Thursday Traveler(s): Amy and Kieron of Don’t Ever Look Back

Every Thursday, A Dangerous Business will be shining the spotlight on a world nomad, travel blogger, armchair adventurer, or just someone really cool in the travel world. This week, the travelers are Amy and Kieron from Don’t Ever Look Back. Amy and Kieron are a 20-something Australian couple preparing to set off on a round-the-world adventure in July 2011. Their first stop will be Hawaii, followed by the West Coast and only time will tell where they end up from there…

1. How do you define the word “traveler,” and why would you consider yourself one?

This is one question we’ve been asked a lot since we started our blog and, to be honest, we’re not into the whole traveler vs. tourist thing. I guess you could say a true traveler is someone with no fixed address –we’ll probably squeeze into this definition at some point over the next 12 months.

With that said though, we still enjoy the ‘touristy’ things when we’re on the road and will continue to do so. Just because we might be deemed ‘travelers’ doesn’t mean we have to stray too far off the beaten path or slum it in the cheapest hostel just to get an authentic experience.

2. What has been your favorite travel experience thus far?

It’s pretty hard to narrow this down to a solitary favorite experience as there have been so many good ones, but our road trip down Highway 1 from San Francisco to Santa Monica in a Ford Mustang convertible was pretty spectacular. Although it’s a somewhat cliche experience, having complete independence in such a beautiful part of the world was quite special.

3. How about your proudest travel moment?

It’s safe to say that this has yet to come — we plan on doing some volunteering at some point during our upcoming travels, and we think that being able to make a real difference will easily become our proudest travel moment.

4. Have you had any travel mishaps or bad experiences? If so, have these influenced how you view the place where they happened? Would you go back?

We’ve been pretty lucky so far with our travels and haven’t had any major mishaps or bad experiences, knock on wood. The biggest setback we have had was when protesters closed the Bangkok Airport in November 2008, which happened about 24 hours before we were due to fly in there. While it was a major inconvenience, it allowed us to spend extra time in Hong Kong and we wouldn’t trade those experiences for anything.

It’s had no impact on how we view Bangkok or Thailand, and we look forward to finally seeing BKK at some point on our round-the-world trip.

5. Name one thing you can’t travel without.

A camera. Photos capture the memories and help you remember the amazing travel experiences you’ve had long after you’ve left a destination.

6. Name one thing you wish you COULD travel without.

Electronics. For our RTW we’re planning on taking a DSLR , 3 Lenses, a Macbook Pro, a compact camera, two smart phones and god knows what other electronics will make it into our bags. Without these things we could travel much lighter and not have to worry about making sure they’re secure. But like that’s ever gonna happen!

7. What do you think has been the biggest thing you’ve learned while traveling (about yourself, a destination, a culture, travel itself)?

For me (Kieron) personally, spending time with family in the Philippines made me realize why my mother is the way she is and how different life can be just a short distance away. The whole experience really opened my eyes a lot to how I was brought up and how I became who I am today.

8. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

Based on the destinations we’ve been already, we would have to say San Francisco.  There’s just something about that city that we love — the food, the atmosphere and the culture all contribute to that.

With that said, living on a tropical island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean would be pretty sweet as well.

9. Name one place you’d like to see or one experience you’d like to have before you die.

Just one?! That’s a real tough one — let’s go with having a white Christmas at least one year. Most people would probably think we’re crazy trading in the Aussie summer for snow, but it’s something that we want to do once in our lives and hopefully 2011 is our year!

10. If there was one thing you wish somebody would have told you before you started traveling, what would it be?

The cheaper you travel, the longer you can travel for.

Visit Amy and Kieron’s site: Don’t Ever Look Back
Follow Amy and Kieron on Twitter: @amzkiz
“Like” Amy and Kieron on Facebook: Don’t Ever Look Back

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Are you a travel blogger who has something to say on these topics? Do you know of somebody really interesting in the travel universe that you’d like to see interviewed? Speak up! The Thursday Traveler needs some interview subjects.

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