Mahlia, a French Canadian girl, are roommates with Jenny who is from Massachusetts. All of them have been on working holiday here in New Zealand for several months. They live together in their 3-bedroom apartment in the city center of Wellington. I had just finished a week-long housesit in Karori where I hiked and played with a kiwi family’s puppy over the holidays. Now I was trying to figure out what I would do before heading to the South Island in the New Year.
One night of playing Cards Against Humanity with these three roomies and we were quickly bonded. They reminded me of my friends back home. “Sure. I’d love to spend New Years with you guys.” I told Jenny. We left on Wednesday to make the 6+ hour drive up North to the West Coast beach town called Raglan. I had missed it on my previous two road trips around the North Island, but I heard it was a laid-back hippie town where surfers and skaters like to hang. We were just hoping the weather would hold out enough to camp, enjoy fireworks, and swim at the beach.
Thinking about flying into Auckland near the top of New Zealand’s North Island? Only have a short amount of time to spend traveling New Zealand? Maybe you’re flying out of Wellington or from somewhere on the South Island and need to plan out your itinerary to get you there from Auckland. You deserve to see awesome things no matter how much or how little time you have!
Luckily, my best friend and I did all of the following (and more!) on a road trip from Auckland to Wellington in just 10 days. It’s perfect for someone looking to get a good taste of New Zealand on a time budget. Included are some tourist favorites as well as some spots requiring a bit of deviation.
I can hardly believe it—I have been traveling now for half a year! I left on September 1st for Iceland for 10 days, continued on through Germany for 6 weeks, Thailand for 1 month, and I’ve been traveling around New Zealand now for over 3 months. Over the last month, I’ve had the chance to travel with two people whom I met during my travels: Carolina from Northern Sweden whom I met in Iceland and Jonathan from Napier, New Zealand whom I met through Samart in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Traveling separately with both of them, I’ve had all kinds of new experiences and seen some awesome sights in New Zealand’s South Island and North Island. Currently, I am with Jonathan traveling Northland. There’s hardly any cell phone service let alone Wi-Fi up here which explains the tardiness of this post! But I’m really looking forward to sharing all of my adventures with you in detail over the coming weeks since I'll be slowing down a bit in my travels. I plan to start living and working here in New Zealand! A different kind of travel but all a part of deviating!
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