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Are Gap Years A Waste Of Time? | Loose Women

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The not so equal au pair The Independent

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The not so equal au pair The Independent

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Camps International : Responsible tourism

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Camps International : Responsible tourism

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(full report)

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(full speech)

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The First Lady on the Importance of Studying Abroad

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Interesting if you want to travel for free

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Interesting if you want to travel for free

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WORLD TRAVEL is cheap and easy. In fact, with a little practice and effort, you can travel for free.

The idea that travel is expensive and difficult is bullshit peddled by tour companies, hotel chains, and corporate media. The tourism industry wants you to buy cruise packages and stay at all-inclusive resorts. They want you to choose a world travel experience the same way you would choose a new jacket at the mall. They want your credit card number.

The tourism industry doesn't want me to reveal the simple secrets of free travel, but I'm going to share them with you anyway. It can be scary to travel the world with nothing more than optimism and good-will, but personal freedom begins with a leap of faith.

1. Embrace the simple joy of travel.

Travel frees you from the grind of daily routine. You will explore new places, meet new people, try new foods, and learn things about the world - and yourself - that you never imagined were possible.

The joy of new experience is the most wonderful thing about world travel - and new experiences are free. Walk the streets of a city. Stop and chat with a local. People watch in a public park. Climb to the top of a hill and watch the sun set over the ocean.

The simple joy of being in a new place is just a matter of...wait for it...going someplace new. No tour package required.

2. Keep your needs to a minimum.

The modern American economy is built on the false premise that people need to buy new goods and services all the time. Again, I call bullshit.

People need fresh air, healthy food, clean water, exercise, creative stimulation, companionship, self-esteem, and a safe place to sleep. All of these things are simple to obtain. Most of them are free.

For fresh air, go outside. For exercise, take a walk. For creative stimulation, go somewhere new. For companionship, make a friend. For self-esteem, turn off your TV, breathe deep, and open your spirit to the basic goodness of the world.

Things like food and shelter are much cheaper once you get outside the United States. See #5 below for ways to obtain food and shelter for free.

3. Go slow.

If you live in New York and want to take a 2-week vacation to Africa, it will be very difficult (though not impossible, see #8) to travel for free. Indeed, as long as you believe that time is money, you will spend money all the time.

Time is not money. Time is free. You have all the time in the world.

Instead of buying a plane ticket, catch a ride out West, or remodel an old sailboat, or just hop on your bike and ride away from town. The slower you travel, the less money you will spend.

4. Leave your possessions and obsessions behind.

When you travel, you don't need to pay rent. You don't need a car. You don't need an oven, a washer-dryer, electricity, cable TV, a gym membership, a sofa and loveseat, or a closet full of clothes.

You don't need a suit and tie to wear to your job because you don't need a job. You don't need to worry about paying the bills, because there are no bills to pay.

You are free.

5. Trust people and you will receive free food and lodging.

Many people are willing to open their homes to travelers. Chip in with a few chores, and they will give you a free meal, too.

CouchSurfing and WWOOF are two phenomenal online networks that help travelers connect with local hosts. CouchSurfing members are willing to give travelers a place to sleep for a night or two. WWOOF connects travelers with organic farmers who want to trade room and board for an extra hand.

Many members of both CouchSurfing and WWOOF are seeking an alternative to high-impact consumer culture.

6. Learn a useful craft or skill.

If you have a skill, such as cooking, animal husbandry, massage, musical ability, or basic carpentry, you can barter for free food and accommodation as you travel the world.

Universally appreciated skills like cooking are best, though niche skills that are in high demand, like website design, are also useful. Native English speakers can often travel for free by teaching language classes in each destination they visit.

The slower you travel, the easier it will be to work out a mutually beneficial arrangement with a local community or host.

7. Get out of the city.

Although it's possible to travel for free in a big city, it's damn difficult. Cities are built on money, and necessities like fresh air, clean water, and a safe place to sleep are difficult to come by in cities.

Go to the country, where people are more relaxed, food is plentiful, and there's ample room for one traveler to lay out her sleeping bag under the stars.

8. Find a job you love that entails world travel.

If you need an income in order to pay off loans or support a child, find a job that calls for extensive travel. There are millions of jobs available in the global economy that demand world travel.

Of course, some jobs are easier to love than others, and much work that involves travel also involves the destruction of local ecosystems and traditional ways of life. Avoid unethical work if at all possible - it's bad for your health and worse for your soul.

