SARAH GOING
SARAH GOING
Adventures in travel, money and life.

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Why I Mostly Travel to Europe
Why I Mostly Travel to Europe
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What NOT to Bring to a Hostel
What NOT to Bring to a Hostel

 

adventures in travel, money, and life

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welcome to sarah going

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Hey y’all, I’m Sarah.

I’m a Nashville-based blogger, finance nerd, and cappuccino addict writing about travel, money, life, and trying to keep it all balanced.

this is my adventure story.

And I’m glad you are here to be a part of it.

 

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So I may or may not be getting worse at transitioning back to the “real world” after trips... I got back from Chicago last Sunday and it took me until last night to actually go to the grocery store and buy food for the week 😂 (or I guess more accurately I bought food for the weekend at this point) 🍎 All trip laundry is also finally done ✅ Maybe the moral of this post is that I should just travel permanently, then I wouldn’t have to transition back home at all 😉 (but I probably would miss the fifties fixer upper after awhile if I did that) 🏠 This work-travel-life balance thing is a conundrum sometimes 🤷‍♀️ All I know at this point is that working from coffee shops like this one every day sounds like a dream ☕️ . . . . . #coffeebar #coffeeshoplove #chicagocoffee #coffeenerd #digitalnomads #coffeeshopoffice #workfromanywhere #remotework #coffeeshopvibes #blogandcoffee #lifeblog #travelbloggerlife #moneyblogger #cappuccinos #cappuccinoaddict #worklifebalance #worktotravel #travelandwork #visitchicago #chicagotravel #foodiechicago #posttrip #laundryday #nashvilletochicago #nashvilleblogger
Confession time: the idea of having to change my travel plans WHILE TRAVELING used to really scare me. I’m not really sure what I thought would happen if I had to change my trip route or accommodation on the spur of the moment, but I just avoided doing it so I didn’t have to find out 😂 To be fair, since I primarily balance travel with a full time job, having a set plan in place for accommodation and transportation makes some logical sense (it saves me having to worry about logistics during the limited time I have to travel if I can get the logistics out of the way before I go ✈️) But last fall, I planned a six week sabbatical trip to Europe after pretty abruptly quitting my job... so I didn’t have time to plan everything ahead of time 🤷‍♀️ I made the route up as I went and just made sure I had somewhere to sleep in the next city (#priorities). This actually worked out well, because I would have originally ended up in Venice right when it flooded last fall... and instead rearranged my route in such a way that I got to experience the Berlin Christmas markets on the back end of my trip 🎄I’m unlikely to give up planning entirely going forward... but I lived through my fear of changing plans while traveling. And it wasn’t that bad. In fact, it resulted in multiple cups of the best hot chocolate I’ve ever had in my life at the Christmas markets... so I think it all worked out for the best 🤗 . . . . . #tbt #traveltbt #travelthrowback #throwbacktravel #berlinchristmasmarket #christmasmarket #christmasineurope #spontaneoustravel #tripplanning #beflexible #bespontaneous #planningfail #germanchocolate #hotchocolate #traveltip #travelthoughts #travelbloggerlife #moneyblogger #nashvilleblogger
Loving the Chicago sunshine today ☀️☀️☀️ . . . . . #chicago #visitchicago #lovechicago #312 #chicagoelevated #trainstations #sunshineyday #sunnychicago #publictransportation #trainplatform #travelbloggers #travelphotographers #chicagocta #longweekends #girlstrip2019 #gettingaround #explorechicago #nashvilletochicago #nashvilletravelblogger #chicagotravel #workandtravel #trainpics #planesandtrains
