Last Updated: 8/12/20 | August 12th, 2020
One of my preferred sites is Couchsurfing. It’s a site that enables you to link with locals abroad as well as get a location to stay, a buddy to show you around, as well as regional information.
I keep in mind I utilized it when I was very first traveling as well as stayed at this beautiful house in Athens. I’ve grown to like it even much more because they added a “Hangouts” features so you can discover people to satisfy for drinks, a museum visit, or a bite to eat.
Celinne, on the other hand, produced — as well as utilized — her own personal social network. She traveled the world only staying with buddies as well as buddies of friends. She reached out on the web as well as discovered strangers prepared to open their house to her. Not only did this assist her lower her travel costs, it enabled her to satisfy wonderful, fascinating, as well as kind-hearted people.
To me, travel is about the human connections we make — as well as she discovered a method to make some fantastic ones. Here’s her sharing her story, what influenced her to do this, as well as what she discovered along the way.
Nomadic Matt: tell us about yourself. kdo jsi? What drives you?
Celinne Da Costa: My like story with travel dates as far back as I can remember: I was born in the heart of Rome to an immigrant Brazilian mom as well as a German-raised Italian father.
Since leaving Italy, I’ve gone from living in the quintessential suburbia communities that American dreams are made of, to frenziedly checking out Philadelphia while balancing my studies at university of Pennsylvania, to adventuring my method with every nook as well as cranny of new York Město.
Last year, I left behind my business marketing task in the city to style my dream life from scratch. I began with a journey around the world, in which I harnessed the power of human connection as well as generosity to stay with 70+ strangers in 17 countries across four continents.
Eighteen months later, I’m still traveling full-time as well as composing a book about my experience circumnavigating the globe by couchsurfing with my social network.
What fuels your enthusiasm for travel?
Travel accelerates personal growth as well as difficulties me to ended up being the very best version of myself. There are so numerous gorgeous locations in the world, however after a while, they begin to blend into one another. What really makes travel important is the lessons it can instruct you, if you are prepared to be present as well as pay interest to your environment.
Travel has assisted me establish the humility as well as goodwill to discover from people that I satisfy along the way. It has pushed me to comprehend my insignificance on this planet, yet still take actions that will positively effect others.
Most importantly, it has challenged me to open my heart to others as well as online in the moment. Ultimately, travel is not a matter of what I see, however who I ended up being along the way. I don’t requirement to see the entire world. I just want to feel it run with my veins.
Tell us about this long experience you were just on. exactly how did you believe of it? exactly how long did it last? Kam jsi šel? Co jsi dělal?
I didn’t want to just stop my business 9-5 task on a whim as well as travel the world without a plan. I wished to make travel into a lifestyle, not a sabbatical, so I chose to style a job that would:
Incorporate my primary enthusiasms (travel, writing, as well as making connections with fascinating humans)
Create chances for a way of life modification when I was done.
I challenged myself to style my dream life, attempt to online it out for six months and re-evaluate when I got there.
That’s where the concept of my social experiment came from: I circumnavigated the globe by couchsurfing with my network. I wished to reincorporate genuine human connection back into my life.
During this time, I never utilized Couchsurfing because everybody who held me was linked to me somehow (friends, buddies of friends, people I satisfied on the road).
I ended up being on the road for nine months for this project, as well as having 73 holds in 17 countries across 4 continents: I passed with Europe, the middle East, Southeast Asia, Oceania, as well as the United States.
How did you really discover holds to hold you? exactly how far ahead did you understand where you were going to sleep?
There were no sites involved! only sheer human connection. All the interactions were initiated by me and were enabled by my phone (texting, voice notes, calling) as well as social network (mostly Instagram as well as Facebook).
I reached out to everybody I understood telling them about my job as well as asking whether they understood somebody they might link me with. I kept moving from one connection to the next up until I discovered somebody prepared to hold me. As my job grEW i lidé o tom začali objevovat, Holds se na mě začal oslovovat s Instagramem.
Měl jsem pouze jednosměrnou lístek do Itálie (odkud jsem původně) rezervovaný-cokoli jiného bylo na rozmaru. Měl jsem obecnou trajektorii o tom, kam jsem šel, stejně jako bych přidal nebo odečítal místa v závislosti na mé situaci.
