Update

What I Liked About Porto

It’s been two days since arriving in Porto and holy sh*t this city’s gorgeous. Not only is it warmer here than it was on that semi tropical island in the Atlantic I just came from but only because I lucked out with perfect weather. I booked my hostel for only two nights which is never enough and today I start my camino de Santiago after I finish this update… This is going to be formatted less like an article more like an update. With that said… Of Porto, I liked… The Rabelo wine boats that cruised along the Douro River…

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Travel

All Things Azores – ABC’s of Getting Around Azores

Whether you’re looking to hide away in a dormant volcano for the rest of your life or just an escape from your orange faced president, the Azores islands may just be your answer. To be honest, I had never heard of Azores before I booked a ticket here, it was merely a convenient layover on a cheap ticket I found to Porto. This volcanic archipelago is situated 1,500km from the coast of Portugal in the Atlantic ocean and if you’re currency is the Euro then you’ll find it very, very convenient to vacation here. Being a frugal language geek I’ve…

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Travel

Test Dummy Guide to Planning your Backpacking Escape

Have you pondered leaving all the dregs of life to go chase your pink dragons in foreign paradises. Lying I would be, if I said I wasn’t. If you’re like I was, working a full time job with hopes of escape in the future then you’re in good hands! I’ll hold your hand through the practice of planning your backpacking escape. I’m far from the first person to do this yet I’m shocked by all the people that say “I wish I could do that”. Hey you! You can do this, here’s how… Planning for Planlessness It’s taken years of planning for the future…

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Narrative

I Went Coatless for 3 Weeks in the Middle of Winter – Here’s What I Noticed

I find it just as strange that I didn’t manage to run away from this winter as I did the last two years. Stranger than that, I’ve come to enjoy the cold in some masochistic and mindful way. Ever since I came across a peculiar character on YouTube by the name of Wim Hof, promoting his breathing technique and freezing acts, I have undertaken a small experiment with my body to see what would happen if I altogether stopped wearing warm winter clothing. My motivations for starting this were not very thought out as one might think: Lastly, do we actually need warm clothes…

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Language

Memory Palaces & Foreign Vocab Pt. 2

You could say a part time hobby of mine is being a janitor. A janitor in my head… Well in my memory palace to be more specific. I’m no mental athlete thus I don’t study over an hour a day to compete in any of the memory competitions thought that doesn’t mean I’m not fascinated by it. Seeing as the only community that I know of with tips for this stuff is this eerily quiet Reddit thread, I’m forced to learn my own way. If you’re tuning in and clueless as to what a memory palace is and how people use them to remember more effectively…

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Culture & Immersion

I Love Day Trips and Here’s Why You Should Too!

I love day trips, I love day trips, yes I do! For some people playing poker or day drinking is all their rage when the weekend comes up. Hell some even get off to putting needles in their arm. I prefer to pretend I’m John Smith and explore my city. It doesn’t matter how you go about doing it whether by bike, camel or unicorn. I’m here to convince you that I love day trips and why you should too! It Doesn’t Require Much Planning Come on, just pick a place! Start with that Timbuktu-like village outside of your city or that cosy town…

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Narrative, Travel

Keep your tent close, keep your passport closer

You’ve all heard the horror stories, fiction or not, of someone travelling and getting robbed blind thousands of miles from home. I’ve heard the stories and I have my own to share. I’m writing this from my cell phone because I have nothing more efficient to write with anymore. What started as a trip to Poland to find the most affordable tent turned into an adventure to the black sea to see just how far I could hitchhike in nothing but sandals. Needless to say I made it, and needless to say I got robbed. This event had such an…

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Culture & Immersion

3 Reasons Why I Can’t Imagine Living in the USA Again

Having grow up in a land where you can buy lobster, diamonds and camping gear all in one place, then traveling the world for 2 years, I have met many a person that give me a batshit crazy look when I tell them I’m American born and I don’t-don’t-don’t want to live there. I know I’m batshit crazy, but if there’s a reason they’re going to think that then it better not be for not wanting to live there! Many Americans, including my past self, consider the American way of doing things as the *correct* way, because fuck yeah America! You may be confuddled (confused…

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Culture & Immersion

Jobless and Searching, for Myself.

It’s not everyday you come across another person with the same career path as you when your job involves being jobless and searching for yourself. It’s kinda magical when you do. It’s like dog food for my ego just knowing that there are other people out there just as foolish as me with the same job description. There’s something exultingly enjoyable watching my bank account drain as I live life like most people would feel ashamed to do so. No I’m not ashamed, I’m proud of this decision. I originally wrote this as a post to help you find yourself but something felt way off. I’m in…

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Culture & Immersion

How to Find X in Vilnius

So you moved to Vilnius from out of the country only to realize there’s four grocery stores and they all sell basically the same stuff. Small business is a tiny speck on the backs of giant company’s that sell everything, but that what you’re looking for… I’ll try my best to help you find that vintage record player but you’ll probably become a master accordion player before you find such rarities here. Assuming X is something somewhat common in you’re country, I’ll do my best to show you how to find X in Vilnius. First off, a lot of sites…

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