P R O G R E S S | I tend go with my gut... and a year and a half ago I went with it on a big decision that probably didn’t make sense to people (and occasionally didn’t make sense to me either) 😂 I’m a traveler that generally spends every bit of discretionary income and free time I have on flights ✈️ So what was I doing buying a 1950’s fixer upper in Nashville? 🏠 Could I find the money and the time to fix it up... while working full time, traveling, and managing a blog? I won’t say the process has been fast, but after 18 months of living in the fixer upper while working on it, it’s beginning to come together ☺️ Sure, I still need things like trim and baseboards... but here is a shot of the dining room today! (If you want to see some fabulous before shots, check out my “Home” story highlight 😉) . . . . . #fiftiesfixerupper #fiftiesranch #fiftieshome #midcenturymodernhome #midcenturymodern #diyrenovation #diypainting #pinepaneling #wallpanels #secondhandfurniture #fleamarketfinds #fleamarketfind #crateandbarrel #westelm #sherwinwilliamspaint #sherwinwilliams #alabasterwhite #workinprogress #gettingthereslowly #slowlybutsurely #findingbalance #celebrateprogress #nashvilleblogger #nashvillelocal #nashvillefixerupper #oldhomes #newhomeowner #timeandmoney
I’ve been leaning a bit more toward practical travel content this month than my usual philosophical blog ramblings (but don’t worry, those will be back soon with the posts I’m currently drafting 👩‍💻😉) Another post on hostels is live on the blog today about what NOT to bring if you’re planning to stay in a hostel. #linkinbio ✈️ . . . . . #hostels #hosteltravel #hostellife #budgettravel #smarttravel #whattopack #packingtips #tripplanning #travelplanning #travelsmart #travelsafe #newblogpost #practicaltips #practical #packlight #packsmart #travelblogging #nashvilleblogger #londontravel #kewgardens #europetravels #onabudget #solotravelers #solofemaletraveler
“Parked here cause I’m with the band” | The other US music city I want to get back to in 2019 🎼 Last time I was in Austin I discovered @stumptowncoffee at a coffee shop and my life has not been the same since ☕️ Who is serving Stumptown in Nashville? (On second thought it’s probably better that I don’t know... ) #coffeeaddict 🤗 . . . . . #stumptowncoffee #austintexas #keepaustinweird #withtheband #traveltbt #travelthrowback #tbt #stumptown #austin #nashville #musiccity #flashbackfriday #coffeenerd #happyfriday #coffeeandmusic #coffeeshopvibes #musicianphotography #artsyshot #artphotography #streetphotography #austinviews #austinstreetart #artsyaustin #austintxlife #nashvilletoaustin #nashvilleblogger #travelbloggervibes #travelfriday
One of two US cities I’m itching to get back to visit again in 2019 ✈️(Also, was the street leaning or was I leaning when I took this pic? Honestly, it’s the French Quarter... so probably a bit of both) 😉🥂 . . . . . #neworleans #frenchquarter #gardendistrict #nolaarchitecture #nolalife #nolasummer #favoritecities #gardendistrictnola #hotandhumid #louisianatravel #frenchquarternola #foodandfun #visitnola #travelbloggervibes #ustravel #americantravel #travelusa #travelwishlist #letsgoback #bestcities #tripplanning #nashvilleblogger #nolaphotography #sarahgoing #nolaphoto #getoutthere #2019travel #travel2019
Lets talk about hostels | I get asked about hostels quite a bit, and since I’m from the southern U.S., the primary question I get asked is whether or not I’m too old to stay in a hostel at this point 😂 (stay tuned for what I’m sure will be an entertaining post answering that question 😉) BUT FIRST, I decided to tackle a *slightly* more practical question... what should you bring with you to stay in a hostel? Check the #linkinbio for 5 items that will improve your hostel experience anywhere in the world ✈️ . . . Now, what I really want to know is what questions YOU have about staying in hostels? What should I write about hostels next? Let me know in the comments! . . . . #hostelling #hosteltravel #hostellife #hostels #hostelworld #accomodation #budgettravel #wheretostay #travelonabudget #askquestions #askmequestions #travelinfo #traveltips #hostelliving #packinglist #whattopack #travelblogging #budgetblogger #nashvilleblogger #frugaltravel #smarttravel #nevertooold #visithamburg #visitgermany #goingplaces #explorers