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Category: The Balkans

The best girls trip destinations in Europe

European Galentine’s Getaways – Best Places to go with friends in Europe

January 23, 2021 Cassie The Balkans, Western Europe

The Best Places to Visit on a Balkans Itinerary

July 3, 2020 Cassie Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, Romania, The Balkans

Packing List for Europe in Winter

February 17, 2020 Cassie packing lists, The Balkans

Visiting Kosovo – Solo Travel and Is Kosovo Safe?

February 13, 2020 Cassie Balkans Homepage, Kosovo, The Balkans

Most Photogenic Spots on a One Week Montenegro Itinerary

February 10, 2020 Cassie Balkans Homepage, Montenegro, The Balkans

11 Things to do in Ohrid, North Macedonia

December 14, 2019 Cassie Balkans Homepage, North Macedonia, The Balkans

The Balkans Guide. What to know before you go + car rental vs public transport

November 28, 2019 Cassie Balkans Homepage, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, The Balkans

Kotor to Dubrovnik by bus – What to expect

November 27, 2019 Cassie Montenegro, The Balkans

Backpacking the Balkans in Off Season – What to expect

November 27, 2019 Cassie Bosnia & Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, The Balkans

How to take the bus from Belgrade to Pristina

November 13, 2019 Cassie Kosovo, The Balkans

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Hi, I’m Cassie! I began travelling at 27 and haven’t looked back.

Since arriving alone in New Zealand in March 2020, I have situated myself in Auckland where I have been working full-time.

Alongside sharing my favourite North Island destinations, you can also find guides for destinations in Australia, Japan, Indonesia and Southeast Asia, and The Balkans.

Although I don’t advocate travel at this time, I hope my earnest posts on everything from solo backpacking to mental well-being on the road, will help prepare you for trips in the future.

Keep safe out there everyone.

Is there ever a need for travel when it doesn't be

<img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/client/q_glossy,ret_img/https://cassiethehag.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png" alt="Is there ever a need for travel when it doesn't benefit people or the planet? This has been a big question within sustainable tourism for a long time, and within the context of the global pandemic, a greater light has been shone on this conversation. What do you think - Is it ethical to travel & promote travel? (In any year?) A - always B - sometimes C - only if specific considerations are made D - rarely/never Yess I know that corporations make up the majority of the global carbon footprint. I am not asking this question to people who go on holiday once a while, but rather working WITHIN the travel industry - people work with brands/corporations 'we vote with our wallet' more often than we do at the ballot. Some ways to travel more ethically: 1 - Keep asking questions! Normalise open conversations around ethical travel issues. For example, asking travel providers what safety measures they're taking if planning on taking this year, ask how busy airports/travel hubs will expected to be, etc. & ensuring pandemic safety includes locals ie locals who live in the small stops along the way (for example, stopping at a small town on a road trip) 2 - Don't make assumptions on behalf of locals So... The locals are benefitting from us travelling, huh? It's hard to get a broad perspective from a community - speak to someone who works with broad sectors of the community, as well as locals themselves, rather than influencers who've visited/travel agencies 3 - Travel more sustainably - whether that's offsetting your carbon footprint or choosing newer aircraft on a direct route, or kindly asking your hotel to only wash your bedding/towels twice a week. Slow travel, public transport, and local food halls (bonus if there's vegan options and you take your own utensils) are other great options. 4 - animal tourism is generally bad. If you're not an expert, usually it's best to avoid it 5 - support local businesses, local-run tours and accommodation & respect indigenous communities alongside the wealthier locals/expats 6 - Fact check before sharing online that somethings ethica... & watch out for 'greenwashing'! What else? 😍😍">

Is there ever a need for travel when it doesn't benefit people or the planet? This has been a big question within sustainable tourism for a long time, and within the context of the global pandemic, a greater light has been shone on this conversation. What do you think - Is it ethical to travel & promote travel? (In any year?) A - always
B - sometimes
C - only if specific considerations are made
D - rarely/never Yess I know that corporations make up the majority of the global carbon footprint. I am not asking this question to people who go on holiday once a while, but rather working WITHIN the travel industry - people work with brands/corporations 'we vote with our wallet' more often than we do at the ballot. Some ways to travel more ethically: 1 - Keep asking questions! Normalise open conversations around ethical travel issues. For example, asking travel providers what safety measures they're taking if planning on taking this year, ask how busy airports/travel hubs will expected to be, etc.
& ensuring pandemic safety includes locals ie locals who live in the small stops along the way (for example, stopping at a small town on a road trip) 2 - Don't make assumptions on behalf of locals So... The locals are benefitting from us travelling, huh? It's hard to get a broad perspective from a community - speak to someone who works with broad sectors of the community, as well as locals themselves, rather than influencers who've visited/travel agencies 3 - Travel more sustainably - whether that's offsetting your carbon footprint or choosing newer aircraft on a direct route, or kindly asking your hotel to only wash your bedding/towels twice a week. Slow travel, public transport, and local food halls (bonus if there's vegan options and you take your own utensils) are other great options. 4 - animal tourism is generally bad. If you're not an expert, usually it's best to avoid it 5 - support local businesses, local-run tours and accommodation
& respect indigenous communities alongside the wealthier locals/expats 6 -
Fact check before sharing online that somethings ethica...
& watch out for 'greenwashing'! What else? 😍😍

