Yesterday was day 30 of my RTW trip. I can’t believe 30 days have passed already!

Looking back, though, a lot has definitely happened. I’ve seen so many things, met a lot of people from all over the world, and learned so much.

In one month, I’ve been to about 3 countries and 9 cities. It’s actually quite a lot in a month. I’ve been taking things slowly and I feel like I should slow down even more.

So far I’ve met other travelers of all ages from the following countries: USA, Canada, Holland, Belgium, Germany, France, Austria, Australia, Japan, South Africa, Israel, England, and Spain. The majority of them are from the USA and Canada, which I guess makes sense because of the proximity to those countries. I’ve even met a few people from New Jersey, where I used to live. For some reason, though, they all live in southern New Jersey (I was from the north).

I also kept running into the same people I’ve met in other cities/towns and even other countries. Just this morning, in Quetzaltenango, I was just walking around the city for the first time (got here last night) and I ran into someone who was staying at the same hostel I was staying at yesterday in Lake Atitlan. She said she just got here today and just checking out the city as well.

Apparently, this is pretty common. I’ve met other travelers who have said the same thing. It really is a small world.

I’ve also been keeping track of all my expenses so I know when I can splurge a little and where I can cut down.

Here’s the breakdown of my expenses in the last 30 days:

• Food: $376.83
• Transportation (includes initial flight to Cancun): $370.98
• Accommodation: $279.20
• Activities: $382.68
• Miscellaneous: $91.05
• Travel Insurance (World Nomads): $64.38

I thought it looked a little funny to see accommodation costs lower than food costs. It certainly makes a huge difference when you’re not paying over $100 a night for a nice room in a hotel. I’m actually currently overspending a little bit this week as I booked a private room with a private bathroom in a hostel for about $16/night. They gave me a big room with 3 beds as it seems business is pretty slow for them. I can’t help but think that so much space is being wasted, I almost want to go looking for two other people to share the room and cost with.

Looking through my food expenses, there are definitely ways to cut down. I’ve ate out quite a bit and drank quite a few beers. This month I’m aiming to drink more water instead and do grocery shopping or buy from bakeries. For example, for less than $2, I can buy enough bread from a bakery for 2 or 3 meals. My hostel provides free water, coffee, and tea so I’ll use those. A bottle of beer alone usually go for about $2. A can of soda for $0.65 to $1. Those things add up.

My transportation costs seem pretty high as well. But it includes the $162 I paid to fly from New Jersey to Cancun and I’ve moved around quite a bit in the last month. I’m expecting my transportation expense to be much lower this month as I plan to stay longer in one place.

Activities expense look about right. It includes excursions and Spanish lessons (40 hours total).

Miscellaneous are things like laundry, toiletries, Internet, and border fees. Not too bad, expecting it to be lower this month as well.

Total cost for 1 month of travel is $1,565.12. I budgeted $2,000 a month so I’m actually doing pretty well. But I’m always looking for ways to save on things that don’t matter much to me as some places will be more expensive than others. I will probably still continue to splurge once in a while as it’s part of the enjoyment. Right now, for example, where I have my own room, bathroom, a desk, and a TV. It’s definitely nice to be able to fully unpack all my stuff and get some really good sleep, but after a week it will probably feel just normal and I won’t appreciate it as much.