Assalamualaikum and greetings to our loyal blog readers since 2011. Wow, time flies, and it’s been ages since we’ve traveled anywhere. With the sudden loss of enthusiasm in 2020, thankfully, it has gradually returned.
When I started writing, that’s when the true spirit came back. It’s true what they say, our desires and actions stem from our inner being and are manifested outwardly. What is inside is how we are on the outside.
So, what’s the latest update? Are we announcing a comeback? Not yet. We are just casually sharing here. Besides, the term ‘comeback’ doesn’t exist in our dictionary. Travel has always been a core interest and passion.
The kids have grown up. It’s easier to move around now. But we are getting older too. People say backpacking like before depends on the situation. Getting older, neck pain, stomach gas problems, gut problems, bloating, back pain, and so on. This is all because we started to travel later than the other travelers.
But, insyaAllah, we are still being given strength by Allah to carry backpacks. 12-14 kg is still manageable, as long as we use the original Deuter. Posture must be properly taken care of.
The Deuter backpack we bought in 2020 for husband and wife usage has been around for a long time, but barely used until now. This is the last one we bought and will keep for the next 10 years because the prices have skyrocketed ridiculously. Allegedly due to the rise of the US dollar. Oh, it’s not just us. Our children also use Deuter. The eldest has 40L, and the youngest has 10L.
Traveling by land? Hopefully, our body still fits. Still can sit for hours in public transport. I just worried about numb feet. Only the kids need to be trained again, although the eldest used to be familiar with it. That’s when he was 4 years old. Now, maybe he’s forgotten… but his interest in backpacking is as strong as his parents. Only the second child is just getting to know the hardcore, DIY, and long-distance backpacking style.
The plans are actually many. Recently, we have taken the approach of planning by ourselves without announcing it to anyone. Because sometimes if we excitedly announce, in the end, it doesn’t happen. I think many people experience the same situation. As soon as we announce our plan, it won’t happen, haha. So, only if we are ready, we will share the story in this blog.
What was our problem before? Long-term family travel is, of course, a financial matter. We don’t take loans, use credit cards, or anything as ‘travel money’ or ‘travel top-up money’. Loans and credit cards are not wrong if you know how to manage them and have a stable job. Unlike us, no stable job and depend on unpredictable income from online business. For us, this travel matter is an EPIC JOURNEY. Must do the best and most satisfactorily without troubling ourselves or losing anything.
Where to start and where to go next? Not yet decided. We follow the flow. If He decides according to our plan, we go. If He leads us elsewhere, we go too. If He tells us to retire and do farming, sob sob… we retire because He as the big boss wants it that way.
But if it happens, no more overly frugal travel like before. To the point that we didn’t visit interesting places that had no entrance fee. Just to save on public transport to get there. As backpackers. I give an example of such places… Hatyai City Municipal Park (Hat Yai) and Hellfire Pass (Kanchanaburi). So, the previous plan (suitable for long-term travel) to limit US$25 per day as a travel budget is also rejected. For those new to the backpacker world, the principle of a backpacker is not cheapskate, but “the more you save, the further you go“. Unlike the travel style by some rich person for 3 days, that can only cover sightseeing in one city because the cost has doubled and the experience is minimal.
Our walking pace is no longer the same as before. Previously, we could cover 4-5 tourist attractions in one day, but now only 2-3 places. The influence of age factors is only 20%, the rest because we want to be relaxed, no more rushing. Now we want appreciation, want to do photography with nature and make the kids happy without stress.
Insya Allah, we will update here… stay tuned!
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