I am so happy to have been nominated by the awesome Addie from fitfabandforeign.com. I am super humbled to have this opportunity to bring hopefully more readers to my blog. I have only been posting for the past month or so, therefore, would love to obtain more readers with the same passion as myself and to be able to share some of my travelling experiences and hopefully inform those with a passion for travelling at the same time.
1. What is your most valuable lesson learned while traveling?
Independence for sure! I am happy with my own company now, something I lacked when I was younger. I no longer seek approval by anybody and do not care what people think about my lifestyle and how I decide to live it. Not only does visiting different countries allow you to see how vast the world is but also interacting with others and listening to many life stories along the way from how different their life is to anybody else’s. I have rubbed shoulders with some of the wealthiest people and also with others who barely have enough money to feed their family. Seeing what others cannot and do not have the experience of experiencing is mesmerising and adds to my many tales to tell people I meet! This is what makes me realise that we truly are unique, and everybody experiences life in a different way, and that is what is so addicting to me. Not only to see, touch and taste the different cities, countries and cultures but to breathe it and learn from it indeed makes you a fuller person. Right now I am living alone in South America ongoing a course to become an English teacher, a lifelong passion. I came here with only my savings and it certainly makes me a happier and independent person. Hopefully, I’ll soon have time to discuss my experience further on my blog.
2. What do you wish you could tell yourself when you started traveling? To never become addicted to it because it is costly! Well in all seriousness probably to never put a price on it, because experiences are priceless! Before I would probably spend the money on something materialistic instead of buying a ticket because I thought it was worth its price rather than travelling cheap and staying in a hostel because it was not my style. However, breaking out of your comfort zone is what gives you those priceless experiences. Now I’ve learnt that only memories are worth money.
3. How do you choose your destinations? I used to decide my destinations by whatever caught my eye. I still do most of my journeys but to grasp more of the world I look out for special offers individual airlines are promoting, and depending on how much money and time I have wherever suits my budget works for me! Since studying, I realise that that time is precious therefore I am going to make the most of it whenever I regain it!
4. What is the wildest experience you have experienced? Regarding travelling, I do not think I’ve travelled extensively enough to have a real enticing tale to tell but maybe actually wanting to bring home a stray dog I fell in love with on Easter Island! Brian Orongo was a German Shepherd and became my close buddy! I named him Brian Orongo, Brian from the fictional cartoon character of Family Guy, the tv comedy and Orongo because we were walking through the forest to get to Orongo, a famous historical landmark on the island, and that is when we found one another. If I had stayed on the Island longer I would have possibly attempted to bring him home with me, but then again it would have been a huge responsibility for me, and I am sure he is happier being on the Island, I knew I would be!
5. What do you do when you are not traveling?
I’ve recently finished secondary school and been super busy travelling since then! Visiting France, Belgium and Germany on my road trip, countries I have loved ever since I was young. Around a couple of weeks later I moved to Peru, since then I have visited some cities outside of Lima such as Huancayo and Oxapampa, currently planning my trip to Trujillo as I type! Then I witnessed the beauty of Easter Island, Chile and Brazil. Back to the question. I am a keen writer working on my blog, obviously, and my novel that I am currently taking a break from. I enjoy entering short story competitions that will hopefully allow me to feed my travelling addiction for the time being. As explained before I am studying to become an English Teacher also which I highly enjoy! However, this has limited my time I have to travel, but hopefully, I’ll soon be getting some money back into my bank account, which will be my ticket to happiness.
6. Do you like scenery or cities best? Why? Scenery! Cities stress me out, and I do not like feeling stressed when I am on ‘holiday’. It is sometimes fun to have a city break but as I am currently living in a bustling and energy draining city, going to another one is not my idea of how I would like to spend my money. My recent visit to Easter Island was honestly a genuinely satisfying experience, and I speak fondly about the Island on my blog. It has such a calming atmosphere that rubs off on you and leaves you feeling renewed something I am sure everybody would adore!
7. What would you do if you had all the money in the world? I would be inclined to say travel for the rest of my life for sure, but first I would help those who need it more than me, be it animals and people! I love giving a share of my money when I have spare and if I had all the money in the world, it would only be fair to improve it for everybody, and myself also. I would love to buy a Volkswagen campervan or an old -timer such as an old 50’s style Toyota and cruise the streets and the whole of America at night, and later jet off to any destination would like and have an action-packed adventure for as long as I would like as I would not be a slave to work.
8. What’s your favourite food? I would love to say chocolate, as a generic term, anything sweet really. Sticking to the tradition of these questions as I am currently in Peru, known for having some of the best cuisine in the world winning various global awards throughout many years, I would say picarones! They are super sweet a bit like a doughnut but covered with melted sugar covering its dought interior. A favourite of mine!
9. What do you find yourself doing on long flights? I do not watch many movies or sitcoms like many do. Instead, I tend to catch up on sleep or read. I have a strange tradition when travelling; I would often buy a keyring to remind myself of the destination and a magazine in the language preferably National Geographic, if available. I would read that on my flight of one of my books. Right now I am enjoying reading ‘On the map’ by Simon Garfield. If I have done those and I am bored, I enjoy playing the games on the screen that the plane offers, or take the opportunity to learn a new language, well attempt!
10. What was your first adventure that gave you a taste of travel? Probably moving from Germany to the UK when I was two. Of course, I cannot remember the trip, but my parents said I was havoc on the ferry. I did travel to Peru when I was a newborn, and I remember endless road trips we used to have as a family, or just me and my father, so I cannot remember exactly how I got the travelling bug, but I certainly know I did.
11. If you could go anywhere, at any period where would you go and why? I have always loved Roman History, and when I visited Rome and walked inside the Coliseum, I wondered how crazy it would have been those hundreds of years ago, to have been sat in the audience witnessing history. Seeing Spartacus battling for his freedom with many other enslaved gladiators, observing those raw emotions from the gladiators and the regular citizens in the crowd. The building must have given everybody electrics currents running through their bodies; it must have been such a surreal experience if we were to watch it now! I doubt any Hollywood movie can portray the vividness of the Roman citizens emotions, and the fear and adrenaline shown by the actual celebrities, the gladiators. I have always been fascinated by the Roman culture so I would love to travel back in time to witness it only!
I had such a great time answering these very well chosen questions; I hope everybody enjoyed reading them and have learnt more about me as well! Happy Blogging fellow Bloggers!
Maria Hanako van Straaten 