We travel, some of us forever, to seek other places, other lives, other souls. – Anais Nin

Backpacking as an extended or long-term traveler becomes an art form in my opinion. You are constantly finding new innovative ways to reduce weight, save space, pack more efficiently, and essentially minimize your possessions, in my personal opinion. This will be my fifth visit–I think–to Cambodia and the only reason I'm heading back on this particular trip is to meet up with a fellow traveling friend I met in Panama back in 2012. Little would I know, that this person would become an extreme burden as they are NOT ready for budget travel. If you are curious as to why, you can read my blog titled 15 SIGNS YOU MAY NOT BE READY FOR LONG-TERM BUDGET TRAVEL. Trying to be respectful by speaking in an anonymous way, I was hoping to share much of my advice from living as a budget traveler for more than three-years, however, I've learned that some people just are not cut out for this lifestyle or at the very least they will learn the hard way and this is necessary! I didn't have anyone holding my hand as I began my journey after nearly a year of planning and saving arriving in Belize on a one-way ticket with absolutely no clue as to what my next big step was going to be. Through all those that have reached out to me for travel advice–which I am glad to share when I have time and can answer questions honestly–I've also realized that I am no longer going to play tour guide to newbie backpackers, especially after this situation, because this individual ignored nearly all of the advice I gave to her both before leaving the United States and while we were together in Cambodia for nearly a month. With that said, I'm going to keep this blog entry simple, since there is a video that demonstrates how you can achieve becoming an ultralight backpacker.