A one way ticket to a new life.
On June 24th 2019, myself and my friend set off on the backpacking trip of a lifetime. I had left my little welsh university town merely two weeks prior, and was staying with my aunt and uncle in England. I hadn’t been on Irish soil since April, and I was already familiar with the feeling that the Welsh call ‘hiraeth’. In fact, I had it tattooed on my ribs.
This trip started as a drunken idea back in May. My life had just completely fallen apart, on top of the mess that it already was, and I decided ‘fuck it, I’m going to take myself away and see what happens.’ I had planned it to be a solo trip, but once my friend Jasmine heard about my plans she instantly wanted to be a part of it, and we booked a one way ticket to the cheapest destination that we could find: Slovakia.
I had no idea what to expect. I had only heard stories of Eastern Europe. I had my own mental images of what it would be like based off of pictures online, but nothing prepared me for what was to come.
We arrived in Bratislava late at night, it was dark and we were terrified, but also buzzing with excitement. We made our way to a taxi, and a sweet driver gave us a whistle-stop tour on our way to our AirBnB. This only made us more excited, as we could already get a feel of how lovely the city is. Our AirBnB turned out to be more than we could have even hoped for, and after two excited video calls home, we settled for the night, ready to explore our first city.
Bratislava was the perfect start to a two-month backpacking trip, and the perfect introduction to Eastern Europe. This tiny, quiet town is full of history and beautiful buildings everywhere you turn. Everything is easy to get to on foot, the language is fun to attempt, and it really does feel like an Eastern European fantasy. – sign up below if you’d like to see my top 5 sights in Bratislava!
We spent a total of 3 days in Slovakia before heading off to Prague, and thanks to our lovely AirBnB host, we managed to immerse ourselves in Slovakian culture and really make the most of our time there. It was here that I realised a passion for a life on the go, meeting new people, and discovered that being outside of your comfort zone is the best place to be. My most notable experiences are definitely taking the train to a nearby lake town called Senec (the train tracks here were very reminiscent of WWII movies), and taking one of the beautiful vintage looking trams through the city centre after an evening at the cinema.
I could go on all day about our experiences in Slovakia, but I do want to save some things for the future. This post is just an introduction into what is to come. Just as Slovakia was an introduction for me into the world of travelling. I am currently sitting in bed, in a tiny town in the Austrian Alps as I write this post, 9 months on. I have so many stories to tell, new found wisdom to share, and many more memories to make. Before travelling, I was on very strong medication for poor mental health, and struggled with mild agoraphobia. Today, I embrace the outdoors, and am off all medications (except for birth control lol).
So, if you’re interested in hearing my stories, and following me on this journey, then feel free to sign up to this blog. You will receive an email update every time I post. If there is anything in particular that you want me to share, feel free to message me over on my instagram @sam.laur99
Grá mór,
is mise,
Sam.
Cumha 