Technically, it's not called firing.

So I’m pretty sure I am going to be fired. Well, not fired per say, more my contract won’t be renewed. For the record, I’ve done nothing wrong, it’s not me, it’s just the way things are at the moment. Having spent the last 24 hours in tears (yes, actual tears. My house mate even hugged me and listened to me talk it through), I’ve decided to put on my big girl pants and look at the bright side. 

Finding out my contract won’t be renewed has been a soul crusher. For one, I really love my job. Sure, it has it’s ups and down, but I do really love it. Number two, all I have ever done is dream about travelling and working in the field I currently work in, so to have someone take away one of those loves is devastating. However, this has given me some time to think.

I haven’t really been able to travel because of work. Sure, I’ve done small trips, but work has always come first. Every time I thought about heading overseas, something would happen at work that would make me want to stay. Now though, I don’t really have that reason to stay.

So instead, I am going to find a day job and a bar job, work my butt off to to save and then I’ll head off on a big trip. I figure I can turn the heartache of losing one thing into the joy of doing something else I love.

Now, if you don’t mind, I’m off to apply for one of those bar jobs…

There are many things everyone knows they when travelling – a good bag, comfortable shoes, a camera and charger… you know, the usual. But there a few things that make trips a little easier. Read on to learn more! 

A hanging toiletry bag

Toiletry bag? Yes, but a hanging toiletry bag? I wouldn’t use anything else. Like any other toiletry bag there is a compartment for everything, but the great thing about a hanging bag is that it can hang off virtually everything which is great when you are staying in some not so luxury places and don’t want to leave it on the bench. Plus if you are planning on camping you can hang it off the side of a camping shower. No longer will your face wash be covered in the dust of the red center!

Travel Jewellery Pouch

I’d love to be one of those people who can go without jewellery, but I can’t. I don’t wear anything diva like, but I do like to wear a bangle and a paid of earrings. This pouch protects them all and there is also enough room to keep all safe. Also, a jewellery pouch is a great place to store anything you don’t want to lose like a spare pair of earphones.

If you don't enjoy practicing the downward facing dog when your at home, you won't enjoy it when you're travelling

I don’t like yoga. I’ve tried it, I wish I could like it, but I simply don’t. Blame it on the 7 month pregnant yogi’s at my gym whose nimble bodies makes me feel inadequate, but every time I try yoga I give up. But despite my lack of commitment, I want to be one of those people who love yoga.

This desire to want to love something is starting to influence my travels too. I’m currently planning a trip to thailand with a group of friends and am seriously considering a 5 day yoga retreat at the end of it. Why? Because I feel like I should love yoga.

This wanting to love something also causes trouble when travelling. Often times, people get so caught up in what they should do when they travel they forget to do the things they want to do.  Just because you are backpacking through South America doesn’t mean you have to volunteer at a children’s orphanage even if your friends are. Similarly, if you don’t like to sleep in rooms with 7 strangers who have varying opinions of how often one should shower, then don’t stay in a hostel.

Knowing what type of a travler you are and what you like to do when you travel is key to enjoying your time. Remember, if you don’t enjoy practicing the downward facing dog when your at home, you won’t enjoy pay $3,000 for a 7 day retreat in Ubud.

Missed me? Don’t panic, now that I’ve returned from the technologically barren island I’ll be blogging a lot more. Click subscribe to keep up to date and don’t forget to follow me on twitter! 

Have a news years travel resolution? Want to share it? TravelProducts.com wants to hear it! Simply follow @travelproducts on twitter and retweet My New Years Resolution is to @travelproducts and don’t forget to add#TravelMore! for your chance to win a $50 gift card! Check out the TravelProducts.com giveaway page for details!

WARNING: Drinking jelly shots will result in making grand plans.

Recently, while under the influence of copious amounts of pear cider, my friends and I decided to plan a beach hopping holiday in Thailand. And, while under the influence of said pear cider, I agreed to organise the whole thing. By my self. For 17 people. Yeah, I’m nuts. 

