Best driver i had ever met

Best driver I had ever met

In my hitchhiking career I had met many people. Drives, workers, gas station staff, other travelers and lots and lots of other folk. Some of them were not worthy remembering, some were really bad and I wish I haven’t met them, but some were exceptionally good. I would like to tell you a story about a man who came from heaven.

There we are! About 40 km outside Venice in scorching heat, on a country road with the closest gas station about 20 km away… We slept on the side of the road behind trees and woke up with a beautiful view of a grape wine field. Wonderful scenery but we were tired, thirsty and hungry out of our minds. And then He came. Dominico. A personification of Italy. If you can think of an Italian men, he was even more Italian than that. Only with a huge heart. From the begging he flooded us with stories from his life, showed us pictures of his wife and children and his house. He drove us for about 50 min before he heard our stomachs shy grumble. Without even saying a word Dominico took a turn into a café at the side of the road. While we stood in line to the bathroom on the other side of the shop, he bought us pastry and coffee. When we offered to pay for the meal (even though we didn’t have much money) he looked offended and waved his hand. After finishing this surprise breakfast we when back to the care and Dom, as he instructed us to call him, continued his tale. It turned out that when he was our age, he was also a hitchhiker so he knew all the things we were feeling. He took us down until the highway and sadly stated that he’s sorry but he can’t take us any further because his wife is waiting for him and there is no rage like an Italian women rage, and he actually lives in a village 80 km back. We were stoned, quickly gathered our things and left the car. Dom got out and gave us all a hug and a hand shake. When he let go of my hand I realized he stealthy slipped 40 euro into my hand and ran away to his car screaming “It’s for my friends, fun fun holiday”. Before I could do anything he had already left and we all stood there amazed. We make good use of this money and stocked up on food and drinks before the rest of our journey.

I have heard so much about people’s hospitality during hitchhiking but never expected something like this to hapen in today’s world. My faith in humanity is restored every time I travel.

Worst accomodation part 2

Field outside of Zadar, Croatia

As you may or may not know, camping outside of designated areas in Croatia is illegal, sooooo…. when me and my friends became desperate things got a little bit out of hand. Let me start from the begging.

I was on a trip around Balkans with 3 of my friends. Unfortunately my partner was called into work early and had to leave immediately to Poland. We were lucky enough to catch a car going from Split to Zadar, which took the remaining 3 of us. That is where our luck run out. What we didn’t realize it that there were absolutely no gas stations around Zadar and our driver, who obviously didn’t speak a word in English planned to leave us at the ramp by a highway. Usually it is not a bad space for hitchhiking, unless its 11 p.m. and there is absolutely NO ONE on the road. Being very tired after almost 2 weeks of traveling we decided to find a place to sleep. On a google map, we had seen a field with some bushes in the middle of it, so we decided to head there and hide our tents in it. After about 2km of walking we finally reached our goal and began to pitch our tents. It was pitch black so holding flashlights in our mouths, we were struggling a little bit. Finally we achieved our goal, said good night and went to sleep. Well, in my case tried to sleep. What I didn’t realized in the dark was that I had put my tent on a huge log that took almost half of the floor under my tent… so I was cold, alone (because as I mentioned before my partner left), uncomfortable and scared out of my mind. Yeah scared because after about 30 minutes of trying to fall asleep I heard some weird noises outside my tent. Happily it turned out to be just a curious and harmless dog but I didn’t know it then. Although there were many highlights in our trip it was not one of them and I’m very happy we came out of there whole. In the morning we came back to the ramp and since it was rush hour, we had no trouble stopping a car to take all of us further away.

Worst accomodation in my life part 1

Being on the road, you have to sleep somewhere. Sometimes it’s in a tent or under the stars, sometimes you visit hostels or shelters. Every now and then you are bound to stumble upon a horrific dump.

Let me tell you about my worst accommodations ever. Maybe they aren’t hardcore and I’m sure a lot of hitchhikers have better stories, but these ones have a special place in my memory.

Just to clarify I’m not whining, actually I’m laughing at myself for being so silly, unexperienced and cheap.

