This article first appeared in #edGY, The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on January 4 - 10, 2016.

Lim Kar Mern has one hell of a story to tell. Over three years, she has set foot in over 30 countries with nothing more than A$10,000 to survive on. That means, on average, she lived on only RM690 a month in the cities, most of which she had never been to before.

Her travel adventure began with a map of India pinned up near her office desk. She had been a lawyer for 3½ years and every day, that map gnawed away at her. On it, she would mark out names of cities unknown to many.

“I was like … what am I doing with my life?” Lim recounts. She then decided to quit her job and leave Malaysia. That was four years ago and she was 26.

The game plan was simple: Go to Australia under a working holiday visa programme for a year and make the money needed to sustain her over the next two years. 

She saved about A$10,000, travelled for three years and returned home to Kuala Lumpur with a little over A$1,500. Not bad.

Lim’s journey proves that one does not need a lot of money to travel around the world. You just need a plan and have to be willing to forgo creature comforts.

“When I was travelling, I did a lot of hitchhiking and camping and lived a frugal life. I missed the luxuries we have, of course. But I also realised that the simpler you lead your life, the less you feel so attached to all the things that create expectations,” she says.

A conversation with Lim about her travels could stretch for days. But we’ve compiled a list of useful tips for budget travellers plus a few of her most riveting stories on the road in her own words.

Maximising your money’s worth

•    Do a work and travel programme: In Melbourne ,I worked at a hot dog parlour at Queen Victoria Market, serving hot dogs and coffee. I was paid A$18 an hour.
•    Hitchhike: Transport is expensive. If I took buses and trains, I knew I would be out of Europe within six months.
•    Work for food and accommodation [www.wwoof.net]: Just go online and pay a fee to register — it’s like Airbnb but without the exchange of cash. I worked with a guy in New Zealand who had a farm that he wanted to develop into a retreat for recovery or healing.
•    Camping: Once, in Macedonia, I pitched my tent in an abandoned shoplot that has poop and vomit everywhere. But it was nice — I had a wonderful view of the stars because there was no roof.
•    Couchsurf: Couchsurfing connects members to a global community of travellers for free. The best course of action is to attend couchsurfing meetings in your city and make friends so that your potential hosts know you.
•    Get a travel debit card: When I left Australia, I applied for one of those travel debit cards that allow me to get money anywhere. I had a bank account in Australia and I would control myself by putting A$2,000 every other time into it.
•    Learn to say no: I had to learn to say no to things and to discard things I didn’t need. For example, you pick up books along the way and you think “This is amazing. I want to keep it forever in my heart.” But you just have to leave it.

A guide to hitchhiking sensibly

•    Never hitchhike at night. 
•    Trust your gut: When someone stops, buy some time so that your instincts can kick in to read that person. Ask questions about where he is headed.
•    Never tell the driver where you want to go: Always ask him where he is headed so that you have the upper hand in deciding if you want to take the ride.
•    Know where you want to go: Have a map or an idea of the names of the cities and towns that you will pass.
•    It also helps to have an innocent, non-threatening face. 

A guide to having fun — the cheap way

•    Pick up a book at a café or guest house.
•    Walk the streets — it’s definitely free.
•    Visit shopping malls and do some window-shopping.
•    Buy a simple meal, head to a park and people-watch.
•    Check out free exhibitions in museums or art galleries.
•    Hop on a bus or tram and take the route from the beginning to the end. It’s a cheap and easy way to get to know a city or town.
•    Talk to locals. Couchsurfing is a great way to get started. Couchsurfers often host events, so drop by and say “hi”.

India

There was this one thing that everybody consistently tells me about India — that I would either love it or hate it. I wanted to see it for myself.

India is very intense. When you are there, you’ll be thinking “What the hell is happening?”, and your life will be shaken and your soul will be shrivelling and expanding at the same time.

At 5am, you hear people honking, brushing, walking and dragging their feet. In the beginning, the noise is just out of this world. Everybody is always looking at you. People are always talking, there’s so much noise.

Iran

Iran was the highlight of my three-year trip. It was here that I realised that my entire journey was all about building connections with people.

It was 6pm during Ramadan and the sun was setting, and I couldn’t find a restaurant to have my dinner. So, I went to a sundry shop and asked a man if there’s any place to eat. He said, “Come, I’ll take you to look for a restaurant,” All this was communicated with hand gestures.

He drove very far out and suddenly pulled into a dark neighbourhood. I thought, “Oh my god, he’s going to drive me to an abandoned warehouse and rape me and I’m going to die. My parents back home are going to say ‘I told you so’.”

But, he brought me to his house. Inside, there was a brightly lit room, carpets on the floor and a family was staring at us. A woman carrying a big pot was sitting there. They broke into a big smile and welcomed me. It was the best dinner I ever had in Iran.

Nazir, the helpful guy, asked if I missed my family. He brought out his handphone and asked me to call my father to say ‘hi’.

Nepal

I almost died here. My Dutch friend and I hiked up the mountains. There was a blizzard so we were stuck outdoors overnight with just a Snickers bar between us. Our water was frozen. It was -20° Celsius. We had to keep each other awake the whole night because we would die if we had fallen asleep.

I was already mumbling and my friend kept hitting me. We wanted to start a fire but our Lonely Planet books were non-flammable. We had frostbite and our toenails were coming off.

At that moment, I had only two thoughts — that I was happy that I had said what I needed to say to my loved ones and that I really wanted a home-cooked meal with my family.

I remember it was midnight and it was the most beautiful sight I’d ever seen. Imagine, it is dead silent, and you are almost reaching the stars. The moonlight is pouring on the snow and it is glimmering like diamonds. I thought that I wouldn’t mind dying here.

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