10/31/2017
Meet this adventurous girl who already traveled in Europe, Asia and Latin America
In 2010 Maria Garcia was living in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She had a good job, a loving boyfriend and an awesome group of friends. What a great life, no Maria? Well, something was missing... and that's when she started traveling! In an interview with HostelsClub Maria tells us how to go from a young worker in Brazil to a experienced backpacker!
- 1 - From your blog I understood you lived in 7 countries and traveled for more then 50... uau! How did it all started?
My family travels A LOT. Since before I was born... so I think I have gipsy soul haha!
My father is Spanish and had to leave the country during the dictatorship, as he was against the regime. After living in several countries in Latin America he end up in Brazil where he met my mother, in Bahia. Then they traveled together and I was born in Peru. Then we moved back to Brazil, we lived in Spain and Italy for a while but mostly of my childhood was in Brazil. So I went to college in Brazil. A few years later I finished college I had a pretty good life! A good job in my area of studies, a boyfriend who I was dating for a few years, everything was so good but at the same time I was feeling anxious, like I had to live different experiences before settling down. So I left everything behind and moved to Barcelona! Started by working in a bar serving drinks and travelling to other European countries whenever I had a chance, also went to Marocco and Tunisia. But I was a disaster preparing drinks and working nights haha, this was by the time of financial crisis in Europe, so I decided to go back to Brazil. A few months later I found a great job as a journalist in Dominican Republic, from there I worked in three more countries in Latin America, saved some money for two years and... Asia for 6 months backpacking, travelling and working!
- 2 - Besides your family, what other factores helped develop your traveler side? Did your academic background help? And from all of those countries where did you enjoy to live the most?
- Maybe my astrologic sign, Sagittarius haha :) I think it's natural to me that curiosity and desire to get to know the world. And the funny thing, the more I travel alone, the safest I actually feel. Travelling makes you more understandable of the differences but also of the similarities among people!
- I think books also helped, since I was a little girl that I read and write a lot - maybe that's why I decided to become a journalist! - and whenever I was reading about other countries I became more and more curious about seeing the places I've already seen with my imagination. That's why I decided to visit Myanmar, Japan, India, Egypt, Iran and others.
- Regarding the second part of the question, there is no such thing as a perfect place and I realized that after trying to find a perfect country or a perfect city. Every place has something amazing but also aspects I don't like. I love Brazil, there is joy, music and culture but also huge inequalities between poor and rich people. Germany is amazing, everything works! But it's cold, the weather and the people sometimes. Portugal is incredible, one of my favorite countries, but it is almost as messy as Brazil. Bali is a magical island, a lot of surf, yoga, incredible landscapes but public transports are missing and also theater and culture in general. Nevertheless, imperfection itself has its charms, right?
- 3- So you consider that your personality played a role in becoming the traveler you are today, what about the opposite? Do you think the trips you've made also helped to shape your personality? What changed the most among the last 7 years?
- As I said before, I have gypsy soul hehe and I am a naturally curious person but yes, of course, travelling helped build who I am. As a backpacker, I had to overcome a lot of personal issues: fear, shame and all the challenges that came across my path helped me to get to know myself better and what I want from life. By travelling alone I have to take my own decisions, I decide where to go so I need to know what I want when I'm travelling. I think, each trip you get to know yourself better and the world: you learn words of a new language, about different cultures, you learn how to cook, how to dance and every time you get into a new adventure you realize the world is bigger then you thought so it's a bit addicting! Mostly, I became more confident and it is a great feeling when you realize "Damn, I'm exploring the world by myself!"
- 4 - Would you like to share an experience which shaped you?
- Thanks to the media, people become full of prejudice regarding travel to the Middle East alone. Well, I was always curious about that region, the cradle of mankind, of the big empires... but at the same time I was afraid of the terrorism, of not being respected because of being woman... and the opposite happened! I rented a car and drove through Turkey; I traveled by bus in Egypt, Jordain and Iran; I crossed the Red Sea, I camped in the Mount of Sinai and the dessert of Wadi Rum. I was very welcomed in all of these countries, people were very kind and respectful. I found Iran the most welcoming of all, everyone invited to try something, to show their local culture, houses and families.
- Besides learning, I felt so brave traveling through all these places and realized the world is must prettier when we see it with our own eyes.
- 5- From all the trips you're made, have you ever staid in hostels? Do you recommend? Do you know a lot of people still think hostels equal to dirtiness and lack of security...
- In most of my trips I staid in hostels. I love it! Besides being much cheaper then hotels, hostels have a more chilled environment, it's easier to make friends, to meet people from other countries, you get free tips and lots of useful advice on what to visit, there's events organized by the hostel guest get to know each other... I already staid in beautiful, comfortable and clean hostels with breakfast included and tons of activities to participate. Obviously, there are others that are not so good but it's the same with the hotels. I think it's a good practice to read the recommendations of travelers who have been on the accommodation you're planning to stay before you book. By the way, Portugal has THE BEST hostels I've ever staid.
6- As regards your blog, would you like to talk a little bit about it? How did the project started? What's your purpose?
- It's a recent project! A lot of people asked me for tips and to write about my adventures. Last year I lived in Bali and I just moved to Berlin, don't know for how long and so, because I am not working in a "conventional" company, I have more time to write and decided to start a blog, I want to share my stories and encourage people, specially women, to travel more and to do it alone because it's so enriching! Vagamundo.live, take a look and leave your feedback! :)
7 - Thank you so much Maria! Final question, which advice would you like to give to someone who would like to leave his/her country and travel the world? Would you change anything in your experience?
- The first thing is, be honest with yourself, be what you want to be. If travel is your dream, go ahead! It worth it so much to leave your regular job and live with less goods for a while in order to explore the world. It's not as hard or as expensive as it looks like, when we travel we start to value experiences over objects, so we spend less and realize we don't need so many things to be happy!
- I wouldn't change a thing, even the bad parts, because every trip I carried less unnecessary goods, I bought less and I learned in general!
Latest posts
7 hidden beaches in Sicily that have not yet been discovered by tourists
These are some of the beautiful Sicilian beaches that have not yet been fully discovered by tourists. It’s time to visit them! read more
How to start uploading travel videos on tik tok
A brief guide to upload good travel content on Tik Tok read more
10 beautiful medieval walled towns in Italy to see in one day
Would you hop on a tour around medieval italian walled towns? Surely yes, huh? read more
The 8 cheapest and most beautiful cities in Europe to visit
If you're planning to travel in Europe on a budget, this fascinating guide on the 8 cheapest cities in Europe will be of great help! read more
What to see in Bruges: the city that looks like something out of a fairy tale
A weekend getaway to Bruges, the “Venice of the North”. read more
The Algarve in September - where to go and what to see
Just because you couldn't make it to the Algarve in August doesn't mean you can't go anymore! Here's a secret: temperatures around 30ºC are expected during the month of September! read more