Byla tam místa, do kterých jsem si přál jít bez ohledu na to, takže často byly časy, kdy jsem byl na kabelu a také jsem neobjevil držení až do poslední minuty. Jindy jsem měl drženo seřazené měsíce dopředu.
Vždycky to vyšlo – v Chorvatsku jsem byl ponechán bez držení. Nakonec jsem si pronajal levný prostor na poslední chvíli, ale naštěstí jsem na této cestě udělal několik regionálních kamarádů, takže budu mít místo k pobytu, když se vrátím!
Jaké bylo nejvzdálenější spojení s držením, se kterým jste zůstali? Jak přesně se to stalo?
Moje nejvzdálenější spojení bylo sedm stupňů v Kuala Lumpur v Malajsii. Bylo to: Přítel spolupracovníka klienta mé matky kamarádky. Bylo to šílené přesně, jak se to stalo. Neustále jsem měl těžko objevit místo, stejně jako každý člověk by mě předal někomu jinému, koho znali až do nakonec, někdo byl nabídnut a byl připraven hostit. K tomu došlo několikrát během mých cest- také jsem měl spoustu pěti i šestistupňových spojení. Byl jsem ohromen přesně tím, jak oddaní lidé mi objevili místo k pobytu.
Uspokojili jste někdy někoho na silnici a zůstali s nimi? Nebo jste přísně zůstali s kamarády přátel?
Ano, celou dobu! Nikdy jsem nebyl bod, kdy jsem měl uspořádání všech svých držáků – obvykle jsem měl naplánované pár destinací, stejně jako cokoli jiného ve vzduchu. Byl jsem neustále uspokojivý a také se spřátelil cestovatele na silnici, stejně jako po vyslechnutí o mém projektu, velká většina by mě nabídla držet, aniž bych se dokonce ptal.
Například jsem uspokojil staršího gentlemana po všech 30 minut, když jsem opouštěl meditační ústup v Nepálu (což bylo dost vtipné, rovněž součástí mého projektu: bratranec mého Kathmandu pracoval, takže jsem byl jeho hostem). Navzdory tomu, že mě tak krátce pochopil, poskytl mě držet mě v Tasmánii. Nakonec jsem šel na jeho i jeho manželku farmu (nacházející se uprostřed ničeho) o šest měsíců později s jedním dalším hostitelem, stejně jako to bylo úžasné.
Čtyři celkem cizinci skončili náklady celý večer sdílení příběhů o našich cestách a filozofiích o životě po svátku čerstvě chycených raků a zeleniny vybrané ze své zahrady.
Řekněte nám několik příběhů, které vás úplně ohromilo, když jste byli na silnici.
Pokud je něco, co jsem objevil z uspokojení mnoha lidí během mých cest, je to mnohem víc, než bychom kdy mohli mít pochopení pod povrchem lidské bytosti. Naší povahou je kategorizovat věci.
S lidmi má tendenci být kulturou, rasou, geografií, náboženství atd. Pokud vynaložíte aktivní úsilí, abyste tyto klasifikace odložili stranou, posaďte se s místními obyvateli a prokážete základní míru zájmu o jejich životy jako Stejně jako příběhy zjistíte, že každý člověk je jejich vlastní vesmír.
Ve skutečnosti nejúžasnější nugety moudrosti, které jsem dostal, pocházejí od lidí, kteří ani neuznali svou vlastní brilanci.
Jedním z mých preferovaných setkání bylo s Maungem, starším pánem, který jsem uspokojil, kdo byl hotelovým manažerem v Myanmaru. Po nějakém rozhovoru jsem zjistil, že pašoval krávy do Thajska na živobytí, když byl mladší, a také byl velitelem v partyzánském pohybu proti pohybu proti represivnímu programu spolu s mnichem, který později skončil známým svým humanitárním úsilí o osiřelé děti. What a story!
Then, there is Adam, the Italian-American hold I fell head-over-heels in like with (spoiler: we broke up). We grew up less than an hour away from each other in the us yet I discovered him while he was living in Australia.
Lastly, I’ll never fail to remember asking my hold Anna in Bali whether she understood of a spiritual healer as well as her telling me that she dealt with one. That week, I spent many of my evenings sitting on their patio in an Ubud village, talking about the implying of like as well as happiness as they proceeded to institution me on life with their smart Balinese philosophy.
What difficulties did you have Couchsurfing around the world? exactly how did you offer with them?
