How to travel around the world without a ruble in your pocket

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Real travel is not an all-inclusive hotel or monotonous excursions to popular destinations. Travel is a long road full of unpredictable situations and discoveries. It was on such a trip that Roman Svechnikov went. All the time on the way, he took notes, photographed, memorized. As a result, his impressions resulted in the book “Roma is going. Around the World Without a Penny in Your Pocket”, published by Corpus.

Twenty-year-old Roman Svechnikov, a student from Minsk, quits his university studies in 2012 and goes on a trip around the world without a well-thought-out route, a clear plan and with $ 200 in his pocket. Almost two years on the road: on foot, hitchhiking, sleeping in a tent, with casual acquaintances and even on the street, interrupting odd jobs or walking penniless. The trip helped Roma learn a lot about the world and about himself. This book is an honest story of one journey and discoveries that freedom can give to a person.

During these six months I systematically tore the chain that was chained to the booth. The last jerk - and the links are broken. I greedily gulp air and spend all my accumulated strength to run away from the booth, bowl and owner. I'm going on a trip around the world! Roman Svechnikov

Route

There was no exact route plan as such. There were several countries that Roma wanted to visit, for which he had prepared a visa in advance, for example, to Iran. Some travel destinations appeared spontaneously, like Azerbaijan and the USA.

For all the time on the way, Roma visited Georgia, Armenia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Russia, Mongolia, China, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, USA, Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Argentina.

Even before the trip, he agreed with the editor of the online magazine 34mag that he would write down advice to other travelers and record events and his impressions. This is how the Roma Jedze project began, which many followed, one might say, on the air.

These notes formed the basis of the book “Roma is going. Around the world penniless. No, this book is not a travel guide. Here you can hardly find a list of must-see places in each of these countries. The main advantage of the book is that Roma does not embellish the events, he honestly tells what he liked and what he didn’t, with what people - pleasant and not so - he communicated along the way.

A trip of this kind cannot be called easy. And Roma faced a variety of problems: sometimes he could not find a place to sleep, he had to deal with the police several times, endure the cold Mongolian winter, get out of the jungle on foot after stealing a boat … In general, there were enough difficulties and adventures on the road.

Many vagabonds cannot cope with the onslaught of loneliness and return home after several months. Household troubles are actually much easier to bear than loneliness. Twenty-four hours a day to be responsible for everything that happens to you, to talk to people only in formal phrases, on which casual acquaintances are built, and not to be able to delegate at least part of your daily duties to someone is the main difficulty. I am sure that everyone who lived on the road first of all learned to value loved ones and just their own. Roman Svechnikov

Travel Facts

It is not surprising that during such a long journey, Roma found himself in various non-standard situations. Let's dwell on a few interesting facts.

1. Georgia turned out to be one of the most hospitable countries in the Caucasus for Roma. Local residents were constantly treated to food and invited to stay for the night.

2. For almost a month Roman lived in Altai, earning money for the further journey by chopping wood.

3. Roma traveled across China by motorcycle. Moreover, before that, he did not know how to operate it and, according to him, before "did not know where the clutch handle is in the motorcycle, and the brake would be confused with the gearbox." Nevertheless, he traveled 3,000 kilometers on a motorcycle.

4. At the border with Thailand, border guards were surprised that Roma was entering the country on a single-entry visa. Indeed, there are thousands of foreigners living in Thailand who enter with a double entry sticker. This means that you can stay in the country for 6 months, but you need to go to another country at least once. Usually tourists go to neighboring Laos for a day or two and come back.

5. Having gone on a journalist visa to the United States and having worked as a loader for the summer, Roma earned money on a 1998 Dodge Caravan. On it he went to Canada and Alaska and drove 18,000 kilometers.

6. In Alaska, Roma headed to the legendary Chris McCandless bus, which you may know about from the movie Into the Wild. To get to it, you need to wade across the Teklanika River. Svechnikov was lucky: the river on the day of the crossing was shallow and calm. Later, he found out that many travelers had failed here - a wayward stormy river did not let them get to the bus, as it once prevented Chris McCandless from getting to civilization.

7. In New York, Roma and his fellow travelers used to go to the trash cans outside the big supermarkets every night. So every night they received quality food for free, which would otherwise have cost a couple of hundred dollars.

8. To return home, Roma collected money for tickets via the Internet: for any donated amount, he sent a postcard with a photo of the "magic bus" from Alaska. The required amount was accumulated in just a few days. And Roma signed more than 300 envelopes four nights in a row. The journey ended in October 2014.

Traveling around the world taught me an important rule - do not have the illusion that somewhere will be better than where you are now. There is no ideal place on the planet. In New York, Bangkok, or Tegucigalpa, you won't feel great if an ammunition dump is on fire inside. Harmony begins with yourself. And if you're okay, whatever falls from the sky - snow, rockets, or pigeon shit - you'll be fine. Roman Svechnikov

Who will like the book

Those who have long dreamed of a big trip or sabbatical, but are constantly justified by inappropriate circumstances, lack of money or time. Roma's example once again proves that a sincere passion for travel and a share of determination are enough.

For those who love documentary prose. "Roma Is Going" is an interesting story about different parts of our planet and the people who live there. These are the emotions and impressions of a person who decided on such an unusual experience.

And now the most interesting thing: together with the publishing house Corpus, we will donate two copies of the book "Roma is Going" to our readers. To participate in the drawing, share this article on Twitter, Facebook or VKontakte, copy the link to your post and paste it into the form below. Don't forget to add your email address so we can contact you! The draw will take place exactly one week later, on April 22: we will determine the names of the winners at random and announce them on the same page. Good luck!

Results of the drawing

The drawing is over. Polina Chaikina and Evgeny K. became the happy owners of the book "Roma Is Going" - wait for a letter from us with further instructions. Thank you all for participating!