Hi, my name is Marieke!
Welcome to Echoes from Elsewhere, where you’ll find personal travel stories, destination guides and advice for independent solo travelers and digital nomads.
I’ve always had a passion for storytelling.
Growing up, I was the girl who dreamed up imaginary worlds, ran around the house dressed like a princess, and filled notebook after notebook with stories about dragons and spaceships. Two decades later, I still love to tell stories, but now my focus is on travel, and my own experiences as a solo traveler adventuring around the globe.
I’m also immensely curious to see the world. During my teens and early twenties, I went on countless trips in Europe, as well as a two-week study trip to North America with my uni class. But it wasn’t until the age of 26, while backpacking through Central America with a friend, that I fell completely head-over-heels in love with travel.
I was hooked!
When I returned home, I immediately started planning and saving money for my next long-term trip. And a year later, I left for what turned out to be an incredible solo adventure in Southeast Asia. I backpacked around Thailand and Vietnam for almost three months, and in the process, discovered my love for independent solo travel.
Hoi An, Vietnam
Taking the leap
My trip to Southeast Asia only fueled my passion for travel. But with a now depleted bank account, my first priority was saving up as much as possible before taking off again. It took me another year and a half of planning and saving, and then I decided I was ready to take the leap.
I quit my job and bought a one-way ticket to Mexico.
On a cold, snowy day in December, I flew from Brussels to sunny Cancun to begin my solo journey across Mexico and Central America.
This time, I had zero plans of going back to a full-time office job.
I ended up spending over five months on the road, backpacking through Mexico, Belize and Guatemala. It was an amazing experience I’ll never forget! I climbed volcanoes, marveled at ancient Mayan cities, learned to speak Spanish, relaxed on gorgeous white-sand beaches, and met countless awesome people from all walks of life.
Since returning from that trip, I’ve spent most of my time in the Netherlands to build my online business as a blogger and SEO content writer. But while I stayed a little closer to home, I did manage to travel around Europe, including several months of housesitting in London, France and Switzerland.
Housesitting was a great way to dip my toes into the digital nomad lifestyle. I especially loved my time in London, where I took care of three little cats while their owners were away on vacation. It was wonderful working from a different place, with my new furry friends for company!
Lake Atitlan, Guatemala
Why I started my solo travel blog
I started this blog to inspire and encourage you to go on an adventure of your own. I want to show you what it’s like to travel the world independently, as a solo female traveler, and help you realize your own travel dreams.
I love the freedom of traveling without an exact itinerary. I just book a plane ticket, strap on my backpack and see where the road takes me! That means I don’t often book ahead, and mostly take local transportation. I also prefer exploring a new place by myself instead of joining an organized trip.
A lot of people seem to think traveling alone is scary, lonely and sometimes even dangerous, especially for women. But I want to prove the opposite is true.
In fact, I’ve had some of the best experiences of my life while backpacking on my own!
I’ve explored the beautiful islands of southern Thailand, lived with a local family in Guatemala, survived the chaotic streets of Saigon in Vietnam, spent a crazy week partying in Budapest, stuffed my face with tacos and tamales in Mexico, got lost in the winding streets of Lisbon, and hiked in the gorgeous mountains of Bulgaria.
Travel isn’t always fun, though. Since starting this solo adventure, I’ve also had my fair share of travel disasters. I’ve been attacked by bedbugs in Thailand and again in Guatemala, suffered from a bad case of food poisoning in Vietnam, got sick more times than I can count in Mexico, was attacked by a cat in Switzerland… and I’ve had to see a doctor in three different countries.
Oh, and I got dropped by a bus in the middle of nowhere – twice.
But hey, at least those experience make for some interesting stories!
Cordoba, Spain
What to expect from Echoes from Elsewhere
So, what can you expect from this blog?
This is what I’m focused on:
- Detailed travel guides and destination guides for digital nomads
- Crazy stories from my solo adventures around Europe, Southeast Asia and Latin America
- Inspiring photo essays of beautiful places across the world
- Personal opinions on travel, entrepreneurship, the digital nomad lifestyle and everything in between
- Useful tips for independent solo travelers and digital nomads
I hope you’ll check out some of my articles!
And I would love to hear from you, too. So please feel free to leave a comment on this blog or drop me an email! You can reach me at marieke [at] echoesfromelsewhere [dot] com.
You can also find me on Facebook and Instagram.
Thanks for visiting! 😀
~ Marieke