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I should tell you one thing up front: there are no problem-free vacations; they don’t exist. On every trip, especially on backpacking vacations, you’re bound to run into a few little snags: lost passports, stolen purses or border guards who seem to be asking for a bribe in exchange for your entry visa. Life doesn’t come problem-free, but there is a way to turn those problems in smaller problems, or even better, into adventures themselves.
Smaller Problems
Be prepared for most any eventuality and you’ll turn potential tragedies into smaller problems, hardly worth a worry. Stolen and lost passports are the bane of every traveller, especially when you’re living out of a backpack you got at a garage sale. Things get misplaced, so know what to do to replace them, as in the case of the passport, and know that possessions don’t matter that much in the long run.
Solution Stories
I lost a pair of prescription glasses that I need to see and a multi-tool knife was in my bag when I got on the plane and not there anymore when I landed, but neither of these loses mattered so much because I was prepared. I had travel insurance (a must for any backpacker) and a spare pair of glasses, so although I mourn my frames, it didn’t ruin my trip.
A friend of mine put her bag, along with her cash on hand (fifty dollars) in the back of a kayak. Sadly, the person in that kayak flipped over and her bag got wet. Somewhere in that mess, the ocean sort of claimed her money. When she discovered her cash was gone and likely half way to Jamaica by then, she was sad, but it wasn’t the end of the world. Since she didn’t have any money, I bought her a drink and we gave the cash a good send off. It was only fifty dollars, her camera was in a plastic bag and therefore undamaged, and she had plenty of money in credit and debit card form.
Keep a first-aid kit in your daypack, carry a photocopy of your passport when you’re out on the town (store the original in the hotel safe) and know how to make a claim on your travel insurance. Be prepared for the things that will go wrong and you’ll only have minor speed bumps to contend with.
Adventures
Sometimes troubles aren’t that small and they could possibly put a damper on your trip. If you want to turn any so-called problem into an adventure there’s one thing to keep in mind: it’s all about your attitude. If you think of it as a huge problem, you’ll get stressed out and it will be a huge problem. If instead you look at the problem as another opportunity, you’ll have an adventure.
Without Borders
Guatemala was the destination on my dream 5-week trip and when we got to the border between Mexico and Guatemala, we were informed that the border was closed until further notice. We had a bus to catch, a schedule to follow and a booked (and paid for) daytrip the next day, and besides, I wanted to be in Guatemala, not Mexico! So we took refuge from the sun and sat on our heavy backpacks and decided to make the best of it. Some of us explored the border market; others took naps using their bags as beds. I played cards with a bunch of locals: I didn’t speak much Spanish, they didn’t speak any English, but we had a great game of cards at the border. I don’t remember how hot it was or how annoyed I would have been if I hadn’t decided to have the right attitude and use the delay as an opportunity to see the real Guatemala/Mexican border.
There are so many chances for things to go wrong with your itinerary, with the hostels, with the country you’re staying in; they really are endless. The key to having these adventures and making good memories instead of letting your day be ruined is to attack your problems in the right way. I’ll be honest; my best memories are of the days that didn’t follow the plan! There was another person on the trip with me whose worst days were my best days. Instead of adventures, she had nightmares. The only thing that we did differently was that I decided no matter what happened I was going to enjoy myself. It’s as simple as that.
Backpacking Bliss
Most backpackers expect a few problems to creep up while they explore the world. With two things in your arsenal, a good dose of prepared for anything-ness and a good attitude, you’ll have a backpacking adventure filled with memories, adventures and very tiny problems!
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