Tips on Backpacking and Staying in Hostels

If you've never stayed in a hostel before, it can be an intimidating experience. It's really not much different that sharing a dorm room at college with someone, except that sometimes you're sharing a room with many other people. If you want peace and quiet, but can't afford a private room, booking a dorm with fewer beds is a good idea. I tend to try to book four bed dorms. Six at the most. When I was younger, I once stayed in a 22 bed dorm. Talk about an experience! I don't suggest doing something like that, except for maybe a single night.

Make sure you bring all the toiletries you need. Some hostels will have soap dispensers in the bathroom and in the showers, but not all of them. Also, make sure you bring a towel, as they are usually not provided. Some hostels will rent you a towel for the duration of your stay, but not all of them.

Don't bring a sleeping bag. Most hostels don't allow them for health reasons.

In order to keep your pack smelling as good as possible (and let me tell you, it won't smell that great even so), you'll want to wash your underwear and socks every day. Taking time to wash them in the sink is a pain in the ass, so I suggest doing what my sister taught me, and that is washing them while you're in the shower. I bring a little vial (or two) of actual laundry soap to do this. Regular soap or shampoo or body wash, does not work very well. I will put a little drop of laundry soap on my socks and underwear and scrub them while I'm in the shower. You can hang them to dry over night. Most of the time, they will be dry before you have to leave, even if it's the next morning. Most bunks will have bars on them, and this is a great place to hang wet stuff, like your towel.

Beware of damp rooms though. Even the thinnest of wet laundry won't dry in a damp room, even if allowed days to do so. Sometimes you can alleviate the dampness by opening a window if possible. Be sure to close the windows by evening though, to avoid mosquitoes.

Try not to rush to too many places too quickly. After a while, you won't care about another Roman ruin, or another classical painting, no matter how cool it is. Bring moleskin and band-aids. You're going to need them. And aspirin and glass wipes (if you wear glasses). Your feet and legs are going to hurt like a son of a bitch, even if you have been walking a lot at home. You're going to wind up walking more than you have been, no matter how much you were doing before you left. I had worked myself up to walking five miles before most of my trips, and I think on average I walked 12-15 miles per day during these last two trips.

You will want to get a small pad lock, so you can lock up your pack or other valuables if there are lockers. Most hostels do have lockers, some big enough to fit your pack. Others only have small lockers. Don't leave valuables lying around. In hostels without lockers, keep your stuff zipped up and under the bed or something, out of sight. Better yet, don't travel with anything of value. Leave your iPhone and tablet at home. The first time I went backpacking, I didn't even have a cell phone. Nowadays, you can purchase Sim cards that will fit in an old unlocked phone in order to be able to call home. The great thing about buying a European Sim card is that you can accept incoming calls for free. Your family can get a cheap calling card and call you for much less than using your American cell phone there. In '09, I spent $400 on phone calls with AT&T. Don't give the evil empire your money!

Look for hostels that have 24-hour reception. This might not seem like a big deal, but if you ever have a problem in the middle of the night, it's nice to have someone to turn to.

Some hostels have laundry facilities. You can travel with less clothing if you plan when you will be able to do a whole load of laundry. Having to lug a heavy pack of clothing around will put a damper on your day. Don't bring enough clothes for six months, even if you're traveling for that long. Besides what you are wearing, two pairs of pants, two shirts, and five days worth of underwear is plenty. When you change out of clothes, be sure to hang them up in order to air them out, so they will not smell when you wear them again. I usually wear clothes for three days, and I hang them up in between (or throw them over a rail or bed if there isn't a wardrobe with hangers). If you have to change hostels, hang up your clothes as soon as you can after arriving. I usually try to wash right after my initial arrival at the first hostel. I refuse to wear airplane clothes two days in a row, they always smell terrible. When you get ready to do laundry, don't forget to wash your towel and pajamas. It will feel refreshing to have clean stuff.

Wear 8" boots. Yeah, it sucks having to get them off and back on in the security line at the airport, but they can save your ankles (and your trip) if you turn your foot on a cobblestone. My sister brings flip-flops to wear to the shower. I don't. I still have my feet and to my knowledge, haven't caught any diseases.

Despite your attempt at cleanliness, you will smell. You won't notice it however while you're traveling. If you're concerned about smelling like the road and the hostel, bring something to counteract it, like good smelling perfume or febreeze. I had no idea how horrid my pack smelled until I had been home a couple of days. It would knock your nose off. And I'd tried to keep everything clean and washed up.