Gas Station close to Cheimnitz, Germany

I was hitchhiking with my friend from Poland to Switzerland and got stuck overnight at the gas station. It was unbelievably cold, raining and just inhabitable. If that wasn’t enough, it was that time of year that all of the polish hitchhiking races started so the gas station was swarming with students. Horrible. We sat there from 7 p.m. until 10 a.m. the next day. Even though a few cars passed the station, nobody was willing to take us. Eventually we decided to set camp at the back of a building and go to sleep. Let me tell you, it was the coldest I had ever been. Wearing leggings, pants, t-shirt, two jumpers, raincoat, two pairs of thick socks and covered in a sleeping bag clutching to my friend I was shaking ALL NIGHT. When I emerged from my tent in the morning ( being 5:30 a.m. it was all I could bear) I saw hoarfrost covering all plants. Don’t even want to know how cold it was…

Fortunately, a wonderful driver who took us a few hours later happened to be going to Zurich so it was, as we say, a golden shot since we make a few hundred kilometers with him.

Totally must have

Long trips with backpack definitely have more pros than cons. But don't lie to ourselves. The worst thing ever is to travel with too many inessentials. Five pair shoes? Don't even think about it.

Don't hitchhike without:
→ Good shoes - it's really improtant to have comfortable pair of shoes with you. Thick sole is a basis of your road. If you're going to see a country where always is hot take a pair of sandals.
→Raincoat - I think I don't even have to explain this part of post. You cannot predict the weather. One day sun will be burning you and another... well, let's say the weather is unpredictable.
→Thermoactive clothes - maybe you won't need it during the walk or ride but it's really nice to have something that can save you from cold nights. No one likes sleeping while freezing.
→Flashlight - you have to be aware of possibility that you could get into the bush to find some place for your tent. Making a supper it's really hard when you can't even see your hand.

You can left that at home:
→Expensive things - hitchhiking teaches us how to live without goods. But it's also better not to have expensive staff in case someone steals them.
→Cosmetics - come on, girls, you are beautiful without them! Imagine travelling in Spain. Whole make up will melt on your face. Give your skin a vacation.
→Spare clothes - same situations as with shoes. Take only the most important things and think two times, wait, five times before you pack it.


Follow my list and you will be a master of hitchhiking :) Enjoy!

It's really worth to try!

Thoughts about hitchhiking are probably divided on two ways. First of all, some people think that it is extremely dangerous and they absolutely don't want to do that. Why? I think the answer is quite obvious. They are so scared about the fact that they can meet actually anyone, without knowledge about what kind of person they can travel with. It's normal that people think about their health or life. On the other hand, there is one more type of travellers. There's no need to write about them so much. They just want to have fun and take some risk.

What are the advantages of hitchhiking?

⇒ It's a big unforgettable adventure. Definetly it's the cheapest and easiest way to get some new experiences in your life. Just an opportunity to try something else.

⇒ Huge role in this adventure plays your wallet. Travelling by hitchhiking usually is for free and you can go almost anywhere you want and you don't have to take a lot of money.

⇒ Meeting new people it's also big plus of hitchhiking. Obviously this kind of relations are not for the whole live but after all you can learn new things from almost anyone. That's why it's worth to pay attention on drivers you're travelling with.

First things first...

 There's no need to be afraid of taking risk. I can assure you that every sing ride will provide you with precious memories. It's really understandable if you have some doubts but do not reject that kind of amazing adventure if you hae chanse and opportunities. Just try!

There's some tips for you :)

Literally the most important thing it's to find right place. Usually we hitch a ride on the roads which leads us out of the city. Remember that you have to stay in the area that is safe for a driver to stop and where they don't drive too fast yet. You have to be seen!

Take a piece of cardboard and write clearly name of place where you wanna go. Use a marker, no just a pen. When someone stops, remember to be positive.

Fuel stations and restaurants are always the right way to hitch a ride. You can start a conversation with a person with a car. You can ask them where they go. During the talk you seem to be reliable.

Imagine that happiness when someone finally stops. You feel so proud of yourself and your crew. And definietely you can feel relief.
Remember to always have your stuffs near. Try not to put your backpack into the boot, unless it's necessary.

During the ride try to talk with driver. But remember about their comfort zone and try not to cross the line. It feels so uncomfortable when stranger asks you questions about private life.

For me it's not acceptable to eat in the car. I wouldn't tolerate that if I were a driver, so try to think about the others. Do not eat during the road. Sometimes it can be hard, of course. When you get really hungry just ask as a human, if it would be OK if you snack something.

Remember that you're driving with is human. Just as you are. Be kind :)