I might never anticipate the comfort or place benefit of my accommodation, so I truly had to discover to choose the flow as well as not set any type of expectations.
I’ve stayed in penthouses with my own personal room, bathroom, as well as maid, as well as I’ve likewise stayed in cots on the floor of a village with a hole for a toilet. It’s funny since a few of my many “uncomfortable” holding accommodations ended up being my richest as well as finest experiences, as well as vice versa.
Taky, “reading” my holds was a challenge. Their reasons for holding me were so different: some wished to pay it forward, others wished to actively show me their city as well as pick my brain, others were only providing a location to stay however didn’t necessarily want to socialize. I had to sharpen my people skills so I might stay respectful as well as intuitive to people’s limits (or lack thereof).
What are your suggestions for people who are influenced by your story as well as want to do this on their own? What are some fantastic resources you suggest to use?
Identify what you are passionate about, as well as try to develop your travels around what works for you. My job was successful since I tapped into my strengths as well as passions.
If you’d like to produce a job around your travels, I suggest you personalize it around your preferences: if you are an introvert as well as dislike speaking to people, for example, costs hours a day chatting with people as well as asking them to hold you may not be the very best idea.
Make your journey fun by catering to what you realistically feel comfortable as well as pleased doing, as well as make sure you do some planning ahead of time.
My finest resource was fellow travelers who had likewise done round-the-world trips. When I was believing about doing this trip, I reached out to full-time travelers on Instagram, asked buddies if they understood people who went on long travel trips, as well as did a great deal of “blog surfing.”
I had so numerous Skype phone calls with strangers who had just completed round-the-world trips before I left for my own. speaking with my doubts, fears, as well as confusions – as well as being reassured that I would be alright – made me so much much more comfortable with leaving.
Specifically, my trip was influenced by one of my mentors Leon Logothetis, who is the author of book (and now TV show) The generosity Diaries. He traveled the world on a yellow motorbike depending on people to offer him gas, food, or shelter, to show to himself as well as to others that humanity was kind.
Other books I likewise checked out that prepared me for the trip were Vagabonding by Rolf Potts, The Art of travel by Alain de Botton, as well as A new Earth: Awakening To Your Life’s function by Eckhart Tolle.
How do you make your money last on the road? What are a few of your finest tips?
My top suggestions for people trying to make it work economically on the road:
1. understand your weaknesses, as well as plan for them – I’m awful at numbers as well as never budgeted before, however I understood I would have to if I wished to make this work financially. I produced an excel sheet as well as for the past 18 months, have been documenting as well as categorizing every single cost so I can track where I requirement to cut down if necessary.
I likewise understood I’d go crazy if I didn’t sometimes treat myself to something I liked however wasn’t necessary, so I provided myself a monthly “frivolous stuff” allowance.
2. always keep in mind that you can barter or work out – traveling as well as negotiating on the road taught me that currency is not only monetary – it is social as well. I did not have plentiful funds, however I did have a skillset: I am a brand strategist by trade, in addition to a writer, social network influencer, as well as material creator.
When negotiating with dollars didn’t get me anywhere, I would offer my services in exchange for products or services of similar perceived value. In numerous areas of the world, people respond favorably to a favor-exchange.
If advertising isn’t your skillset, that’s completely okay too! I’ve seen people barter all type of skills for experiences of locations to stay: for example, exchanging farm work or mentor English for space as well as board, assisting a little company with coding a site in exchange for totally free tours, etc. Možnosti jsou nekonečné!
3. accept the minimalist way of life – When I’m on the road, I online a extremely minimalist lifestyle. I only travel with a carry-on to keep my possessions to a minimum, I barely purchase mementos or clothes, I walk or take public transportation whenever possible, as well as I purchase many of my food at the grocery store.
I typically don’t pay for culture as well as history-related activities or tours; I email locations ahead of time, tell them about my job as well as that I’m a writer (in addition to having my own social network following, I likewise compose for some major publications…both which I accomplished by producing this social experiment).
Since I stay with locals, I don’t pay for accommodation, which assists tremendously.
Were your household as well as buddies supportive of your traveling adventure?
Surprisingly, yes. I was originally anxious to tell my household as well as buddies about my plan to stop my task to travel around the world by sleeping in random people’s houses – I truly expected them to try to talk me out ovejít se.
Ačkoli to byla hrstka z nich