Take the reviews on Hostelworld with a grain of salt. If you're on a budget, know that you get what you pay for. It ain't going to be the Hilton if it's €15 a night. Most hostels are clean enough for most people. If you're really picky about everything being perfect, maybe backpacking isn't for you. Save your money longer and pay for better accommodation. However, you will never meet anyone in a private room. I've met some really cool people while backpacking. 

While I think it's safe to associate with other backpackers, as a general rule, do not engage random strangers. There are all kinds of scammers and criminal-types attempting to sell you fake goods or pick your pocket. Don't look at them. Don't talk to them. Keep walking. Don't be afraid to offend. For the most part, traveling alone as a woman is safe, but you need to use your head. Don't go out drinking with people you don't know at three o'clock in the morning. Don't meet someone you met online in a secluded location. These are not good ideas. When I travel alone, I am back at the hostel at dark and I get up early because I'm interested in the historical and archaeological stuff. If you're wanting to party and pub-hop, I suggest getting some friends that you trust together to go with you so you can watch out for each other. 

Good luck and have fun backpacking!

Backpacking 2009 Journal Complete

I have finally completely finished posting the entire journal from 2009. I will start on the 2012 one tomorrow (I swear!). I've typed it all up, but would like to put pictures and such with the posts. I realize, looking back on my posts that my food allergies (dairy and soy) were affecting me in a bad way. I wonder if my knees will hurt next time I go backpacking. It will definitely be harder to eat, because they put dairy and soy in almost everything that is processed, which is a huge part of a hostel-backpacking diet. Cheap processed crap.

My food allergies were not only causing me gastrointestinal distress, they were also causing me severe mood swings, and irritability. Ask the hubby about the irritability. And the pain. The joint pain was horrendous. And it's all gone now. I had been hurting for so long, that I didn't even realize how bad I hurt. Until I got all of the dairy and soy completely out of my diet last year, and then it was like night and day.

I wonder if there's anyone else out there with food allergies who has gone backpacking?

Journal Entry: Hostel Room Mix-up

I made it to the hostel. They mixed up my room reservation, and I am not in the room I requested. There is no ensuite bath. They said they would move me to the right room for the next two nights. I had pizza and beer for dinner. I probably shouldn’t have, but I didn’t feel like anything else, and certainly didn’t feel like looking for something and wind up eating pizza in the end anyway. 

 

Nice in the Evening - from Hostel St. Exupery

I got a sim card for my phone. It was €15 for the sim card and €5 worth of time. It is €.80 to call home but I can receive incoming calls for free, and the rate for Jan’s calling card is less than it was for the Italian one. Apparently the rates vary by city. 

What am I doing tomorrow? I’m not entirely sure. I guess I’ll go to the market and maybe to the castle hill. The shuttle doesn’t run to and from the hostel between noon and five so I better come up with something entertaining.

Journal Entry: Pisa

I am in Pisa. I have seen the leaning tower and paid €2 to go in the church. I did not pay to climb the tower. 

This morning at 4a my phone started beeping because it was dying. It probably woke everyone in the room. The nice guy at reception let me charge it in their lock box. Very nice feature of that hostel. Again the only problem with that hostel was the water not staying hot. 

This morning it was still raining. It had rained hard in the night. I t finally stopped a bit and so I went down to the “souvenir market.” I bought a leather jacket! It looks fantastic on me. It had been €690. I haggled the man down to €175. They had a store but also a stall on the street. 

It feels like very nice leather. I hope I made a good choice. [I did, I love this jacket, and everyone says it looks great on me.]

I managed to save some money this evening. I went to the store to buy breakfast and lunch, well dinner for tonight. I had two hamburger patties with a fried egg on top. For breakfast tomorrow, I will have pancetta and eggs. Cost me €7, plus I bought a stick of butter for cooking and two bananas. Not bad! 

The hostel is very clean, but Spartan. No saop in the bathroom. That’s how a lot are in the UK. I am in a three bed dorm. And the bath is ensuite! No one is in here so far. Could I be so lucky to have the room to myself? I dare not hope. 

Hostel Common Room

It stopped raining about half way to Pisa which was nice, because it was a very long walk to the leaning tower. 

I leave on the train to Nice at 9:31a tomorrow morning. 

I had weird dreams last night. I dreamed of Zech and Jacob when they were children. There was more to the dream but I do not recall it. I lit a candle (an electric one) for Zech in the church here in Pisa. I’m still sad. 

 

Pisa Cathedral

I did not go in the Duomo in Florence, except the cupola the first night, because  the line was around the building.

