Go Travel and Talk’s ‘Blog Feature of the Month’ is all about connecting each other with the inspiration we need to EXPLORE, SHARE and IMPACT. The purpose of this monthly feature is to showcase explorers who are out in the world making a positive impact, and to empower each other to get involved. By joining the Go Travel and Talk community and learning from one another through sharing our insights, stories and experiences we believe that TOGETHER we can positively shape the future of travel.

Go Travel and Talk’s ‘Blog Feature of the Month’ May 2019 goes to Bamboo and Backpacks by the inspirational duo, Linda and Caleb; sustainable travel bloggers from Argentina and the UK.

Linda and Caleb are an inspiration to us all. Since meeting in 2016, they have travelled extensively and created a life together on the road, which they authentically share through their blog Bamboo and backpacks.

Their blog offers a space where they can share their sustainable travel journey with us, spreading awareness about the importance of living consciously and making eco-friendly choices when we travel. Their authentic passion for life and for protecting this beautiful world we live in, is inspiring and deeply motivating. Not only that, but their blog is available in English and Spanish, making it even more accessible and true to who they are.

Their eco-swaps page on their website is incredibly informative and they have a huge selection of blogs, detailing their sustainable travel choices and off the beaten path adventures. We are so excited to follow their journey and learn as we do!

Thank you Linda and Caleb for all the knowledge and adventure you share with us. Our planet needs more people like you. 

We are Caleb & Linda, sustainable travel couple and founders of Bamboo & Backpacks!

Our story started in June 2016 when we met in Fort William, Scotland. Caleb was volunteering in a hostel during his first solo travel trip outside of Argentina and Linda (born in London to Dutch/Belgian parents) was doing a charity Three Peaks Challenge with her colleagues. We got talking and immediately hit it off, bonding over our mutual love for travel and the outdoors. A few weeks later Caleb visited Linda in Cambridge (as friends!) on his way to Spain, and then we kept in touch via Whatsapp for the next 6 months. In the meantime Linda quit her 9-5, let her apartment and we both bought a one-way ticket to Bangkok in January 2017 where we met again for our first date - and we’ve been travelling together ever since!
 
Our time in South East Asia was unforgettable; exploring countless ancient temples, tasting exotic foods, snorkelling with sea turtles, epic night trains and four-day bus journeys.

But what struck us most was the reality of the impact of human actions and over-tourism on our planet

from garbage floating in the sea or washing up on the shores, to thousands of scooters polluting the cities, and plastic littering even the remotest of places. It was devastating to see and we quickly became concerned about what is happening to the nature and wildlife that we share the Earth with. 

We realised that something has to change and that change starts with us!

Bamboo & Backpacks was designed to be a space to share not only our adventures around the world, but also the importance of mindful and sustainable travel; by leading by example we hope to inspire others to make more conscious choices that will benefit themselves and the planet.

We want to prove that it’s cool to be eco-friendly and that sustainable living doesn’t stop you from enjoying life - it actually makes life so much richer for yourself and everything else around you!

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What does exploring mean to you?

For us, exploring is about learning. We love to learn about different cultures, hear foreign languages, see new landscapes and animals, and taste strange foods! Our favourite way to explore is to take it slow, get off the beaten track and spend at least a couple of weeks in one place - and in a place away from the typical tourist hotspots!

We do a lot of volunteering whilst we travel and it’s led us to some of our most incredible experiences, from renovating an abandoned palace in Poland, to riding horses every day in Romania, to cooking for guests at a mountain biking B&B in the Slovenian Alps - it’s fascinating to see how other people live!

By exploring and connecting with different cultures we’re constantly learning how we want to live our own life.
 

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Why do you believe in sharing your experiences?

We heard this quote in the Netflix documentary A Plastic Ocean and it’s stuck with us:

“from knowing comes caring and from caring comes change.”

We absolutely love travelling but we’re also very aware of the fact that tourism is having a big - and often negative - impact on the planet. But it doesn’t have to be that way; we all have the potential to make our impact a positive one when we travel, both for the environment and for the local communities who live in the places that we visit. By sharing our experiences we hope to connect with people in a way that they can relate to and understand, perhaps sparking some emotion that makes them care about the their environment, their home - and once they care they have a greater capacity to make conscious choices that benefit themselves and the planet.
 

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How do you make a positive impact through travel?

As full-time travellers we try to make a positive impact through our lifestyle! By making conscious choices about the places that we visit, the organisations that we work with or give our money to, the food we eat, and the products we use - all these things enable us to make a positive impact.
 
We actively try to minimise our plastic consumption and waste as much as possible through investing in durable, long-lasting products like reusable water bottles and coffee cups, fabric bags, beeswax wraps, food containers and cutlery, a menstrual cup for Linda.

Both of us love sports too, so we try to choose activities that have a minimal impact on the environment (e.g. surfing, rock climbing) and choose local businesses when we want to do something like this in a different country. Eating less meat and choosing local shops or restaurants are also things we think about on a daily basis.

At an individual level, all these things are great - but the real positive impact happens when we do these things collectively! Which links back to your previous question about the importance of sharing our experiences.

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Through learning, knowing and caring - and sharing! - we all have the capacity to make our impact a positive one.