Backpacks, boots, and a big wide world.

Over winter break, my dear friend Kaitlyn and I went backpacking through Europe.
It still seems so weird that I can actually say I've done that now. I can really put that tick on my bucket list. Granted, I'll be wanting to do it again, but I'll put the first tally there for now.
We had a pretty ambitious list: we were gone for three and half weeks, starting in Lithuania and ending in Amsterdam.

Kaitlyn and I are lucky to have pretty well aligned travel goals:
1) Eat good food.
2) See great art.
3) Meet cool people.
4) Do it on the cheap.

I'm extremely serious about that last one. My experience has shown that if you are willing to sacrifice some comfort, it's totally possible to see the world in a clean, safe, and exciting way without spending a lot of money. So though my perspective is limited in terms of luxury, I can tell you a lot about the pros and cons of hostels, eating at a mix of grocery stores and restaurants, and finding the good museums, book stores, and souvenirs that aren't lame. If you're into traveling with similar interests, please feel free to follow along!


We stayed with a couple of friends over the course of the trip. (It's a super cool feeling to know people around the world. I owe some of that to Kaitlyn and some to my semester studying abroad.) The rest of the time we were in hostels, which were on the whole pretty nice. We spent our days walking the cities, filling our eyes and bellies with beautiful things. Some evenings we opted to stay in and rest our tired bodies, but others we went to theatre and cool jazz clubs and did some wandering under European street lamps.

There are a good number of 'city guide' posts coming your way over the next couple of weeks. First up: Vilnius, Lithuania!