Camera trickery rather than cliff unsafery - I've

<img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/client/q_glossy,ret_img/https://cassiethehag.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png" alt="Camera trickery rather than cliff unsafery - I've done some jaw-dropping solo hikes, but that particular evening was spent exploring a local beach area with a local friend @robmulally. It actually took me like 18 months to post because I was worried it was irresponsible - after seeing the photo, it looked more unsafe than it appeared at the time. But at this point, I figured a disclaimer was OK. I have people ask how I'm wearing long skirts on hikes (I was walking along a flat surface beside a river... I literally wear a skirt/dress almost every day walking to work so that one confused me). & anytime I've genuinely done something that felt a bit unsafe (you know, being a solo female traveller and all), the last thing I would have done is got my camera out and take a photo. Once someone asked me why, if I talk about mental health so much, are my photos so nice... I tried to explain that panic attack selfies really aren't my vibe, haha. Besides, I'm not a photographer and have never claimed to be. I work with words, not images. But for real, on an average backpacker day I'm concentrating on getting to where I need to go with sensory overload, and having my wits about me. Most days travelling, I didn't take a photo, or just one or two quick ones for the memory - and my blog! What do you think? Genuine question that will help inform my decisions on what to post on the future: Do you think it's OK to post photos that look unsafe (even if you know it wasn't)?">

Camera trickery rather than cliff unsafery - I've done some jaw-dropping solo hikes, but that particular evening was spent exploring a local beach area with a local friend @robmulally. It actually took me like 18 months to post because I was worried it was irresponsible - after seeing the photo, it looked more unsafe than it appeared at the time. But at this point, I figured a disclaimer was OK. I have people ask how I'm wearing long skirts on hikes (I was walking along a flat surface beside a river... I literally wear a skirt/dress almost every day walking to work so that one confused me). & anytime I've genuinely done something that felt a bit unsafe (you know, being a solo female traveller and all), the last thing I would have done is got my camera out and take a photo. Once someone asked me why, if I talk about mental health so much, are my photos so nice... I tried to explain that panic attack selfies really aren't my vibe, haha. Besides, I'm not a photographer and have never claimed to be. I work with words, not images. But for real, on an average backpacker day I'm concentrating on getting to where I need to go with sensory overload, and having my wits about me. Most days travelling, I didn't take a photo, or just one or two quick ones for the memory - and my blog! What do you think?
Genuine question that will help inform my decisions on what to post on the future: Do you think it's OK to post photos that look unsafe (even if you know it wasn't)?

What scares you the most about solo female travel?

<img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/client/q_glossy,ret_img/https://cassiethehag.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png" alt="What scares you the most about solo female travel? For many, the answer appears to be loneliness. This is interesting to me, and I huge sense of warmth to those to answer in this way. But interestingly, my REASON for solo travel was loneliness - it was already an obstacle in my life and had been since I was tiny. But as I approached 30, it was becoming harder to relate to others, and to make new adult friends, and to feel fulfilled. I wanted to be lost physically instead of mentally. I've spoke to other women, too, who didn't want to solo travel because they felt it could delay their career, or meeting someone. But safety is the PRESUMED fear for female solo travellers, but in my experience most women don't feel truly safe anywhere. I was a very inexperienced traveller when I left my birth country alone at 27... But moving to South London at 18 definitely was more dangerous. The privilege of travel always overshadowed the fear of being alone in a new place. And while I won't ever go into the events that led the PTSD I experienced in my birth country online, the short version is that staying was scarier than leaving. Because leaving was a choice - leaving was a second chance. Leaving was something which belonged completely to me And whatever fear, or loneliness, or emotion struck through me during my many months solo on the road, I felt an overwhelmed with gratitude all the same. I felt so humbled to be a woman - to be a human - who could make the choice to live">

What scares you the most about solo female travel? For many, the answer appears to be loneliness. This is interesting to me, and I huge sense of warmth to those to answer in this way. But interestingly, my REASON for solo travel was loneliness - it was already an obstacle in my life and had been since I was tiny. But as I approached 30, it was becoming harder to relate to others, and to make new adult friends, and to feel fulfilled. I wanted to be lost physically instead of mentally. I've spoke to other women, too, who didn't want to solo travel because they felt it could delay their career, or meeting someone. But safety is the PRESUMED fear for female solo travellers, but in my experience most women don't feel truly safe anywhere. I was a very inexperienced traveller when I left my birth country alone at 27...
But moving to South London at 18 definitely was more dangerous. The privilege of travel always overshadowed the fear of being alone in a new place. And while I won't ever go into the events that led the PTSD I experienced in my birth country online, the short version is that staying was scarier than leaving. Because leaving was a choice - leaving was a second chance. Leaving was something which belonged completely to me And whatever fear, or loneliness, or emotion struck through me during my many months solo on the road, I felt an overwhelmed with gratitude all the same. I felt so humbled to be a woman - to be a human - who could make the choice to live

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