Around the World in 323 Days

         Have you ever thought about taking a year off to travel the world? Not just around Europe but as many continents as possible? Well, Sasha Hill and Sierra Clark, age 19, are living the dream.

            These girls, fresh out of high school, are traveling all around the world and here is the inside scoop to how they made this dream a reality.

            Hill and Clark have been planning this trip since they were 14 years old.  They each worked four jobs for the previous two summers before starting their excursion to save up to about $28,000.   The girls also set a budget for each country they went to.

            Although they researched as much as possible online and from books before their trip, the girls also had some help from the free services of STA Travel.   In the countries they volunteered their time in exchange for housing they used sites like workaway.info or WWOOF.org.

Neuschwanstein Castle. 2012. Photograph. Bavaria, Germany. Comp. Sierra Clark and Sasha Hill.

Hill and Clark started off their trip by flying to Peru and from there went to:

• France
• Germany
• Switzerland
• Spain
• Italy
• Morocco
• Israel
• Palestine
• Jordan
• Turkey
• Greece
• Thailand
• Laos
• Cambodia
• Vietnam

From hostels to home stays, Hill and Clark have experienced it all.

“In cheaper countries we stayed in hostels and in Southeast Asia we mostly slept in hotels and guesthouses. Throughout Europe we couch surfed www.couchsurfing.com which is free and a great way to see the country through the eyes of a local. When we volunteered we stayed in family homes, cultural centers, and we worked at a hostel for some time,” Hill said.

By meeting people on the trip Hill and Clark said that the locals they met along the way always gave the best recommendations of where to go.  However the backpackers they met helped them prepare for anything unexpected and how to take safety precautions.

In order to talk to the locals, Hill and Clark found it fairly easy to find locals who speak English.  If not, they used hand gestures.

“A lot can be said without speaking,” Hill said.

In order to get around Hill and Clark have been using any transportation possible between busses, trains, planes, and even boats.  So far Hill and Sasha said the busses have been cheapest, but the trains allow for some extra downtime.

Throughout the year Hill and Clark have been posting to a website their blog, pictures, and videos! So make sure to also check out their travel blog!

As their trip comes to a close within the next week, Hill and Clark said Cambodia is the cheapest and overall their favorite country.

“I liked Cambodia the best because of the incredible kind spirit of her people. Also, I can never seem to get my fill of the incredible street food and the cheaply priced yet incredibly luxurious hotels,” Clark said.

Machu Picchu. 2012. Photograph. Cusco, Peru. Comp. Sierra Clark and Sasha Hill.