Our First Blog Award!
Aleksandra Radic
We were pretty excited when we received the Liebster Award. What is this you might ask? It's basically an award given from one blogger to another with the goal to recognize and discover new blogs. Thank you Birthe and Brecht for nominating us! These guys have an amazing blog called Wandering The World, with beautiful photos of their travels and some great travel tips. Similar to us, they decided to take a year off and travel the world. Because....why not? So, be sure to check them out.:)
Our Answers to Birthe and Brecht's Questions
1. Should we visit your hometown? Why (not)?
Yes. You should definitely visit Toronto, Canada. It's actually a pretty cool city. It's one of the most multicultural cities in the world, so you can imagine the variety of cultures and cuisines you could experience. Having travelled around the world, I can say that Toronto has some of the best restaurants and variety of cuisines in the world. Also, there is always something exciting going on especially in the summer. If you ask us - summer would be the best time to visit. Autumn would be the second best. Toronto also has abundant green spaces and it's right on Lake Ontario. Oh and it's got that big tower - the CN Tower - which I have never been to yet. Embarrassing, i know. :(
2. What about home do you miss most when you’re on a long- (or even short-)term trip?
This is a tough one so I'm going to have to split the answers between me and Mike.
Aleks: I think I miss my bed the most and sometimes having a variety of clothes to wear. I know it's a bit pathetic but I've been wearing the same 6 outfits for the last 7 months. Can't wait to burn all the clothes at the end of the trip. Juuuuuust kidding ;)
Mike: Some kind of routine and working out regularly. Also, eating clean. Both of us LOVE trying new types of food, but being on a tight budget doesn't always allow you to eat very healthy.
In the end, comforts of home are nice but travelling is so much more exciting!
3. Which item is a must-pack for every trip?
A camera! I can't imagine going anywhere without a camera. I would feel so incomplete. The other one is a smartphone only because of navigation and offline maps available. It's been a lifesaver in some countries!
4. What’s your favourite foreign dish and do you get the chance to eat it back home?
This is a tough question. If we had to pick one we would say Egg Hoppers from Sri Lanka. In general we loved Sri Lankan breakfasts. Neither of have tried Sri Lankan food before this trip, but we will definitely look for some restaurants when we get back home.
5. Is there any kind of food you’ll never try?
No insects of any kind. No brains or guts! Everything else is fair game. :)
6. What’s your biggest travel misadventure? (Supposing everyone has one.)
Nearly getting mugged 3 times in Rockhampton, Australia. There's some sketchy people in this town (this doesn't include you Tom). :)
7. What kind of luggage do you usually take when travelling, and how much does it weigh on average?
It depends where we are going. If it's long term travel, or the trip involves moving from one place to another a lot, we take a backpack. Our current backpacks weigh 18-20kg. If it's a short trip, or a single destination, we pack a suitcase.
8. What are your three favourite beaches in the world?
Ahhh. My favourite question and almost impossible for me to answer.
Aleks' favourite:
1. Whitehaven Beach in Australia
2. Buck Island, St.Croix in US Virgin Islands
3. Varadero Beach, Cuba.
I also have to mention Koggala, Sri Lanka and Prižba, Croatia. There are just too many!
Mike's favourite:
1.Whitehaven Beach in Australia
2. Prižba, Croatia
3. Varadero Beach, Cuba.
9. What is in your opinion a destination everyone should have been to at least once in his life?
Iceland!!! The most incredible landscape we've ever seen. It's another world.
10. Would you like to move to another country? Why (not)? If yes, where?
Mike and I have different opinions on this one, so we have to answer them separately.
Aleks: I love the heat and only one season - summer! I also love beaches so that narrows down the countries a little bit. I don't know if there is just one place I'd like to live. I feel like living in more than one place would be the most ideal for me. Maybe Byron Bay, Australia for a bit, then Spain for another little bit, maybe the Caribbean? What can I say? I have a gypsy soul. :)
Mike: I like having four seasons in Canada. Even though I enjoy summer a lot, I appreciate fall and winter (not so much spring because of all the rain). I also have a career I love to do and it provides me with a good amount of free time to travel. I'm content with living in Toronto.
11. What are your travel plans for 2016?
The plan is to travel through South America and maybe Central America. A few countries that we are visiting soon include Argentina, Bolivia and Colombia.
Our Liebster Award Nominees
These are some of the blogs we thought deserved this award. They all share some incredible experiences from all over the world, great travel advice and awesome photos. Check them out!
1. Merek Bron from Indie Traveller.
2. Jacopo Stifani from Jacopo Travels.
3. Carrie Davis Kiborn from Travel Chameleons.
4. Connie Wang from Wang Train.
5. Cristiano e Luísa from Locomotiva Viajante.
6. Stef and Dave from The Stave Diaries.
7. Charlotte Ahern from She Travels.
Our Questions for the Nominees to Answer
1. What is the most important piece of advice you would give to a newbie traveller?
2. Do you collect any souvenirs? What are they?
3. What is the biggest realization/lesson you've learned from your travels?
4. Name three places where you've witnessed the most beautiful sunsets.
5. Who is the most interesting person you've met on your travels? Why?
6. What city/town have you felt the most at home at? Why?
7. Do you have a daily/weekly/monthly budget? If so, what is it and how do you manage to stick to it?
8. Where is the best food you have had? Worst? Name specific meals.
9. Is there one thing you always pack and never end up using?
10. What is your favourite waterfall(s)?
11. What are three items you would bring to a deserted island? Why?
Liebster Award 2016 rules
These aren’t so much rules but rather guidelines to keep this chain of awards going when you decide to accept the award.
1. Write a blogpost about your nomination, displaying an image of the award.
2. Thank the person who nominated you and include a link to their blog.
3. Answer the 11 questions the person who nominated you asked you in his/her blogpost.
4. Nominate 5-11 other new bloggers who you think deserve this award, and come up with 11 questions of your own for them to answer.
5. List these rules in your blogpost.