Off Track Planet - The Backpackers Ultimate Travel Guide » Travel Dorks

Travel Blog Dork of the Week: Michael Tieso – The Art of Backpacking

Astar — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:09:41 +0000

Travel Dork: Michael Tieso

Website: ArtofBackpacking.com

Right off the bat, The Art of Backpacking has a homey feel, possibly because of its beginnings as a way for creator, Michael Tieso to share his travels with family and friends. It has since evolved into a great resource for backpackers. Tieso is all about inspiring others to think of the world the way he does: that nothing is impossible and that the world is open to exploration. The Art of Backpacking is a collection of his (and his partner, Teresa’s) world travels and travel lessons. It covers a broad range of topics, notably: 10 Unusual Things You May Want to Pack which diverges from everyday things other sites suggest. Amongst others, clear tape, gum and Vaseline make the list (although, we must say, one obvious use for Vaseline was left out; but OTP is just dirty dirty). How to Survive the World’s Most Dangerous Road is an article filled with great tips on surviving a bike ride on the Bolivian road playfully nicknamed Death Road (a lot of people die on it, that’s all).

All the articles on the site give a well-researched, insightful and nonchalant glimpse into the world of backpacking. Tieso is currently bearing the high altitudes of Bolivia and will be heading to Peru shortly. When he’s done with Latin America, India, you better get your shit together ’cause he’s coming for you next. Although all of these qualities are worthy of being OTP’s travel dork of the week, the following seals the deal:

OTP: In your opinion, who would make a better travel companion, Al Pacino or Robert DeNiro? Why?

AOB: No doubt, Al Pacino. He seems to be more of the adventurous type and knows how to party. Less serious then Robert DeNiro and a bit more crazy in my opinion which will make him a perfect partner for sky jumping. I’d likely make him repeat Godfather and Scarface lines all the time which would make me his worst travel companion.

Mr. Tieso, this answer gets you the ultimate stamp of approval from OTP. We proudly crown you our travel dork of the week. So say goodnight to the bad guy cause you never gonna see a bad guy like this again (Just for you Michael).

Written By: Anna Starostinetskaya

Travel Blog Dork of the Week: Daniel Roy – BackpackFoodie.com

Astar — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 18:04:43 +0000

Travel Blog Dork: Daniel Roy

Website: BackpackFoodie.com

Daniel Roy explores the world through his mouth. He left the comforts of home in 2009 to journey through Asia, the Middle East and Africa for a year to taste, smell and learn from the world. The blogs crafted from his adventures thus far make us hungry, horny (his food pictures are borderline pornographic in our eyes) and travel buggy. Although, the pictures accompanying his articles are a big draw, the real flavor lies in his descriptions of things he’s eaten and the life lessons those edible things revealed. He breaks down cultural barriers by approaching new food experiences squeamishness-free; seeing the real value of interacting with a country’s people through its cuisine. Although linguistically, Roy’s articles are crafted with simplicity in mind, the underlying themes he explores are far from plain. We dare you to read his most recent article entitled, Milk Alchemist, and not let it move you.

The Milk Alchemist:

Roy digs his spoon deep into the life of Manick, a street vendor in Kolkata, India, that has magical milk coagulating powers. A seemingly ordinary street vendor amongst thousands of others, Manick teaches Roy about India using only milk, sugar, a wok and wisdom. More than an article about food, this piece reveals Roy’s ability to focus on the important details and finding meaning in things others just pass by.

Roy urges the backpacker to live cheaply, but richly; to eat indiscriminately and with meaning. A proud proponent of street food (we’re with you Daniel), Roy gives Westerners some great insight into the world of food outside of restaurants.Â He schools us on how to approach street food with confidence in his article entitled Eating at Street Level.

Backpackfoodie.com is unique, engaging and revolves around the following philosophy:

To taste someone else’s food is to know the flavor of their life.

Daniel Roy, you are at the height of travel dorkiness and your work is brilliant.

WANT TO BE A FEATURED TRAVEL DORK?…

Travel Dork [Trah-vahl Doe-erk]:A person in love with travel and dedicated to sharing their experiences with others. A distinguishable human being who has successfully and passionately distributed travel information via travel blogs and deserves appropriate and ample recognition.

If you are this person, submit your inquiry to be featured in our Travel Dork section to submit@offtrackplanet.com

Written By: Anna Starostinetskaya

Travel Blog Dork of the Week: David Lee – Gobackpacking.com & Travelblogsucces.com

Astar — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:02:27 +0000

Travel Blog Dork: David Lee

Websites: Gobackpacking.com & Travelblogsuccess.com

David Lee is a huge travel dork. His sites, Gobackpacking.com and Travelblogsuccess.com are chart-toppers. Although various independent travel-related info is available on his site, gobackpacking.com focuses on around-the-world travel. Inspired by his own 2007 around the world trip that took him to 22 countries in 20 months, Lee pumps out this site with passion. His articles are informative and

inspirational to say the least and he has tons of videos that give you a peek into what backpacking the globe feels like (check out Dublin by Night). He’s also a pro at getting free trips; a recent one being to Rwanda (where he entered a contest for a 6 day trip sponsored by Rwanda Tourism and won). In our opinion, the best part of his site has to be his Dare Me section where he asks his readers to dare him to do something ridiculous for a donation (ranging from a free beer to $100+). While a lot of people dare him to take pictures with single women in different countries (odd but understandable), Dave has also eaten dog in Vietnam, taken a Mui Tai fighting class in Phuket, Thailand, and went cage diving with Great Whites in South Africa all to complete dares (which is pretty badass).

If Gobackpacking.com wasn’t enough to seal his deal as a travel dork, Dave also runs Travelblogsuccess.com, a site he built to give valuable advice to travel bloggers looking to make bucks. Using his success with Gobackpacking as evidence that he knows what he’s talking about, Dave breaks down what it takes to make it in the travel blog world.Â In fact, he offers a 12-week online tutorial course on the topic for either $29 per month (for 3 months) or $75 flat. Given his own success, it may be worth a try.

Dave, your contribution to the travel community is priceless and we hope you carry OTPs title of travel blog dork of the week with pride.

*Gobackpacking.com was also featured in OTP’s Travel Bloggers of the Year.