Packing for an overseas trip can be a daunting task, particularly if you will be away for several months. So, how do you decide what makes the cut for the precious space in your backpack? And, more importantly, which items will you consider essentials when on the road? Having travelled to over 60 countries, I have accumulated some knowledge along the way about what I consider to be the items I simply don’t leave home without. Assuming you have th...

For experienced travellers, these tips might seem like old news, but for those just hitting the road, these helpful tricks might make a major difference when it comes to fitting those last few essential pieces into your luggage. You may think you’re a light traveller but is that because you’ve forgotten important items? Here are a few tips to help you be the most proficient packer possible.  1. Rolling your clothes rather than folding t...

The infamous Hana Highway is a 68-mile stretch of road winding through the jungle from Kahului to the tiny town of Hana in Maui, Hawaii. Every day, hundreds of rental cars brave the hairpin bends and one-lane bridges to reach the isolated town nestled at the bottom of Haleakala, the inactive volcano that takes up the majority of the eastern side of the island. The drive there and back will take about four hours, so most people leave the reso...

There’s a huge array of mistakes one can make when traveling, studying, working or volunteering abroad, and many regrets can bubble up after returning home and looking back on your experiences. The majority of them are almost irrelevant, or not worth the worry. The epic failures become great stories, and the real, detrimental mess-ups are lessons for the future. One magical aspect of getting out into the world is that you’re sometimes required to...

Do you find yourself scrap-booking pages of the National Geographic, wishing you were a part of the La Tomatina festival in Spain or perhaps Julia Roberts in Eat Pray Love? You’re clearly infected with the travel bug and suffering hallucinations of moving to Europe to soak in a culture that’s highly glamorized by Hollywood.  Unfortunately, there isn’t a textbook on moving abroad. However, as someone who worked and lived in Europe and Asia, I...

They birthed you, they raised you, and now they’ve waved goodbye as you fly off into the world. Now you’re out and about having immaculate adventures and chances are they’re at home agonizing about whether you’re eating enough, if you’re meeting nice friends, if you’ve spent all your money on beer, and of course if you’re safe. They’ve sent you emails, letters, care packages, and maybe even tried to coordinate a visit because they miss you so muc...

Leaving the comfort and safety of a place we call home can be intimidating with the prospects of unknown cultures, foreign food and strangers, but it’s not long before we adapt to our new lifestyle and flourish. What many travellers fail to credit is the culture shock of coming home. The sparkle of seeing friends, visiting your old hangout spots and eating at your favourite restaurant is enough to distract you at first but you’ll soon realiz...