Journal Entry: Pompei to Sorrento

I nearly forgot what day it was. I had to look back at the previous entry. I woke up at 6:15a, got dressed and headed to the Circumvesuviana station. That hike up Via Libertá is a killer. Especially when your legs are already sore. About half way up I spied a coffee place and got a cappuccino. Well, actually I asked for an espresso and the man insisted I have a cappuccino. I didn’t argue. It cost a €1.20 and was very good. Then up just before you turn to go to the station I saw a little whole-in-the-wall [sic] fruit seller. I got two bananas this morning and ate both of them and also took a Naproxen.

On the way out of the station at Pompei I saw a cute shirt I wanted. It was €20 and I told the lady I would come back and buy it in the afternoon. 

Oh, and while on the train, it is the kind where the seats face each other, and I sat down because I was tired of being on my feet. This guy sits across from me and I think he was purposely touching my knees with his. I kept pulling away until I couldn’t squeeze against the wall any more, and he kept spreading out!

Anyway, after I looked at the shirt, I started walking. It seems they use only the new station now. When V. and I traveled three years ago, we arrived at Pompei’s new town and had to walk a ways to the entrance. This new station is right across from one of the entrances [It’s not a “new” station, it was just a different way to go]. I however, walked all the way to the one nearer the new town because I wanted to see if the Burger King where we had eaten was still there. It was, however, I saw a “Wild West Steak House,” I made plans to check it out.  

The Circumvesuviana Stop for the Ruins of Pompei

I walked across the street to the gate and peeked through. Two dogs were playing near a lady who worked at the site. Another dog came up to where I was standing, outside the gate, and lay down. I was about 15 minutes early, they open at 8:30a. So, I waited. Finally, right on the dot, the lady came towards the gate. The two dogs on the inside were following her gleefully. The dog on my side of the gate started wagging it’s tail. 

 

The Dogs of Pompei

One of the dogs came up to me and put his nose through the bars. I let it sniff my hand and the lady said something in Italian, to which I said “no capsico”  and she mimed biting. I don’t think that the dog would have bitten me, but I withdrew my hand.

I told her that I had seven dogs at home, well actually I told her six because I suck at counting in Italian. I pointed to my chest and said “sei cani in America” and she was like “wow” but not in so many words. She told me they had seven or eight stray dogs at Pompei. The Italians love dogs or they would have had them removed. I thought they were all people friendly, of course, some people are assholes and would provoke them so it’s best to say just don’t touch them. Also, the dogs all looked healthy and a couple were a bit plump.  

Two of them did get into a posturing match when this other lady went to mark my ticket. Mind you, I was the only one there at this hour, she kept telling them “Basta! Basta!” which I knew what that means from Jan. It means “enough”, but harshly. A man sweeping nearby pounded his broom on the ground and they both bolted. Silly dogs. 

 

Pet me!

Once in the site, I went to the amphitheater first. The walkway to it was new too I think because I don’t remember being able to go that way. I actually did not see the amphitheater last time. I had the place to myself for a good thirty minutes. I had walked a bit before I saw another tourist.  

 

Pompei

Of course the site is so big that, with the exception of the Forum area, and the occasional obnoxious school tour group, you often can have a building to yourself if you wait a few minutes. 

I also saw some buildings that I hadn’t seen before. I took lots of good pictures. I filled up my 4GB memory card. Good thing I have two bigger ones!

Oh! And the highlight of today was, near the end of the time at Pompei, when I was working my way toward the exit because I was hungry, I saw a tour group coming down a road that only goes so far before it ends at a gate. I started up the road, and there was an open house at the top. I saw a guard disappear inside. I went in, and it seems now that he was probably checking to make sure that no one had stayed behind, because he told me that the house was closed. I said I was sorry and turned to leave. There were about four other people who had followed me up the road. He then said, ‘oh, you can see it, quickly.’ 

A guard let us into a closed house - the frescoes were amazing

So I got to see a house that usually isn’t open to the public. And what was really cool were these frescoes of wild animals in the garden. We took a few minutes and then the guard came and told us we had to go. I followed him and on the way out thanked him profusely and told him it was amazing. 

The garden

Unfortunately my favorite garden in the place was closed for restoration.

After I left I went and had lunch. I stopped in the “Wild West Steak House” and asked the girl if they had an English menu and she gave me one. She was very nice.

I had a pork shoulder for lunch! It came with potatoes, that I really couldn’t eat after all that meat. It was only €10. Plus €2.50 for water and service. I had meant to leave her a little extra, but then forgot unfortunately. 

