Interview – Syd Schulz (Nomadically Inclined)

Our interviewing series with our friends from the travel blogging world continues with Syd Schulz from Nomadically Inclined who has generously given her time to speak with us and help us learn a little more about her travel inspirations and her wonderfully acclaimed website.

Please feel free to comment, ask questions and connect with Syd using her various social media fronts listed below.

We would like to give a special THANK YOU to Syd for taking time to interview with us!

Name: Syd Schulz

Website: Nomadically Inclined

Social Media: 

• Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/nomadicallyinclinedblog
• Twitter – https://twitter.com/itsinmysuitcase
• Instagram – http://instagram.com/sydgschulz

What is your favorite aspect of traveling and if you are a travel blogger, why did you decide to create your website? 

I like that moment when you find yourself in a new place and you start noticing all those little things that you had forgotten to pay attention to at home. Like, why are the license plates here so long and narrow? Or, why is that guy walking around with an umbrella when it’s not raining? Or, what the hell is bidet and can I wash my feet in it? Sometimes you have to observe the weirdness of the world in another culture before you can see it in your own.

Initially, I created a blog because I was studying abroad in Argentina and also, let’s face it, I’m a compulsive over-sharer. But then I kept running into people I hadn’t spoken to in years and they’d be like “oh hey I read your blog.” So it occurred to me that maybe I could be good at this. And, here I am.

How many continents have you visited? 

Three

How many countries have you visited? 

1-10

What is your favorite destination in the world and why? 

Ohh gosh, I couldn’t possibly pretend to know the answer to this question.

If money/time was no object and you could visit anywhere in the world, where would you travel to and why? 

I would go to Iceland and pet Icelandic ponies. I would leave right now. I’ve been talking about doing this since I was 12. I had one of those books with pictures of different breeds of horses and Icelandic ponies were the fuzziest so I’ve been dreaming of Iceland ever since.

But no really, in all seriousness, I try to make money and time as little of an object as possible. Even if I had a lot of money, I don’t think I’d change my plans too much. I’m having too much fun as it is.

Which of the following gadgets do you take on your travels? 

Laptop, Phone, Camera. JVC adixxion action cam and my mountain bike (not sure that counts as a gadget…)

What is your preferred method of transport? 

Depends on the destination but I always like a good roadtrip

Complete the following, “Everywhere I go, I visit….” 

It would sound hopelessly cheesy to finish that sentence with “nature,” but I can’t see a way out of it. The first thing I do when I arrive in a new city is try to get out of it. I know, I know, sacrilege, but really, I am not a city person. I grew up in a town of 10,000 people and went to college in an even smaller one. Cities overwhelm me. Worse, they make my feet hurt. I look for small towns, mountains, open countryside and, more specifically, bike trails. Both my boyfriend Macky and I race mountain bikes seriously, so you will usually find us scouting out the local singletrack or hanging out in bike shops.

Here is your chance to sell yourself and your website! Tell us some more information about yourself, what your travel philosophies & future plans are and anything else that people may find interesting to read about… 

As for my travel philosophy, well, it’s not terribly well thought-out. I believe in slow travel, in being outside, in getting dirty and in taking the time to make real friends. I bristle at the term “local”–I think it tends to be used in a patronizing way towards the people we see as very different from us (and usually this has everything to do with social and racial factors…) No one makes a fuss about meeting the locals on their trip to California. That said, one of the great and beautiful paradoxes of traveling is meeting people who are different from you and then realizing they are not actually different at all.

I would need a book (or, perhaps a blog) to outline my future plans but I’ll try to get through the next six months. I graduate from college in Mid-December and then the boyfriend and I are heading to New Zealand. We’ll be there for a few months and then we go to Chile, where Macky will be racing the first Enduro World Series mountain bike race. After that, we’ll be in Peru racing Inca Avalanche, an absolutely ridiculous race that starts at 16,000 feet. We still have to work out some pesky details, like how we’re getting from New Zealand to South America, so if anyone has any advice on teleportation or stowing away on pirate ships, please feel free to get in touch.

Otherwise, if you like adventure and chaos, please check out my site Nomadically Inclined. I can promise ridiculous stories, gear reviews and occasional tips for nomadic living and outdoor thrills. And in the meantime, happy travels!

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