I am (not) a backpacker

I hate camping. There, I’ve said it. I just don’t get it. Why surround yourself with all sorts of creature comforts – a magnificent mattress, a fully-functioning fridge, a dandy dishwasher, a spacious stove, copious cutlery and crockery, and a queue-free toilet and shower – and then leave all that behind to “get back to basics”? It defeats all logic. Especially if you have children, who seem to move several rungs down the evolutionary ladder as soon as there is a tent over their heads. And let’s not forget the “neighbours”, whose domestic dramas and nocturnal antics invariably pierce the two thin sheets of canvas that separate you to bombard your mosquito-bitten ears.

The only thought that consoles me when I am forced to camp is: at least I’m not backpacking. To put it bluntly, backpacking is like camping in the middle of a city without a tent or a car. The only reason you see so many young people backpacking is that they’re trying to get as far away as possible from camping trips with their parents. After about a year, most of them realise they’ve made a huge mistake and rush home to collect maximum creature comforts in minimum time.

At least, that was what I thought until my friend Bert presented me with the book, I am a Backpacker, which forced me to reassess my strong opinions on the subject.

Bert is one of those people who will put his life on hold at the drop of a hat so that he can spend six weeks travelling in Vietnam and Laos. I should add that Bert is single, self-employed and in his early fifties, which partly refutes my theory about young people and backpacking. On the other hand, his work as a graphic designer clearly shows that he has the heart and eye of a 25-year-old. It is therefore hardly surprising that he was approached to design I am a Backpacker.

The format is simple. Travel to popular sites, interview backpackers and collect hundreds of photos of their favourite spots and activities as well as the contents of their backpacks. Compiled in Bert’s signature manic style, the book offers a comical and colourful kaleidoscope of images and opinions, with backpackers recounting tales of love found and credit cards lost, great experiences and worst nightmares.

To be honest, the book didn’t make me want to pack my rucksack and catch the next plane out, but it did prompt the nagging doubt that I may have missed out on a great adventure in my youth.  So, how about you? Are you an inspired backpacker? Or did you miss out as well?

Richard de Nooy

(‘I am a Backpacker’ is available a bookstores throughout Holland. Readers elsewhere can order it via Uitgeverij Bye Me)