Hacking the Schengan Visa : What I learned in Hungary

Jason Bourne, anyone?

Disclaimer: This post is not about me. I present it here solely for informational purposes, but the details shouldn’t be taken seriously. Narrative provided by my friend, who we’ll just call ‘Jason’.

Ahhhh Europe. Yes, the quintessential summer trip. Ever since high-school I’d wanted to do a 4-6 month dirt-bag trip through the continent. Unfortunately, it turns out that in most of Europe you’re now restricted to 3 month stints. Yep, good luck covering Europe in 3 months.

The Schengan visa-free zone, while probably great for the economic unity of the European Union, is not ideal for long-term backpackers. It certainly makes border-crossings easier, but you can throw a few of those old 6-month backpack-around-Europe itineraries right out the window (you also won’t get any cool stamps in your passport).Continue reading >>

Strike Mission: From Budapest to Istanbul in 4 Days

This has happened before: I have a deadline to be somewhere, I’m nowhere near it, and I’m out of time.

Back in late November I was in Southern Peru and needed to get to Santiago, Chile in under a week (just look at the map – it’s FAR). I waited until the last possible minute and then blew through Arequipa, the international border, and all the surf towns of Northern Chile, making it to Santiago via nonstop 24-hour busride (with a day to spare). I even managed to get a few days of surfing in along the way.Continue reading >>