I’ve spent large amounts of time in Western/Central Europe due to a close friend that lives there. However, my time there has been more about the person and less about the place. Therefore, I do not feel like I can contribute any interesting information for people backpacking this area of Europe. However, since tourist visa regulations only allow me to spend three months in every six-month period in the Schengen Zone, I have spent a significant amount of time backpacking and volunteering in Eastern Europe/The Balkans.

I have an affinity for second world countries and prefer to spend my non-Schengen time in less developed areas. I love buying home grown fruit from a street vendor instead of at a huge corporate grocery store. Something about home made wine and olive oil, milking a goat and making cheese really gets me excited. I love doing laundry by hand and hanging it out to dry. Not to mention how warm and gorgeous much of the coastal Balkans area is! When you read my Europe section keep in mind that this is not the typical Eurotrip.

Montenegro