looking to start, need some help!

I want to discover the world! I am 21 years of age, and am not getting any younger.

I am going to save up money, maybe around 5 thousand euros, and start to travel. I don't know an awful lot about backpacking, so can someone please help!

I have MSN aswell if someone wants to chat there.

Do you mean "I want to fill a pack and hike into the backcountry where wild animals live" or do you mean "I want to ride trains and walk and take busses and see cities and countries and other civilizations with nothing but the pack on my back"? if the first is your preference you're in the right place. If the second, you're looking for something more like http://www.backpackeurope.com/

Lori:

I don't know -- he's got euros -- probably means he's heading this way.

I say this as a tkt agt at the MIA airport. For the past 5 months, I've checked in almost nothing but Europeans heading home after being in Florida/Caribbean for a month (remember, those poor people only get 6 weeks vacation a year). Many came over with NO luggage. Bought it here, filled it up, and didn't blink when I charged them an extra $100 for the overweight bags. "In dollars? No problem!")

Expect to see MANY very nice, very athletic, very wonderful Europeans if you are going to be hiking in the US this summer -- and face it, with the dollar where it is, that is where we'll be hiking at -- in addition to it being the most beautiful place on earth to hike if I might add.

I ask -- no, implore -- that we do all here to greet and treat our European hikers with nothing but kindness and camaraderie. That's what I ALWAYS received when I was hiking over there.

I agree - I just wasn't certain what kind of travel he was looking at. I live in the shadow of Yosemite and see all kinds of folks from all points of the globe carrying the most interesting things into the wilderness.... I wanted to understand what he's really asking, is all.

Cool. Welcome to the forum. Gear lists are pretty easy to find, for whatever kind of backpacking you'd like to try. I have a teacher friend who's traveled the world a LOT, and she describes it as "a way of experiencing hardship so you can understand yourself & learn about people from other cultures". She'll disappear overseas for a few months with nothing but what she can fit in a big backpack. She stays touch with everybody through email so we'll know where she is and where she's supposed to be next.

A few tips: Hostels and campgrounds are a lot cheaper than hotels. Hostelling International's places seem to be pretty clean in my experience, and most hostels in general are helpful about things like organizing group activities and pointing you to the nearest grociery store or bus station. If you have problems with your passport/etc. while outside your country, then the local consulate is the place to get that straightened out. Always have some extra toilet paper wherever you go. Try to find out what the locals do instead of going straight to all the tourist traps; my gf swears that getting a local coupon book is pretty good for this.

Good luck!

The problem is that in most of the world, the word "backpacking" means budget travel with a pack on one's back. Only in the US (and maybe Canada) does "backpacking" mean multi-day hiking on trails in the wilderness ("wilderness trekking" to most of the world). That's why we need to know which definition our young friend (welcome, freeexplorer!) is considering (maybe both?) so we can give appropriate advice. Just as one example, the lightweight backpacks most of us use for wilderness backpacking are not designed for the rough treatment given by airline baggage handlers, so recommendations for a pack would definitely be different for the two types of "backpacking."