I just recently saw an article that said “How traveling makes you happier, skinnier and fitter!”, and I wanted to punch the screen: bullshit! What with all the new food that you are eating, airplane circulated air, emotional stress of not knowing or having a definitive plan or support from friends, and the time zone lack of sleep, you're likely to stress your body to the point of developing some kind of illness, one which may linger for longer than it would if you were at home. Depending on where you go, you will probably get the shits or the opposite... traveling isn't great for your colon. If you're a long-term traveler or backpacker like me, you most likely don't have the luxury of spending money on good food, or have an area to prepare your own, so prepare your skin to take a beating from all the gluten, dairy, sugar and alcohol (it's a hot look for summer on the Mediterranean). I seriously started having dreams about green smoothies and salads, and what I wouldn't have given for a fresh juice and some real breakfast that wasn't a biscuit and coffee. I personally went from having a cider once a month to drinking everyday with my meals and on one particular night in Bologna, vomiting in between two mopeds. Be careful of free pour drinks and substances that may not necessarily be the same strength that they were in your country. Oh, one really practical tip: before you go anywhere, know the emergency numbers for each country, and pack a car first aid kit. You never know when it will come in handy...

...about privacy and intimacy



You will have neither. And it sucks. At home most of us sleep naked or in underwear, you may even languish in your apartment nude, or at the very least a midnight toilet run down the hall without clothes. There's also some "grooming techniques" (ladies) that may require awkward poses and personal space. You will have none, if you are not in a hostel, you will probably be in someone's house which means that's their room, not yours, you forget what you look like naked, until you catch yourself in a car window headed to the beach and think wtf happened?!! At times like this, you will desperately want a hug. You'll meet so many new people while traveling, but don't expect the same level of affection you would get from your peeps or partner at home. Coming out of a long distance relationship, I thought no sex was hard, but I really just wanted affection. Now I understand why babies die without touch. I wanted to scream SOMEBODY TOUCH ME ... but I felt that might be inappropriate.