As usually, let's start with a definition: Going on a holiday and traveling are two different things. When one goes on a holiday, it is usually for a short period of time taken off from work. During traveling, one seldom knows for how long the trip will last and when s/he will be earning money again. This is an important factor in the traveler's mindset for budgeting and spending, both time and money wise. Some holiday-goers do not acknowledge this difference but think that travelers live like them on their trips, where they constantly pick most convinient options and treat themselves to luxuries. In this post I would like to explain about the monetary and time aspects of the traveling lifestyle, often called dirtbagging.
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| Sleeping at a random train station in India |
During my travels I have either lived off my savings or worked as a digital nomand, in either case with a constrained budget. The key consideration is simply: The longer my money lasts, the longer I can keep traveling. As I usually travel for climbing, which is a free activity as opposed to sightseeing, shopping and bar hopping, my biggest two expenditures are logistics are lodging. Once I buy long-haul flights to another continent I stay there for several months, and locally I travel like locals, usually meaning over-crowded busses stopping at every village. Here the time aspect intertwines with the money aspect. Since I am on the way for months, I need not stress about loosing a couple of days on bus waiting, repair (crappy ones tend to break down) and spontanous retouring. Besides, these bus trips are great glimpses into local communities' lives! How in Uganda busses are not only for people but also for chickens, goats and any imaginable small animals, and how in Cambodia passengers enjoy watching local music videos (the corniest love stories I have ever seen) at bad quality on a tiny screen. There is no doubt that crossing India on a 30-hour-long train journey is way more memorable than flying, in addition to costing a fraction of it.
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| 12 hour bus trip to South Tibet |
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| Finding the right matatu in Uganda |
While most holiday-goers expect beautiful rooms and extensive service in their hotels, and base their choices on online reviews, a dirtbag often tirelessly walks around to visit several hostels to negotiate for best on-spot prices. A price difference of a few euros is already a decision making factor. Even though I have spent weeks in rooms with paper thin walls, loud fans and cold showers, I cannot tolerate dirtiness or insects. I also want to feel safe, both sleeping at night and leaving my laptop at day. Hand in hand with accommodation comes eating. Local meals in Asia are Africa are cheap, but what costs is drinking. A proper coffee can cost more than a dinner. That is why I appreciate hostels with water boilers for the use of my own aeropress, or flexible restaurant workers who do not mind bringing me hot water and watching me entertain other guests with the (sometimes not so clean) coffee making process. Beer is naturally an unnecessity but it simply tastes so good after a climbing day, especially when consumed with a good crew. I must admit, that although I can resist buying fancy cocktails when meeting up with vacationing friends, I still drink beer on my travels.
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| Hot pot in Hong Kong |
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| Breakfast in the Philippines |
As one can already read between the lines, traveling cheaply requires preparation, self discipline and tolerance. It often takes time and skill to locate the cheapest options. For example, buying Thai train tickets directly at (often complicated) local websites avoids one paying provisions to service providers. Being able to figure such things out makes one feel smart and accomplished (in a life phase otherwise involving few intellectual challenges). So, a common misconception of dirtbags is that they do not care about money. I have never spent as much time talking about prices as I have done with fellow travelers. To some traveling cheaply becomes a game, a solemn goal rather than an enabler, in which one can excell to nearly over doing it. I have been left behind by a traveller friend, who found a cheap train only for himself and did not want to take a slightly more expensive bus in order to stick with me. Such people are happy to accept hospitability from locals and fellows, but reluctant to share anything of theirs. I must admit that towards the end of my last travels I was also in danger of becoming money-selfish.
Between travels I have lived normal working city life. Just like getting used to dirtbagging, returning to normality takes some adjusting. People may not understand you wanting to walk a few tram stops in order to avoid buying a ticket, or they look weirdly at you when you wrap side bread into a napkin to take it home (although I still do it for food waste reasons). However, having been a traveler has taught me to lead a sparing lifestyle also while working. Instead of eating in restaurants I invite friends over for a self-cooked dinner, I climb only at the gym where I have a membership and most importantly, I buy only what I really need (when it is on sale). After having managed a year of backpacking with only a couple of t-shirts and shorts, a too large wardrobe makes me confused. And in general, I have learned that I do not need to surround myself with things in order to feel satisfied. When I do not do it all the time, a cappucino in a cosy cafe or a new work outfit actually feels special rather than normal.
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| Irish coffee in the Netherlands |
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| Cheap beers in Switzerland |
Now I have lived in Zürich, one of the world's most expensive cities, for a year and half (with 4 months of travelling in between) and I am surely swissifying myself. Things that I previously left on the self, I consider "a deal" nowadays. I guess it is justified to live according to my current surroundings, to some standard. I spend most of my time working in the office (luckily in a job I really like) so I feel that I am entitled to living in a nice flat, buying quality groceries and once in a while going out. Also, because I spend a lot of time at work, I have less time for deal searching, inefficient travel connections and do-it-yourself solutions. However, at heart I am still a traveler, and maybe one day my sparing lifestyle will reward me with a flat ownership, or at least a van, or something I have yet no idea about...