 

Pork and Potatoes

After I ate, I took the train to Sorrento. It was worth the train ride. There doesn’t appear to be much to do there, but it is pleasant. I walked down to the port.

 

Sorrento

I tripped going up some steps, for the second(!) time today. My feet are just tired and I keep looking at amazing things so I’m not looking where I’m stepping. On my part though, the step I tripped on was taller than the previous ones, so my toe caught it. Luckily I wasn’t hurt and I didn’t break the camera. I need to be more careful. The first time I tripped today was at Pompei. The paving stones in one house were uneven. I was gawking at the walls and missed the unevenness. That one hurt, my thighs, because I caught myself and went down slowly as if I were going to purposely kneel. However my legs were already very sore from all the walking. 

 

Pompei: The paving stones were uneven and I tripped

I called Jan to let her know that my phone was dying and that I was going to turn it off and I wouldn’t be able to plug it in until I got back to the hostel. I was so jetlagged that I hadn’t noticed the PIN to the SIM card was David’s birthday. [redacted] LOL! I fixed the phone though so I won’t have to type it in. If you get it wrong three times, I think the SIM card is useless then.

Jan told me that Andy and Sammy miss me a lot. Andy is apparently a wreck and Sammy has been sitting out on the front porch staring at my car. I started crying (and I’m tearing up now!) She told me not to cry that they would be okay, and that Sammy was getting enough treats to make him a fatty dog.

This entry is huge! I just had so much fun today. On the way out of Sorrento I got gelato, kiwi flavored and white chocolate flavored. Yum!

I took a stroll after I sent Jan an email, and actually found a butcher’s shop. It’s up the alley that the hostel is on. If I have a difficult time finding something to eat tomorrow I will go there and get some mortadella.

I am going to the National Archaeology Museum in Naples tomorrow, and maybe Oplontis. So far, knock on wood, I have the room to myself. There were five girls in a group in here last night, two of them were sick with a cold (suck a zinc!) and the others, one sounded like an older woman, was rude when she came in. If someone is in bed, you try to keep it down. Also, the girls didn’t offer to turn off the room light for me, since I was trying to sleep. Each bed has it’s own light (and fan!) I do love this hostel, despite its flaws (like nowhere to dress except in the open in the showers, and nowhere to hang your toiletries). 

 

Journal Entry: Nice People Everywhere & the Vatican Museums

I had the most amazing day today. I got up at 6am to my alarm going off. I had been awoken at 3a by some screaming party girls. I couldn’t tell where it was coming from though, maybe the street?

I went down to a place that said they had “English Breakfast” but they didn’t speak enough English to tell me what was in it. The guy just kept saying “orange juice.” I ordered an espresso instead.

Then I went and got two bananas from the fruit seller. I then took the metro to Ottavian stop for the Vatican. I saw a sign that said “Vaticani Musei à” but decided I wanted to see St. Peter’s square in the early morning light, before there were too many people. 

I was disappointed, in that there was a lot of scaffolding, restoring the statues. But more than that there were all these barriers everywhere. It really ruined the flow of the place. I thought I could get to the entrance to the museums by going to the other side of the square and walking up that street, but it is a dead end.  

Just as Bernini Intended it to Be - Covered up with barricades

I had to walk all the way back the way I came. My legs were killing me! When I got to the entrance, I asked a man standing there if the line I saw was for the individual without reservations. He said yes and offered me a tour that got admission early for €50. Otherwise I’d have to wait an hour. I thanked him, but said I was on a budget. I walked over to wait in line. I almost considered going on the tour, but I’m glad I didn’t! About the time I might have made up my mind to do it, a girl walked up behind me and asked if that was the line. I said yes, I had asked one of the tour guides and was sure of it. We started talking and it helped pass the hour. 

We then went through the museums together and also ate lunch, went back to St. Peter’s and walked to a couple other sites together. Her name was Halley (not her real name as she was from S. Korea)

 

Anubis

Raphael's School of Athens

We had a lot of fun together and I gave her my business card and told her to look me up on facebook. 

Halley and I in St. Peter's Square

Jan I think, had told me she hadn’t seen the “purse sellers” in Venice lately. Well they’re all in Rome, selling knock off Prada purses [in front of Castel Sant'Angelo]. That is until they suddenly started packing up. I looked behind us and it was the police!

We ate Burger King. I had a double whopper and feel so much better now. I need more protein, as I’m sure my leg muscles need all they can get.

I’ve taken 459 pictures and it’s only the second day.