I did something similar albeit not so cool and without the intent of dating but with a backpack. Hiked and Hitchhiked a few weeks through Europe with a girl. We met through a "looking for hitchhiking partner" forum. It was tremendous fun. We almost had no money and no iSomething but met a lot of nice people and got around very quickly. We also showered and changed clothes every few days. Smelling like shit complicates things. Hitchhiking is far easier if you look and smell "normal".

I remember driving a BMW from the 7 series into the sunset heading to the atlantic ocean in france. I have the credit card of the car owner next to me (for the toll stations) as he is sleeping and we are listening to his favorite french chansons. He was a banker not much older than me. This connected feeling and trust is priceless and I'm really flabbergasted every time it works. There is a longing in the people you meet on your way and a longing in yourself. Nothing beats someone who stops and offers you ride after you were stuck for 6 hours in a godless place surrounded by refuges who are trying to enter great Britain in the back of trucks that cross the border. And you suddenly realize how important that passport in your pocket is. And how lucky and privileged you are and what desperation does to people. I don't know. It changed my perspective on a lot of things.

If you are careful with your money and avoid tourist areas and research cheap spots before going to big cities (more expensive if you don't know where to live on the cheap) you can travel for 4 weeks for 500 to 1000€ in western europe using only a tent and a small backpack. In eastern europe it is probably cheaper. We also went to restaurants quite often - so we were quite wasteful.

But if I would do it next year again I'd also take a smartphone with me. There is the great hitchwiki.org and Couchsurfing and other internet services would help me save money and time. This was in 2007.

The writing really is fantastic, the story compelling and unique, and the take-away completely expected. How could you not find yourself more focused, more present, more enrapt by the lands and peoples surrounding you, with nothing to distract you but the clothes on your back!

Modern marketing machines aside, I think the human condition really lends itself to exploring the world like this. There must be some base instinct which tends to support a high level of empathy and respect for the courageous and peaceful strangers who throw themselves into a foreign culture like this. Obviously some tribes don't invite strangers so easily, but often the people you think would be most hostile are the ones that welcome you the warmest.

One thing I'm mildly curious about, when asked, did they say they were Canadian? ;-)

Kudos to Clara and Jeff, and thanks for sharing your story with us.

EDIT: For those harping on them carrying an iPhone/iPad, let me just say this; feel free to comment about how your own similar experience was further enhanced by also unplugging. In the meantime, I'm impressed with anyone who can take such a large bet on the chivalry of strangers in a foreign land and come out so much better for it. Personally I think carrying an iPhone is orthogonal, because it's a useful planning and safety tool which does little to dampen the experience a trip like this can bring.

As someone who loves the idea of wandering, but is always apprehensive of truly letting go, I enjoyed the concept of this article. The writing left something to be desired because the author missed the point that we the readers were looking for: did she fall in love with this stranger she met on okcupid? Did traveling without agenda with someone you barely know bring them closer together or further apart? Where is the HUMAN aspect to the story.

More related to the topic: Are there flex-passes still sold for flights, trains, etc (like eurail passes)? Or do security issues prevent basically open ended stand-by flying?

There's no story in this article. It is just a chronology of events designed to show off their hipster muscles.

There's got to be some phrase that describes this. "Travel porn" is the closest I can get to. Wandering through random locales with some meager idea of a lesson learned or an "experience" that might in some way transmogrify your grip on reality. In the end you just end up meeting a lot of strangers and seeing a lot of different places, which doesn't teach you anything other than how to wash your clothes in a sink or how to order a beer when you don't know the language.

I can almost hear the indie music and fixie bike bell ring.

It's a nice idea, but this strikes me as a bit of a puff piece for OkCupid. The fact the name of the site is used and not 'an online dating site' makes me question it.

I am somewhat biased though as I am a bitter + twisted undateable who's had bad experiences with online dating. If these people got something positive out of the experience, then awesome :)

I hitchhiked from Leh to Manali in northern India with a couple of guys I met while travelling. It was an incredibly liberating, unforgettable experience. The hitchhiking experience gave you a completely different experience of travel: on the way from Manali to Leh I sat clutching my head with altitude sickness as a minibus sped through the Himalayas at breakneck speed, making the journey in 12 hours or so. Whereas on the return trip, I think it took us around a week: we saw so much more of the places along the way, had views across incredible Himalayan plains from standing up in the back of pick up trucks or overlooking chasms from the cab of a lorry while the driver dragged on his cigarette. We stopped off more and talked to more people, explored more, and even did a spot of walking like the authors in the article -- sometimes this is your only option: no vehicles for 3 hours? Start walking!

