History of our travels
We have done it a hundred! A trip to Norway solemnly closed our 6th travel season. The tripadvisor counter showed a mark of 26% of the world visited. Every fourth country on the planet is conquered by our routes.
For 6 years, we have completed 42 trips abroad, visited 43 countries, 216 cities, completed 132 flights. I have always dreamed of traveling and I am very glad that I managed to disperse this train and involve others in this activity).
It was 11 years ago, in the first months of our acquaintance with Dasha. When we were very young, we bought tickets for our first trip together. The tickets were for a weekend in Poltava. Since Dasha did not like my notes of perfectionism, she asked me not to double-check everything 10 times, and everything is correct in those tickets. So we left on the third shelf in Kharkov. Our Poltava train left a day earlier, there was an error in the date in the tickets))) Since that day, I have been responsible for the visa, ticket and other documentary part of all our travels. Dasha took on the role of topographer. The main part of our travel routes is laid by Dasha. Dasha has a talent for finding places that don't always appear in standard guidebooks. I have a knack for finding deals on flights to those places. It is worth noting that on our first trip we did get to Poltava.
In addition to a number of other weekend trips, we had two major trips to the Crimea and the Carpathians. In 20 days we were able to cover almost all the main places of the peninsula. And we went to the Carpathians, not even knowing in which cities and where we would live. Everything was so easy to develop, the trip turned out to be unforgettable. At the same time there were my first attempts at writing in LiveJournal. The main idea was that in my old age I could re-read and remember everything to the details. Mentally go back to any of the past trips.
There were a very large number of trips around Ukraine, we combined the most difficult train routes at that time. I made money fixing computers. When we managed to earn something somewhere, we bought regular train tickets. Sometimes they even traveled with their own beds in order to save money, for which they could later buy regular tickets. I noticed a nice feature. In the nightstand near the computer there were always tickets for some train. It was wonderful.
The first trips abroad were to Moscow and Minsk. In the case of Minsk, we celebrated the new year right on the train with all the relevant paraphernalia. This, probably, was the prototype of the “New Year in the Metro” idea, which we implemented in 2018. After the wedding in 2010, our first serious trip came - to Egypt. We were pleasantly shocked by how different life abroad is in all its aspects. It was the first dive into a completely different world. It was the first test of our school English. I wrote down all the English words that I missed during the speech. The Arabs wanted to speak Russian with me, but we intensively began our practice of English. And the most interesting discovery is that even with poor knowledge of the language, you can feel great in another country. We then discovered exotic fish, pyramids, Luxor. We wanted everyone to see it!
It was necessary to somehow share all this with the world. It is necessary to write a story, upload a lot of photos and tell all your friends so that they will definitely fly and see it too! People who have never traveled do not even suspect how many parallel worlds exist on this planet. And the best part is that almost everyone will enjoy traveling. It's worth trying just once. All of this, of course, comes down to money. But what kind of shares do not happen. For example, you can take tickets from UIA for 1100 UAH for a year and fly for at least one day with your own food, so that it is practically cost-free. But be sure to see these beautiful visa-free worlds.
After the first trip abroad, we had a break for about a year and a half. I had to find my first serious job so that I could continue traveling. Then Mishka was born, when he was six months old, he joined our travels in Ukraine. In parallel, we were saving money for some distant and big trip. The most important thing in the self! We have already trained enough on local trips and have been to Belarus, Russia and Egypt. Everything seems to be simple. Then, when we took the first tour to Egypt, the agent girl told us the cherished phrase “Well, next time fly to Thailand! ”. This phrase for a year and a half did not come out of my head so much that we did just that. We went to the ticket office and found out when it was possible to fly to Thailand as cheaply as possible, and where it was at all) That's when I found out that there are promotions on air tickets. There were still more than three months before departure, I sat at night and studied air routes and fares.
