It quickly becomes clear that Petrina Thong isn't your typical tourist when trying to track her down for an interview.

She emails back on May 4: "I will get back to you about when I can Skype. I'm currently in the Himalayas and India hasn't been the best place for a good and extended wi-fi connection."

A month passes, with no word. Then, on June 5:

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"For the past month I have been in the northeast of India, trying to enter Myanmar. However, due to a bomb blasting and some political issues, all permits to enter Myanmar by land have been cancelled. So I am currently trapped."

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It was one of the final hurdles in a hitchhiking odyssey from Sweden to Malaysia that took 13 months and spanned 22 countries.

SUPPLIED Petrina prepares to cross the border from Iran to Pakistan.

Petrina, a 29-year-old freelance scriptwriter, did it all on her own, with no plan and almost no budget. In fact, she estimates the whole trip cost her about $1400, which mostly covered flights and visas.

She paid to travel by air twice - the initial flight from her home in Kuala Lumpur to Stockholm, and then, only as a last resort, to get out of India.

The rest of her journey was conducted entirely by thumb.

SUPPLIED At a village house in the mountains of Bosnia.

If you look Petrina up on Instagram, you'll see a fearless, grinning, green-haired rainbow chick in the sorts of destinations that most mainstream travellers are advised to avoid.

Kosovo. Iran. Pakistan.

But she's a somewhat unlikely poster child for solo female travel. As a young Malaysian girl growing up in a Christian household, Petrina says she felt life had too many restrictions.



She was fascinated with western media - popular American TV shows like The OC, One Tree Hill, and Grey's Anatomy.



She felt stuck in her own country. She wanted to see the world for herself.



"I would always see Europeans or people in the western world travelling for really long and doing all these things. I always felt envious of it.

SUPPLIED Exploring a desert in Iran.

"I was like, no, I need to do it as well."

In 2012, she booked her first solo trip to Europe for a month. In 2013, she spent a year in California as an au pair. Then she needed a bigger challenge.

"My initial plan was just to experience hitchhiking," she says.



"I also started reading up a lot on alternative lifestyles - people who survive without money. I found it very attractive, for some reason. I would have all these internal debates of like, 'oh, I wish I didn't like money so much. I wish I could survive without money.'

SUPPLIED Looking nervous before her first solo hitchhike.

"At that point, I didn't really have much in savings. But I still really wanted to travel. So I figured, now is the time to just experience this whole hitchhiking-and-no-money thing."

Petrina bought a one-way ticket to Sweden and planned to spend six months hitchhiking around Europe before flying home to Kuala Lumpur.

But when the time came to return, she decided flying was too easy.

SUPPLIED Waking up after spending the night at a petrol station.

"That's when I was like, you know what, I'll extend my trip and try to hitchhike all the way back home to Malaysia."

For the first month or so, Petrina would always try to hitchhike with a buddy. "I would invite any traveller I'd meet along the way - 'hey, do you wanna go here with me?'"

She spent a while on the road with a guy who had a tent. But when he started trying to make moves on her, she knew she had to go it alone.

SUPPLIED Camping in someone's garden in Montenegro, with food they provided.

Initially, all she had was a backpack, with a sleeping bag and some clothing. Along the way, someone gave her a tent of her own.

"Anyone who has travelled with me, they realise I can sleep a lot - anywhere pretty much. It's something I'm thankful for. I've slept at petrol stations, next to highways, or a lot of times I would randomly knock on doors and ask if I can sleep in the garden.

"Eighty per cent of the time people would ask me if I was alone, look at me and go, 'ok just sleep on my couch'."

SUPPLIED Petrina made friends with a skipper in Dubrovnik, Croatia.

She scavenged most of her food - dumpster diving, scanning outdoor eating areas for unfinished plates, and asking for leftover produce at markets.

"I'm travelling how a hobo would travel.

"That takes getting used to as well. In the beginning, I was always embarrassed to say that I have no money. But after a while, I had to learn how to be shameless."

SUPPLIED Preparing the campfire to cook dinner in Latvia or Lithuania.

She also learned to take on the world one day at a time.

"I'd only worry about where I'd sleep for tonight, and where I'd rummage for food for today, and where I'd like to be before the sun sets.

"I'm much better at short-term goals."



In many ways, Petrina says, the experience gave her faith in humanity.



"I think when you put yourself in a vulnerable position, you really get to experience people. A lot of times when we travel we don't really interact with the locals that much, especially if you're in a country where you don't speak the language.



