Happy September!

I can't believe summer is almost over. I'm writing you from Bali! We have spent the past 3 weeks here hoping to soak in the summer island vibes, but instead, we spent the first 2 weeks of it sick. We've been getting sick a LOT since becoming digital nomads, and it's one of those ugly sides to traveling that isn't shared about often. And when we do get sick, it's not just a little. Between Zac and me, it puts us down for about 2 weeks. That's why it's so important to find balance and take care of yourself when traveling. With that said, we haven't had a chance to explore much of Bali, so I guess we'll have to plan another trip here in the future!

What's new for Mind Over Matter Travel?

Our itineraries from our 3-Week Balkans trip are up! If you don't already know, we went on a 3-week trip in the western Balkans and Greece back in June! In that time, we visited 5 countries: Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, and Greece. If you want to know our exact itinerary, you can read all about it in our 3-week Balkans itinerary. Or check out our 1-week Croatia road trip itinerary or 1-week Greece itinerary for a shorter trip!

Where we've been recently

This past month we've spent time in Singapore, Malaysia, and Bali! We've been and will continue sharing all about our travels across Southeast Asia on our social media and blog.

Are you interested in visiting any of these destinations? We are here to help and provide personal recommendations based on our experiences. We offer FREE travel planning and booking services. Complete our travel planning inquiry, and we will reach out for an initial consultation.

Favorite experience

Since we didn't have much time in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, we wanted to make the most of our time with a full-day tour. The Top 10 Kuala Lumpur Tour with Local Uncle was incredible and worth every penny. Our guide, Uncle Jagan, was so knowledgeable and made us feel like a local by the end of the day. We saw so much more than we would have been able to see on our own in a single day, including the famous Batu Caves. We highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting Kuala Lumpur!

Bucket list travel opportunity

A key way to have a transformative travel experience is by taking advantage of travel opportunities. I found this one for you:

Win a $10,000 Ultimate Vacation! Travel & Leisure is celebrating the end of summer with the opportunity to win $10,000 for the ultimate summer vacation! The deadline to enter is September 30, 2024. ​Enter before it closes!

Transformative travel tip

Keep yourself healthy! Some people don't always consider the importance of caring for themselves when they travel, but it can make or break your travel experience. As our experiences on the road have shown, it's very easy to get sick while traveling. The chances of contracting illness are relatively high between all the flights, crowded areas, and unfamiliar environments. And we can tell you from personal experience that it's not fun being sick in an unfamiliar environment when all you want to do is explore. Not to mention stomach illness is also common when traveling to unfamiliar environments and trying different cuisines. Luckily, we have steered clear of the typical "Bali Belly" during our time here, but there's always a chance.

We always aim to take care of ourselves while traveling by taking our vitamins, staying hydrated, using hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes, and getting plenty of rest. It's also essential to check advisories and requirements for immunizations before visiting a new destination. For example, we had to get the Typhoid vaccine before coming to Southeast Asia.

By using this tip, you can have an even more purposeful and transformative adventure!

Travel must-haves

With all this talk about staying healthy on the road, I wanted to share an essential item we always have with us when traveling - Liquid IV! An important part of staying healthy is staying hydrated, and the Liquid IV electrolyte drink is a perfect supplement to help you do so. Get some here!

What's next?

If you want to follow along with our travels, here are our tentative travel plans for the rest of the year:

• September: Indonesia, Timor-Leste, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan
• October: California
• November: England
• December: Italy

If you've been to any of these places and have particular suggestions, my inbox is always open! Or if you are looking for specific insight for me to share while I'm there, let me know.

If you want to follow our journey, connect with us on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.

As always, thanks for being here 🤗

✨ Elaina