The first find on the Internet was Istanbul. Just have money for Thailand. I think the trip will not get worse if we take a little from her money in favor of Istanbul. At the same time, Misha, in his year and two months, will see another country, otherwise the solid mountains of the Carpathians for now. Independent Thailand has passed on a positive cosmic scale. It was the real adventure. Then there was no GPS, no electronic offline maps, no gadgets. Each attempt to get to the attraction turned into a mass of adventures. We noticed that all adventures always end well. This is Asia! It seems that we have already found our favorite part of the world.
Traveling and searching for stocks pulled us deep into their webs. We didn't really resist. Then a whole mathematical science appeared on how to make 67 days abroad out of 20 days of working leave. How to negotiate with the boss about two vacations during the probationary period in an interview so as not to fail the interview. Already by the way in the third company so I agree. The most epic thing was last time, then I was able to agree that I would work on a trial period of 8 days, then I would fly to South America for 21 days, and then we would continue the trial period. In general, everything can be agreed upon, the main thing is to approach the issue wisely.
During our travels, Dasha and I developed our own traditions. I think many readers have already noticed them, for example:
- In every city where there is a Hard Rock Cafe or Hard Rock Shop, we make sure to take my photo in front of the logo.
- If during a trip in the mountains we come across a broom, then we take a photo of Dasha in flight on a broomstick.
- There is a traditional photo "Me and my family abroad", though not from every trip.
- During each trip, a parasitic phrase is born. Which is repeatedly used every day. For example, “But Mishenka would have liked it here” or “Ah, mom and dad wouldn’t go to bed yet, but they would climb 2 more mountains! ”. One of the oldest memes ever born is called "Little Parking Lot". This is when a tourist walks around and shoots everything on a video camera. This joke began in Thailand, where one man, filming absolutely everything, commented "Little parking lot! ". There was such a trip in which the words of a non-existent language were born to communicate with each other. For example, during a trip, if the sun is shining, you can simply say: “Gre”
Travel stories are an art. I write stories at night when Dasha is already asleep. But since he himself begins to want to sleep, it sometimes takes several weeks to copy everything from his head. The longest story about South America so far. The story took 36 pages of A4 text, which took 43 hours in total to write and publish.
Thus, we live each trip twice, during the trip and while writing the story. The pleasure while writing is very close to the first. As all the best moments are scrolling in memory and as if we are on the route again.
Quite often there is even a third time - in dreams.
Each of the stories (almost every one) is written for a specific track list. This tracklist plays during the writing of the story every night in the same order. To write a new story, I try to select a new track list. But lately, Onuka has been flashing more and more often)
Dasha and I tried to involve all our friends in independent travel, who happily asked to share information about promotions. All this was successfully implemented in our email newsletter about promotional tickets. Anyone can subscribe to my newsletter and be aware of all the worthwhile promotions that I find. Now the main idea of stories and mailing is that everyone can be inspired by the story and repeat our routes on their own without the cost of intermediaries and travel companies. To be honest, there have even been ideas to hold free travel seminars, but the hands never reach.
While traveling, there is an unpleasant factor, such as stealing money and falling into the bait of crooks. This is a very important point that cannot be avoided. No matter how much you read about tourist scams and money thefts, you will never be ready for all situations. This happens, at least for the reason that an unscrupulous seller knows that he wants to deceive you right now and here. The tourist, in turn, does not know the date or place where exactly he will be deceived. How to deal with it? If during the trip you realized that you irreversibly got up to $ 100, then you need to do this - score! And continue the journey as if nothing had happened. The unpleasant sediment will eventually go away, but you will not do anything. However, your insurance may cover such situations, for example, insurance forcibly issued by the bank upon receipt of a bank card. We had a record case with an insurance company, when the insurance compensation came out more than the cost of the tour to Montenegro itself. The reason for compensation was weighty - two planes were delayed in total by almost 50 hours.
From the interesting - Dasha and I have such a unit of measure as a trip to Egypt. If it is necessary to determine the feasibility of buying some expensive household item, then the cost is conditionally compared with the cost of a tour to Egypt. For example, buying a car was valued at 7 trips. We came to the conclusion that it is not cost-effective, it is better to travel 7 times.
