Hola de Guatemala!

Tikal Mayan Ruins, Guatemala

Bienvenido - welcome!

If you’re just meeting me for the first time, hola! I’m a 28-year-old writer, photographer and musician from Australia. Right now, I’m living in Guatemala, at a Spanish school.

On weekdays, I hear the chatter of students learning Spanish as it echoes from the courtyard below my window. Upstairs in our room, I sit on a plastic chair, at a desk covered in a colourful, handmade tablecloth, and I edit photos and write about whatever I feel inspired to write.

I have no job, no boss. I spend my days ‘working’ on what makes me happy, simply because I want to. There will come a time when I’ll run out of money and have to return to the real world – but until then, I’m making the most of it!

For my first blog post, I thought I’d give a brief overview of what this site is about and explain how I’ve ended up living at a Spanish school in Quetzaltenango (commonly known as Xela), in Guatemala.

My boyfriend Sean is studying Spanish, and though I’m not taking lessons myself, I’ve really enjoyed living at Miguel de Cervantes Spanish School! We’ve been living here for two months now, but that time has gone really quickly, and we’ve met so many awesome people. We feel at home here, with a nice mix of routine and adventure.

Some of the awesome people we’ve met at Miguel de Cervantes Spanish School! Santa María Volcano, Guatemala

Right now, our weekdays are structured – we have routines to follow and goals to reach. On the weekends, we go sightseeing with other students here, hiking and climbing volcanos, relaxing at hot springs, or wandering through colourful and sprawling markets. There’s an endless stream of activities and opportunities!

Prior to living here at the school, we spent two months in Mexico where we did a Workaway (volunteer work in exchange for food and accommodation) for a month (I’ll share about that experience on here soon). Before Mexico, we spent 2 months in Europe – mostly in Spain, travelling around the coast for 5 weeks. It’s been an awesome 6+ months of travel, and we still have until September in Guatemala!

One of my favourite cities! Granada, Spain

The Palace of Alhambra. Granada, Spain

Over the time we’ve been travelling, I’ve learnt so much – hacks on saving money and budgeting, how to be vegan while travelling and how very little material possessions one needs.

We started our trip with only so much money to spend – whatever we could save while working full time in Australia. Instead of ‘settling down’ with those savings, Sean and I bought one-way tickets to Berlin, Germany! It was a little nerve-wracking, but it’s been completely worth it.

Travelling the world on a budget is certainly not as difficult as it may seem!

I’ve created this blog to show you that it is possible, and that travelling is far less scary than the news would have you believe. From our experience, it’s also been super easy to be vegan while travelling.

Vegan crepes at Sama Sama! Lisbon, Portugal

Lisbon, Portugal

On this blog, you can expect to read about all things travel, wellness and low-impact living. I like the term ‘Low Impact’ to summarise living a vegan, minimalist and low waste lifestyle.

So if you’re curious about Veganism, looking for plant-based recipes, or any tips and tricks for lowering your environmental footprint, then you’re in the right place!

You’ll also see lots of photos that I’ve taken in our travels so far – with many more to come.

I am so grateful to have the freedom to travel the world, spending my days doing whatever I want to do. I know that I’m privileged to have been born in Australia, that I had the opportunity to live a comfortable life while working full time and saving money.

I’m also so very grateful to you, for reading this, for being here, for supporting me. I hope I can bring some value to your day with my photos or my words! Please let me know if there’s anything you’d like me to cover, any particular recipes you’d like me to share or experiences we’ve had travelling. I want this blog to be helpful! 

Thank you so much for being here,

Ebonie xx