1. Wear good shoes

Europe on a budget is enjoyable but it can also be tough. It includes a lot of walking because we cannot afford taxis or extra bus rides, or that trains do not drop us off at the exact location that we want to go to. Many attractions are usually clustered around a location, so a good amount of walking is needed.

Recommended: Durable sport shoes. It has become a part of my body through the 1.5 months duration in Europe. My friend brought a pair of wedges when we were backpacking, and sadly she didn’t have any occasion to wear it at all because we will be walking from morning till night.

2. Get their maps the moment you reach the city

I never knew maps were the key to the universe. Learnt how to read and navigate maps with the help of my trusty partner, @cherrybelly ! Most of the time though, she is the one leading the way and preventing us from getting lost because she can read the maps. I…had gotten ourselves lost many, many times from being unable to read the map whoops.

There are also many mobile apps that provides us with offline maps, coupled along with information about the tourist attractions, famous cafes and more of those sorts. I used Ulmon’s City Maps 2 Go, but more of Google Maps. Both apps can star favourite locations or destinations, so you can track how close you are to the place on the map as you travel. Just a fun fact that I found amusing: the top of each mobile phone’s is the main compass and provides the direction (HAHA I NEVER KNEW even though it is pretty obvious. I was so confused about it the first few times I used mobile maps. Noob level 9000)

Recommended: Physical copies of the maps have been the most useful. Before going out of the house, we would use Tripadvisor to plan where to go on that day, locate it on our maps, and then leave the house. Planning in advance was futile on our part.

3. Bring a bar of detergent soap 

Backpacking means finding cheap accommodations that may not have washing machines and dryers. Thus, you probably have some stinky clothes, that you might want to wash to use again or you are running out of underwear (which is pretty crucial to me haha). The detergent soap is therefore very useful to bring and it takes up a small amount of space.

4. Bring reusable clothes

Or another way to save space in that backpacking bag would be to bring very thin clothes that easily dry after you wash so you can easily keep reusing them. Jeans material is also great, because you don’t have to wash them for weeks (no one will know, really). Moreover, it gives you more excitement to shop once in a while especially when sales are everywhere!!

Recommended: A pair of denim shorts and a few sets of tights for bottoms.

5. Be careful and alert

Same as everywhere, always be careful and alert. Place your bags close and preferably in front of you. Cherrybelly and I had encountered a close call of pick-pocketing, where the person has already unzipped her bag and we didn’t even realize she did that. Their strategy was to work in a pair and one was very very very close to us but was standing in front, looking at a map. We thought it was a lost tourist but one that was behaving weirdly, then another was behind us, targeting which one would be an easier target, I suppose. They were in very close proximity with us for at least 15 minutes, slowly unzipping that bag full of valuables. Be safe.

Another aspect to be alert about is to never accept things that the peddlers hand over to you even when they say ‘take it, it’s free’. Unless you have the intention to buy it. For example, roses or selfie sticks or any type of merchandise. They will somehow make you buy it. Especially the roses. Stay away from the roses at the Spanish Steps in Rome. Though, one might actually get lucky and get the item they are holding on to for free as peddlers run away when the police patrols the area, like the one we got in Paris. Some of them actually sell it cheaper than those in souvenir stores.

 

6. Bring a physical travel journal

This was one of the things that I regret not doing. I did bring a journal to write in but it ended up being used to calculate my expenses and I figured writing my diary on my phone would be more convenient. But,

my phone broke and I had to buy another usable phone somewhere overseas and all my notes were scattered in different memory cards. Memories became messy. Then again, I had always preferred physical diaries than online ones. So, I guess this point is a personal preference.

7. Bring your student pass everywhere!!

This was the one thing I was dumbfounded by. I actually left my student pass in London before we went backpacking, thinking I didn’t need it. Boy, was I wrong. There are perks to being students, even in other countries. Like cheaper tickets or free entries to museums and other local attractions. There was one ticketing person that gave me a chance for not bringing my student pass and gave me stern advice (felt more like a warning though) to ‘please don’t be stupid and bring your ID with you next time. It is a very important card when travelling.’

Another note would be to also note down which dates would provide free entry to places. Most of the time in Europe, the first weekend of the month would be free entry to tourist attractions. You do have to google it out.

Recommended: BRING STUDENT PASS EVERYWHERE.

Looking back at it, I think there were many stupid and embarrassing things that I did in front of my travel buddy and oh my gosh I hope she doesn’t remember any of it >.<

I will leave this post with a quote that I really liked and made me think a lot more about my travel experience:

“Many young Singaporeans say they want to travel. But what they really want is a vacation. To travel is to have an experience. Both the amazing and the uncomfortable. Getting lost, mugged, having strangers flirt with you, chatting with the children, figuring out the train routes, communicating without a lingua franca, dancing with strangers and looking into beautiful eyes.

So next time… Ask. Do I want a vacation or do I want to travel?” –hirzizulkiflie