I have been asked more than once which lottery I won, that I travel so often. But in fact, priorities in life play an important role here. For example, you have an iPhone or a car and you smoke.
Let's calculate the cost of buying a car + gasoline + insurance + seasonal tire replacement + repairs for the year. What amount comes out? And if you send the entire amount for travel? For the cost of an iPhone, I can send you on three interesting and delicious trips. After talking with friends, I found out that smoking is often in the amount of a pack a day. The cost of a pack fluctuates within one dollar. For a year it is a trip to Georgia, including tickets)
For some populations with travel, it is generally easy to resolve the issue, all that is required is to invest in your own travel instead of gambling or network pyramids...
By the way, in the spring, you can fly together for 7 nights on an all-inclusive to Turkey for about 9000 UAH.
Income without a dispute is very important, it affects the possibilities and distances of travel. But you can complete the trip itself in completely different price ranges. One of our acquaintances collected for a one-way ticket to the states, took the $ 20 donated by his girlfriend and flew away to travel with virtually no money. A couple of months later, happy as an elephant, he returned, having traveled a considerable part of the states. Then he conducted more trainings on how to travel without money))) Others hitchhiked around Norway with a tent.
But in reality, money is needed. Without them, you might not like it at all abroad.
In my student days, having no stable income at all, I managed to travel almost the whole of Ukraine. I fixed someone's computer every couple of months, earned 200 UAH and went on a trip! But here, of course, I was lucky that I lived in my parents' apartment and didn't have to pay rent in Kyiv.
My mom and dad this year in Paris generally managed to buy sausage, cheese, buns and a bottle of champagne for 7 euros. As a result, we got dinner for two.
I'm all for what. If you don’t have enough courage, but you always wanted to travel actively, then dial me by phone, I will be happy to motivate you and tell you what to do to fly away)
The second popular question is what kind of work is this, where you can travel all the time? And grandfather generally put forward the idea that I was fired a long time ago, so I have a lot of time to ride. Someone else noticed that it would be even easier for me to travel without a job. But, no job. Household expenses, entertainment and travel money. Vacation is built in such a way as to absorb the maximum number of weekends and holidays. If we take 20 days of vacation, divide it into 4 trips and each time connect two Saturdays and two Sundays, then we already get 36 days a year. We haven't caught the holidays and weekend trips yet.
The coolest promotions and rates fall 6-12 months before the trip. For most people, this is a stopper. The main problem is “I don't know what will happen in a year”.
Let's figure it out. What interval would be convenient? Most often it is to buy tickets 2 - 3 weeks before the trip. But also many cannot answer the question “What will happen in 3 weeks”. What for a year, what for 3 weeks the plans are unknown. But if you take tickets now for a trip in a year, then you will know that in a year you will be on this trip, voila and plans for a year are ready. This is the answer to the question “I don’t know what will happen in a year”. Various kinds of emergencies can happen, both during the year, and during the same two to three weeks before the trip.
The only subtle point is pregnancy. You can give birth in a year, and this can really affect your plans.
If there is a wedding ahead, then changing passport data (with the exception of the first and last name) is almost always free. But with a surname, everything is not so difficult. We have close friends who bought part of the tickets for one surname, and part for another, taking into account the upcoming wedding. Yes, and changing the name for many companies is free.
Our trips also have one common goal - to see the whole world. In any case, countries open to tourism. According to our calculations, this will happen in 2033. Initially, this idea seemed more unfeasible. Now it seems quite real, and who knows, maybe it will work out. The second so far unrealized dream is to fly the family into space to the international space station. But how to implement this so far, that does not come to mind. If you calculate the necessary budget in order to see all the countries, then such a flight into space will cost as much as 475 trips to all countries of the world. But let's see, I think that the development of space tourism is not far off.
Here is such a short story about the history of our travels. Friends travel more and more, and Dasha and I are always happy to help!
