In 2003, Frenchman Ludovic Hubler commenced a five year journey hitchhiking around the world spending nothing on transport between towns, countries or continents over the entire journey. Hubler refused all rides involving payment. In that time, Hubler travelled through 59 different countries covering around 170,000 kilometres in 10 ships (working on the ship) and 1,300 different cars and trucks.

His daily budget (described in detail in French) was US$10, including around 180 presentations to schools, clubs and universities. Hubler's somewhat chaotic site celebrates an extraordinary modern travel journey complete with superb cartoons of his adventures and numerous photos.

Hubler claims to have spent 20,000 hours (or 833 full days or 2.25 years) waiting for his next trip with a maximum wait of 28 hours. One single car drove him for five and a half days across the Sahara while another took him 1,700 kilometres down the east coast of South America. In India, Hubler got to meet the Dalai Lama who he deeply admires.

Hubler is penning a blog detailing his journey in reverse.

Hubler must have some fantastic stories to tell and surely goes down as the greatest hitchhiking traveller and a truly hardcore adventurer.

Other Travel Websites with a Difference
Heinz Stucke (cycling around the world)
Matt Harding (dancing around the world)

Photo and cartoon courtesy of Ludovic Hubler.

Around the start of the year, a new website called Travel Blog Exchange was created as a central collaboration point for ideas, experiences, blog sharing, photos, videos and travel knowledge. With a wide variety of travel blogs spread around the internet, along with travel industry sites, agencies, travel forums, online version of travel guides and more, Travel Blog Exchange provides a virtual meeting place for this eclectic group.

Formed by Kim Mance of Go Galavanting and Debbie Dubrow of Deliciousbaby, it is seen as beneficial with over 400 members already registered and numerous interest groups as wide ranging as wine lovers, travelling with disabilities and travel writing having formed.

While I know that many of my readers are not travel bloggers, those who are should join this excellent initiative and participate in the group discussions.

In this festive season of giving, Beth Whitman at Wanderlust and Lipstick along with a group of fellow travel bloggers to raise money to assist reducing world poverty. Working with the charitable organisation Heifer International, they are encouraging people to spend $10 each on raffle tickets for an impressive list of donated prizes, including three nights in Hawaii, baseball tickets, numerous gift vouchers, luggage and books.

Having travelled in a number of countries suffering from famine, war, drought or hardship, the sight of poverty first-hand has a profound effect. The web, television and newspapers often cover stories of the shocking and sad conditions that many of our fellow man are caught up in around the world and highlight the extreme difficulty that many people find themselves, in situations that are out of their control. At times, it is difficult to know what to do about it.

Well here is a way that you can make a difference.

Travel bloggers around the world are helping spread the word through their blogs about Passports with a Purpose. Help make a difference and buy one or more raffle tickets and do your part in improving someone's life. Also email your friends to help promote this most impressive cause. Let's make this initiative a huge success for such a worthwhile cause.

A few months ago I wrote about Matt Harding and his website
Where the Hell is Matt. It is a kind of travel blog which took on a life of its own when Matt recorded brief jigs in front of many of the world's greatest travel wonders. Visa sponsored him to travel across Asia for two weeks recording his unique dance in the various countries to make up a new advertisment.

His newest video has attracted over 13 million hits and includes visits to locations as wide spread as Bhutan, Kuwait, Christmas Island, Iceland, Zanzibar, the DMZ in Korea, the iconic Timbuktu, Paris and my home town of Sydney with the Opera House in the background.

I suspect Matt can hardly believe what started out as a bit of fun has resulted in this dramatic change of life.