Things everyone learns during their first backpacking trip
Backpacking is one of the most fun ways to travel. But it can also be quite challenging, especially if it’s your first time doing it. But traveling is all about learning, it’s about getting to know yourself more and putting yourself out there in situations you’ve never been in. It can be incredibly fun, although frustrating too, but that’s all part of the experience. Here are some of the things everyone learns during their first backpacking trip.
Overpacking is never a good idea
So, you thought you had to bring all of those fancy clothes, those extra pair of shoes and the jewelries that you’ll probably never wear. You think that it’s always better to bring more so you don’t have to buy something when you’re abroad. Guess what? It’s much better to pack too little than too much. Because all of those heavy things is something you have to carry, from every place you move to. And believe me, you’re going to be moving a lot, sometimes even running to make sure you make it on the bus. And that’s when you’ll be deeply regretting that you brought on so much. But that’s fine, because we all make that mistake the first time we backpack.
You will get lost
Even if you have your paper map or the one on your phone, you will get lost. And that’s totally fine! That’s when you need to rely on strangers and that’s also when you realize how much good there is in this world. We’ve always been taught not to trust strangers, but as soon as you start traveling, you’ll realize how much kindness there is in this world.
You will get exhausted
Even though you want to see as much as possible, it’s never a good idea to rush through a trip and just go from place to place. You might notice it at first, but you will get absolutely exhausted after a while. You might even get sick because you don’t allow yourself to rest. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by everything too and for first time travelers, it’s easy to get over enthusiastic. But it’s more important to rest sometimes than to see another temple or another beach. If you’re traveling when you’re sick, you won’t be enjoying it anyway.
You’ll never be able to see it all
Let’s face it. Even if you spend months and months in one single country, you won’t be able to see it all. It’s impossible. We’re so eager to do everything that we forget to just stop somewhere and enjoy the moment. Try to stay somewhere for a longer time instead, immerse yourself in life there and get to know that place properly. It’s so much better than hopping around just to tell people you’ve been there.
A big thank you to Tulsa driving school for helping with this post.