"Travelling in this manner, I always had to be in the company of a local. I was always in someone's car, or in someone's house."

SUPPLIED Enjoying food obtained from rubbish bins in Sweden.

Iran was the country where she felt safest.

"As long as I'm walking alone with my backpack, cars will stop and ask, 'hey, what are you doing, do you need help?' Even in the city, when I was walking around, taxi drivers would stop and let me get a ride for free.

"They respect and look out for women. For them, if you're female, you shouldn't be by yourself, you should be taken care of."

SUPPLIED A foggy day on the border of Turkey.

For Petrina, a bad day was when no one stopped to pick her up.

"I would start getting angry at every car that passes by. I'd be like, 'oh, you selfish a......., your car is empty, why won't you stop?'"

Then there were dodgy drivers in Eastern Europe and Turkey who would ask for sex. In those cases, Petrina would threaten to jump out of the car, forcing them to stop.

SUPPLIED On a fortress in Izmir, Turkey.

Her worst experience was crossing the border from Iran to Pakistan, where she needed a police and army escort within the terrorist zone.

"We crossed over the border to Pakistan and I was being handed over from one man to another, people taking down my details over and over again.

"Finally they just put me in this room and left me there for a night, not really telling me what the hell was going on. It was just like this bare, grey, empty room."



One of the police officers entered her room at night, armed with a gun.



"That was one of the experiences when I had nowhere to run. I just stared out the window and tried to place my mind in a different universe."



After 13 months on the road, Petrina was ready to come home.

SUPPLIED The last leg of the journey: Home to Malaysia.

"It felt strange to be back because everything felt so familiar. It was as if the whole past year didn't even happen, there's just a glitch in the system and now I'm kind of back."

She likes being able to spend money on a slice of cake without a second thought. She also likes driving herself around Kuala Lumpur.

But she's already thinking about where she might go next. She wants to start from Canada, and make her way down to South America.

For now though, she's focusing on those short-term goals - like recolouring her hair.

"I'll probably do half green, half purple, and some turquoise, I guess," she laughs.

"It's one of those things where if you start, you can't stop."

PETRINA'S TIPS FOR STAYING SAFE

1. Smile

People become much friendlier and more willing to help once they warm up to you. In most places, locals are actually very happy to be in contact with travellers and your smile bridges the gap easily.

2. But be rude when necessary

The few times that I found myself in a dodgy situation was because I didn't want to offend anyone. If your instincts tell you to get away from a seemingly friendly man, forget being polite. Just get out of there.

3. Hide the important stuff

Your passport, credit cards and larger notes should always be kept close to you in a stealth pouch beneath your clothes. Never carry anything valuable in your pockets - this makes it too easy for pickpockets.

4. Hitchhike wisely

Dress decent. Don't take rides at night. Don't fall asleep in the car. Keep a lookout on the road/map to make sure the driver is going in the right direction. Yell to stop and get out of the car the moment you start feeling uncomfortable.

5. Read about the culture beforehand

In more conservative countries, sometimes even a smile is viewed as an invitation. It may be good to prepare a story of how your husband/brother/boyfriend is waiting for you. I tried the fake wedding ring method, it still didn't deter men.

WHERE DID SHE GO?

Sweden. Denmark. Germany. Netherlands. Belgium. Poland. Lithuania. Latvia. Italy. Croatia. Bosnia and Herzegovina. Macedonia. Montenegro. Albania. Kosovo. Bulgaria. Turkey. Iran. Pakistan. India. Thailand. Malaysia.

WHAT WAS IN HER BACKPACK?

Phone. Camera. Chargers and cables. Two sets of clothes. Bikini. Duct tape. Towel. Flip flops. Painkillers. Sleeping bag. Garbage bags. Journals and pens. Passport, credit cards, emergency cash. Fork, spoon, chopsticks. A tent. Lotion. Wet wipes. Lipstick. BB cream. Ziplock bags.

IS HITCHHIKING SAFE?

Tourism New Zealand strongly advises against hitchhiking in New Zealand. "Although New Zealand is a safe country to travel in, hitchhiking carries certain risks," its website says. "Unfortunately, as in every country, there are untrustworthy people who may take advantage of hitchhikers if given the opportunity. Take responsibility for your personal safety by seeking out reliable forms of transport."

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, which provides travel advice on SafeTravel, said hitchhiking or accepting rides from people you don't know was not recommended. "We understand that in many countries it is also illegal to hitchhike. If you decide to hitchhike, we strongly advise against hitchhiking alone."