Palisi's Persistent Pursuit of Places (or Anthony's 1.5 Year Trip) FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Where did you go?

• Europe
  • Albania
    • Himare
    • Tirana (6x)
    • Saranda
    • Shkoder (2x)
    • Valbona → Theth
  • Andorra
    • El Tarter
  • Austria
    • Vienna
  • Belgium
    • Bruge
  • Bosnia & Herzegovina
    • Mostar
    • Sarajevo
  • Croatia
    • Zagreb
  • Czech Republic
    • Prague
  • Denmark
    • Copenhagen
  • England
    • London (5x)
  • France
    • Cannes
    • Cassis (2x)
    • Nice (2x)
    • Paris
    • Toulouse
  • Germany
    • Berlin (2x)
    • Cologne
    • Leipzig
    • Mannheim
    • Munich
    • Sonsbeck
  • Greece
    • Corfu
    • Athens
    • Ios
  • Hungary
    • Budapest
  • Ireland
    • Dublin
    • Drogheda
  • Italy
    • Bari
    • Baunei
    • Bologna
    • Cagliari (2x)
    • Catania
    • Cefalu
    • Cosenza
    • Dolomites
    • Florence (4x)
    • Genoa
    • Lake Como
    • Meta (2x)
    • Milan (6x)
    • Naples (2x)
    • Palermo
    • Rome (3x)
    • Sorrento
    • Taormina
    • Venice (3x)
  • Malta
    • St Julians
  • Montenegro
    • Kotor
    • Ulcinj (2x)
  • Netherlands
    • Amsterdam
    • Roemond
    • Rotterdam (2x)
  • North Macedonia
    • Ohrid
  • Northern Ireland
    • Belfast
  • Norway
    • Bergen (2x)
    • Odda (2x)
    • Oslo (2x)
    • Tromso
  • Portugal
    • Lagos
    • Lisbon (3x)
    • Madeira
    • Porto (2x)
  • Serbia
    • Belgrade
  • Slovakia
    • Bratislava
  • Spain
    • Barcelona (2x)
    • Madrid (2x)
    • Malaga
    • Mallorca
    • San Sebastian
    • Valenica
  • Switzerland
    • Lucerne
  • Turkey
    • Istanbul
• Africa
  • Morocco
    • Chefchaouen
• South America
  • Argentina
    • Buenos Aires
  • Brazil
    • Rio De Janiero
  • Chile
    • Santiago (2x)
    • Puerto Natales (2x)
    • Patagonia
  • Columbia
    • Medellin
  • Peru
    • Lima (2x)
    • Cusco (2x)
    • Aguas Calientes
• Central America
  • Guatemala
    • Antigua
    • San Pedro La Laguna
• North America
  • USA
    • New York
    • Los Angeles
• Asia
  • Turkey
    • Olympos
    • Sail Turkey

What were your favourite places? No particular order as it's impossible to rank them.

1. Kotor, Montenegro
   Surrounded by a great group of people that made it feel like a family for 5 weeks. Kayak Tours and Unreal Chicken Burgers by day, BBQs, Pub Crawls and Casino by night. Hostel Montenegro 4U - What a place
2. Rio de Janiero, Brazil
   Absolute time of our lives in Rio! Footvolley on the beach was loads of fun - Rocco will tell you if the water is cold (going to have to ask me about this one)
3. Portugal - All of it
   Unreal food, people, nightlife and beaches. Up there with Italy for my favourite place in Europe - Cannot wait to return
4. New York, USA
   Spent 10 nights in New York with Dad - Looking back at the photos now we had such a great time

What were your least favourite places?

1. Chefchaouen, Morocco
   Not a fan at all - Offered weed by every second person, seems like everyone just wants money from you. Also was 40 degrees everyday (that one's on me). This, and a collection of poor hygiene standards probably led to my stomach bug.
2. Catania, Italy
   Crackheads & rubbish absolutely everywhere - Food was quite good but it was not worth the trade-off.

What were the most surprising places?

1. San Pedro La Laguna, Guatemala
   Such a nice place - I did a Spanish school & homestay for 4 nights and had the best time. My family were so friendly and it's definitely the safest I've felt in Central/South America.
2. Sarajevo, Bosnia
   Beautiful city - Great food, people & cafe culture. A lot of interesting history - Could spend a long time here.
3. Ohrid, Macedonia
   Very underrated place, spent two weeks here in August as the lake was beautiful to swim in and it was so so cheap. People were extremely friendly too.

What was the most expensive place?

1. Lucerne, Switzerland
   I definitely expected it to be expensive but wow I could not afford anything here. Stuck to the supermarket bread rolls and packets of popcorn for 4 days then refuelled heavily in Napoli afterwards

What was the cheapest place?

1. Chefchaouen, Morocco
   Extremely cheap here - Eating meals for $3-5 AUD everyday was great. It seems like you pay for it afterwards with a stomach bug.

How on Earth did you get the time off work?

I happen to be the beneficiary of nepotism whereby I work for Isabella so I was able to work remotely

Any new languages

Negative - A spanish school for 3 days in Guatemala does not count Anthony

Were you solo the whole time?

Absolutely not - I spent a lot of time alone but also spent time with family from Aus, friends from Aus, the family in Italy and travelled with newly made friends along the way. I spent 57% of the time alone and 43% of the time with friends/family.

Did you get homesick?

I always missed the family however I don't think I missed the shire too much. Definitely around Christmas time last year I missed home.

What would you do differently next time?

1. Carry one bag only the whole time
   I had a 65L checked bag from July 24 - July 25 which I then traded in for a 42L carry on. Best decision I've ever made. No waiting after the plane, no wondering if my bag is lost, can get to the airport later.
2. Gone to South/Central America earlier
   There is so much to see/do on that side of the world and I definitely would've liked to spend more time around there - Especially Central America. In saying that, Europe was an absolutely amazing time.
3. Volunteered in more hostels/workaways
   Volunteering in Hostel 4U was oen of the best experiences and I would've loved to have spent more time volunteering places. Free accommodation to run kayak tours or cook BBQs by the lake is a golden opportunity.

Best moments? Very very hard to pick

1. Watching Napoli win the league in Piazza del Plebiscito
   One of the best days of my life - A spur of the moment decision in Paris the night before to spend A LOT of money to get to Napoli for only 18 hours before heading back to Paris to meet Mark & Jack. Worth every single cent. 500,000 people packed into this Piazza to watch history in the making - you just can't beat it.
2. Eating lunch at Lago di Sorapis
   The nicest lake I've ever seen - Photo included in June 2025
3. Boca Juniors game with Rocco, Buenos Aires
   The craziest atmosphere, no away fans allowed which is pure intimidation for the other team. It feels like winning isn't an option for the opposition.
4. NYE in Meta with the family
   Zio Gennaro taking me to the top of the giardino to watch every resident of Meta put on their own firework display will forever be an unforgettable experience.
5. Sail Turkey
   4 unreal days sailing the coast of Turkey with the crew - Say no more.

Did you meet some unreal people along the way?

Absolutely.

The dreaded question - What are you gonna do now?

As it stands, I'm working for Isabella. I'm thinking about if I want to study more, hang up the backpack and head straight into the big boy world orrr go back to the traveling life.

Was it difficult to surprise your family when they track you on 'find my' ?

Extremely.

Graphs

Some visualisations for the arty-types.

Awards

Notable trip winners.