We had backpacks though... not as hardcore ;)

During my Alaska->Argentina drive I managed a hostel in the Andes in Ecuador for 5 months.

I met all kinds of travelers, including a young lady that had been on the road for six months, with nothing.

Her passport was in her front pocket, and a credit card and ~$20 in the other. Nothing else.

Her clothes were falling off and covered in duct tape and she couldn't remember the last time she showered. It was repulsive.

The no change of clothes angle seems to be overshadowing what I think really made their experience - that of no itinerary. That said, I think people mostly over-pack for holidays/travel. I once had all my luggage stolen at the start of a holiday when camping in France. I ended up buying a jumper and a change of underwear and the rest of the holiday went swimingly :)

I thought this was a pretty cool story but was a bit bummed that the author didn't disclose the total cost of their trip. It would have been interesting to know how much they spent.

I once travelled through about 8 countries in Asia over two months. I was recently looking at the backpack I had used for that trip and remembered that it was literally half filled with lonely planet/history/language books that must have weighed about 20 lbs. That is hard to imagine these days.

1) It's a "date" and on every picture they're like 4 meters apart from each others. Hmmkey.

2) Looks too much like an okcupid & instagram linkbait than real stuff.

Minimalist travel apparently includes an iPhone and an iPad mini these days. So much for getting away from it all!

I don't remember original saying but it was something like - "You have as much freedom, as far you can go with weekender bag". This guys are absolutely free, love it.

There's something weird there that sounds like a very fun way of travel but those pictures seem very cold.

With that body length distance between each other in every picture they don't seem friends at all more like people who happen to be traveling together. What's up with that?

If there's an aspect I don't like about myself is that I hate traveling. The whole topic of travel bores me a lot. And really alienates myself from "interesting" conversations.

Just the thought of sleeping somewhere that isn't my place, then carry all things and walking, and having that fear of getting lost all the time is not something I find enjoyable, and lets not forget airports.

I enjoy going out (and I do it a lot) and meeting strangers and I pretty much live in a tourist trap. So it isn't that I'm antisocial.

It seems to me a backpack wouldn't decrease mobility by much, and would allow for more comforts such as a change of clothes.

I love how an iPhone was deemed more essential than a change of clothes.

I had a girl fly from London to Spain for our second date, the day after our first, whilst I was on holiday with my at-the-time-ex-girlfriend.

Crazy stuff can happen!

From the photos it almost appears that this date was brought to you by the films of Wes Anderson.

I really think they should have taken a towel with them.

"Loves to travel" has to be one of the most cliché banalities that people put on their profiles. I guess kudos to these guys for actually living out their interest.

You learn more about yourself going alone.

Is anyone else curious how much money this cost them, outside of the plane tickets?

I imagine food would get pretty expensive with this strategy. I think the travel expenses (bus, train, etc) would be less than expected because of the hitchhiking though.

Hipster hate aside, that was fun to read. You have to admit, you were amused...

The travel idea is fascinating to me. Lately I have been really interested in taking a month off work and hitting the Andean countries in South America. Start in Colombia, hit Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Chile, and Argentina. Brazil and Uruguay if there is time. Adding this to it would give me much more flexibility and encourage me to be spontaneous. I probably wouldn't go as far as they do with no stuff though. I'd bring clothes and my MacBook Air at least.

Reminded me of this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHO391xTO-s

If I was going to write an article after visiting 8 countries in Eastern Europe I hope I'd be able to find a better subject than myself.

I don't believe the story, for the simple reason that they should stink a lot after some time in the same clothes.

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Nails every OkCupid cliche.

Not HN material though.

Did they carry a pdf copy of the lonely planet(s) on their ipad mini? How about the hitchhiker's guide, by D. Adams? Just for the mise en abyme, I'm sure there was no time to read...

Well, don't they say that the litmus test for romantic relationships is travel? Man, they learned how to swim in the deep end.

This is how I do most of my holidays. I don't have the time to plan holidays in detail, so typically book flights to/from two different places, and go.

The other option is that I jump in the car and drive until I hit desert, jungle, snow, or whatever takes my fancy.

Bored Trustafarians doing wacky shit is not something worth writing an article about.

The not-so craziest viral marketing ever

Dude should've brought a condom.