My friends and I often make grand plans while drinking. In the past we pledged to get a log cabin for easter (didn’t happen), a beach house for summer (also didn’t happen), go skiing over winter (didn’t happen) and run a fun run. The same night we vowed to run a fun run we also decided to go on a house boat holiday which was abandoned we learned that you can’t drink alcohol and drive a house boat. The idea of a fun run was also abandoned when we realised it fell the same weekend as a friends birthday and we would much prefer to drink and watch people run by then be a red faced runner.

But this Thailand trip is a little different.

So far what was a 5 night short break has evolved to include 3 nights at the full moon party, 5 nights at a beach bungalow, 4 nights in bangkok and 4 nights in Chiang Mai. We are also considering a few day in Singapore or Kuala Lumper. But the itinerary isn’t the point of this post. The point is that for once in our lives my friends and I have committed to something that doesn’t involved drinking, backyard cricket and a hang over the next day. Now, if only I could get everyone to agree on accommodation…

Missed me? Don’t panic, now that I’ve returned from the technologically barren island I’ll be blogging a lot more. Click subscribe to keep up to date and don’t forget to follow me on twitter! 

Have a news years travel resolution? Want to share it? TravelProducts.com wants to hear it! Simply follow @travelproducts on twitter and retweet My New Years Resolution is to #TravelMore! for your chance to win a $50 gift card! Check out the TravelProducts.com giveaway page for details!  

I promise, I will never sit in Starbucks blogging. Unless they have free wifi...

To celebrate my new MacBook Pro, I am committing myself to writing seven posts in seven days. 

Sounds pretty good hey? Here’s a sneak peak of what to expect….

I’m Organising a Group Trip. Am I nuts?

She’s Just Not That Into Yoga (And Other Things I Wish I Loved)

Essential Travel Products

Beautiful Travel

Sydney on a Backpackers Budgets

Melbourne, I’m Just Not That Into You

Falling for a Foreigner

Love Twitter? Why not follow Sleeping on Buses…

Have a Question? Why not send me an email…

Just like Nicole Richie I look forward to walking down the street holding my MacBook (photo courtesy of justjarad.buzznet.com)

Don’t panic readers, I am still alive! I know, I know, I’ve been gone for a while. But I have a decent reason. You see distaster struck. I knocked my glass of water over my MacBook. Okay, in the scheme of things, that’s not really a disaster, but I did cry.

Living without my Mac was an interesting experience. It wasn’t until I was without it that I realised how addicted to my macbook I really was. Getting ready for a night out used to take me and 2 hours because I would spend half the time on YouTube watching makeup videos but sans Mac I could get ready in under an hour and I started reading books because I no longer spent flights and train rides watching DVDs and writing.  Not only that,  the books I read were from books stores I visited on person not book stores that would show up on my paypal account. Breakfast at my house was also a little different. Instead of checking my email, facebook, twitter and the variety of other sites I check each morning, I engaged in real conversation over my bowl of honey-oats.

But for all the good to come out of being stuck on a technologicaly barren island, there was also some not so good consequences.

For instance, I lived in fear of something happening to my iPhone because I had nothing to backup and restore it with; my email went unchecked for days and, worst of all,  I panicked every time I couldn’t find my camera, fearing that it had been stolen and I had lost a lot of photos.

Don’t get me wrong, I certainly needed a break from technology, but perhaps next time I’ll just leave my MacBook at home not spil 250mL of water on it.

Missed me? Don’t panic, now that I’ve returned from the technologically barren island I’ll be blogging a lot more. Click subscribe to keep up to date and don’t forget to follow me on twitter! 

I am obsessed with owning a vintage inspired bicycle!

As the weather gets warmer, I have started to get on my bike more and more. The cold winter winds are becoming less frequent and my bike is once again a viable transport option. Here’s my top 5 reasons for riding a bike!

Reason #1: Ridding is Fun!

I love the feeling of whizzing down a hill. The wind in my hair (well, kind of, I always wear a helmet), the sun on my back. Ridding a bike has feeling of freedom that you just can’t get in a car.

Reason #2: Ridding gives you  a Great Derrière and Pins to Match! 

Ridding is not only a great way to burn calories, it also gives you a great butt and toned legs! I can feel (and see) the difference in my legs if I haven’t ridden for a few days. Sure, sometimes I’m a little sore the next day if I’ve ridden up hill for long periods, or gone on a particularly long ride, but nothing beats having good legs in a pair of jeans. Plus, as an ex-rower, I do have a tendency for my legs to get chunky and ridding puts a stop to this.