For job ideas, check out 20+ awesome travel jobs and how to get them.

9. Embrace serendipity.

To travel for free requires a blend of advance planning and the willingness to seize opportunities and go with the flow. Does your new CouchSurfing friend want company for a drive across the country? Grab your pack and ride along! Does an organic farm in Thailand need a farm sitter for the rainy season? Dig in!

As Kurt Vonnegut wrote, "Peculiar travel suggestions are dancing lessons from God."

Go dancing.

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How to travel the world for free (seriously)

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WORLD TRAVEL is cheap and easy. In fact, with a little practice and effort, you can travel for free. The idea that travel is expensive and difficult is bullshit peddled by tour companies, hotel chains, and corporate media. The tourism industry wants you to buy cruise packages and stay at all-inclusive resorts.

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https://www.theguardian.com/g2/story/0,3604,849114,00.html

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Voluntourism: When You Take More Than You Leave Behind | Madara Žgutė | TEDxISM

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If Voluntourists Talked About North America

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Documentary 'The Voluntourist': Is voluntourism doing more harm than good?

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Au pairing abroad did more for my language skills than studying

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Getting to know a host family is a great way to immerse yourself in a language, boost your confidence and expand your vocabulary

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WWOOF organisations connect people who want to live and learn on organic
farms and small-holdings with people who want to share their knowledge and way of life.

WWOOF hosts offer food, accommodation and opportunities to learn about organic and self-sufficient
lifestyles. Visitors or WWOOFers as they kindly known, give a helping hand with the daily activities on the land and in the family home.

WWOOF is a network of national organizations. To become involved in the WWOOF community explore the drop down menu or list below and connect with the national WWOOF organization. For hosts in countries with no local WWOOF group check out WWOOF Independents

Make a difference! Get involved! Join WWOOF! Think global - act local!

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Live and learn on organic and sustainable properties. Volunteer exchange on sustainable and organic farms and properties. Association of WWOOF International Limited

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Access Google Drive with a Google account (for personal use) or Google Workspace account (for business use).

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Access Google Drive with a Google account (for personal use) or Google Workspace account (for business use).

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Volunteering : Camps International

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Home - Camps International Group Limited

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Award-winning volunteer expeditions across Africa, Asia and South America with Camps International. Make an impact and do something amazing!

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SOMERVILLE -- On a recent Saturday morning, five twentysomethings huddle in a cozy living room to map out their day. Two are from Montreal. Another is from Chicago. The hosts, Jesse Fenton and Erin Benoit, have lived in the apartment for three years.

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What's wrong with volunteer travel?: Daniela Papi at TEDxOxbridge

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Daniela spent six years living in Cambodia where she founded PEPY, a youth leadership and education organization, and PEPY Tours, a development education travel company. PEPY Tours, which started as a "voluntourism" organization, is now a leading advocate in the shift from service to learning travel and Daniela blogs frequently about this and other topics through her blog, "Lessons I Learned".

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One woman worked multiple jobs and downsized her lifestyle to live out her biggest dream.

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You've seen stories about people taking off and traveling the world. Here's how one woman saved up and did it.

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How to travel the world with almost no money?

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How to travel the world with almost no money?

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How to travel the world with almost no money | Tomislav Perko | TEDxTUHH

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Creative Commons License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/ Credits: Fall Retreat: Twin Rocks from George Fox SPIL https://vimeo.com/142469615 Audley Travel - Cambodia from Wanderlust FP https://vimeo.com/100791367 Please link to: http://www.audleytravel.com/cambodia We Go Sri Lanka - https://vimeo.com/55169240 https://vimeo.com/166034462 https://vimeo.com/41905776 Music: Brig - Spoil

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Why take a structured gap year? Find out!

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Ever consider taking a gap year? In this 5 minute video, mygapyear clients, alumni and parents share their gap year experience, what they have learned and the advantages of taking a structured and personally coached gap year. Industry experts and post-secondary institutions also weigh in on the subject.

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Gap Year After High School? 3 Good/Bad Reasons

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Should you take a year off after high school before going to college? Here are three good and three bad reasons to take a gap year. Gillian Katz at HerCampus: http://www.hercampus.com/high-school/preparing-college/3-great-reasons-take-gap-year-3-bad-reasons-take-gap-year Mollee Gray ("Giggles" in Teen Beach Movie on the Disney Channel, and she was a top 8 finalist on So You Think You Can Dance Season 6) joins us to break it down on Pop Trigger.

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Why you should be considering a Gap Year.