Reason #3: All the Hot People Ride!

A male friend once told me he had a crush on a girl who used to ride by his house everyday. He didn’t know her name, but assumed she was exotic because she rode a bike and had tanned legs (possibly a result of riding a bike). Then one day he met her. Now, I’d like to say that she spoke with a Spanish accent and that they rode off into the sunset together, but in reality she was from Oonadatta. So was her boyfriend. But it’s not just attactive everyday people who ride bicycle. Celebrities ride bikes too! Gisele Bunchen is a fan as is her hubby Tom Brady, not to mention Jake Gyllenhaal who can frequently be seen ridding with Lance Armstrong.

Reason #4: Ridding is Cheap!

When compared to paying tolls and filling up a car with petrol, ridding a bike is cheap. Plus, when combined with public transport, you really can go anywhere you want!

Reason #5: Ridding is a Great Way to see a City!

Many cities now have bike tours because because not only are they a great, environmentally friendly alternative to the bus tour, but they also give people the opportunity to get out and explore. Some are self guided city tours, while others are group tours with a host. Bonding over sore legs is a great way to meet people!

Tune in next week to read about my adventures cycling through Adelaide! 

The thing is, every so often, you’ll pay a little and get a whole lot more in return.  The secret to finding the world’s best cheap eats is to eat your way through every market, every back street, every hawker and every ‘dai pai dong’ on earth.  Never be afraid to try something for the first time, because it could turn out to be the best thing you’ve ever tasted.

As the author and editor of The Smart Girl’s Travel Guide, it’s been my life mission to eat my way around the globe.  As a self confessed over-eater (luckily with a great metabolism), I can say that I’ve found some of the best cheap eats around the world. Here I share some of my favourites…..

My Top 5 Cheap Eats in the World 

Pad Thai Noodles in Bangkok

I don’t know about you, but after a big weekend come Sunday night I’m pretty buggered. And that’s why I’ve launched a new segment: Lazy Sundays. Each week you’ll find a new YouTube video or channel, all centred around travel.

This weeks YouTube channel of the week is inTransit TV.

On the highly addictive channel, Peter Braigiel’s video’s prove that the journey really is as important as the destination.

Starting in July, Peter and a camera man will be canoeing down the Mississippi River, starting at Lake Itasca, Minnesota and finishing 2,250 miles down stream at the Gulf of Mexico.

You can also follow Peter on Twitter.

Nothing is as Australian as enjoying a beer on Australia Day

Whilst skypeing a friend of mine, aka Jess from Dream Traveler Jess, it dawned on me just how American I am despite never having visited the country.

Growing up with two Brits for parents in a city which is practicaly considered English by other Australians, I lived on a healthy diet of steak and kidney pie, Chelsea Football Club and stories of London ‘back in the day’. But sitting in Starbucks, skypeing on my macbook, wearing my levi jeans and keds, checking my facebook on my iPhone it hit me: I’m practically American.

Now this may seem like a stretch, but I seem to have embraced my inner American despite my lack of Yankie genes. I wear American clothes, I drive an american car, am obsessed with finding the perfect bagel and yes, I even like baseball (I blame that one on an ex). In fact, it seems the only thing American I don’t like is apple pie.

But what does this say about me? I don’t think any less of Australian things, but then again I can’t really think of anything besides vegimite and Kylie Minogue that is ‘exclusivly’ Australian and even vegimite is owned by Kraft (American) and Kylie is way more popular in the UK then in Australia.

It’s not that I reject Australian things, it’s that Australia is so multicultural it’s hard to define something as Australian. Just like I eat American food and wear American clothes, I ear sushi at least twice a week and buy bags of Chinese crackers despite not knowing what they are.

To call yourself Australian is to say that you are from a varied back ground. You may have been born in Australia, or you could have be a Vietnamese refugee or, like my parents, English immigrants. To say “I am Australian” is to say I call Australia home, and yes I may eat different food to you and my clothes may be from a different land, I may speak with an accent or I may sound as Aussie as a Bondi lifeguard, but I love Australia and am proud to say I am Australian.