The timing worked out perfectly for me. I got divorced, quit my job, got rid of my apartment, and just went. I sorted the rest out when I got back.
Still young enough to hang out with the surfer kids. Hitchhiking in sketchy places = priceless memories. I always tried to give them a bit of money for the ride but most of them refused.
That’s so funny. As a strategy for having someone actually stop sooner, I learned to keep two $1 bills in my thumbing hand so potential rides would see them. I always got rides pretty quickly once I learned that little trick. Gas was under .50cents/gallon, so $2 was enough for at least four or five gallons of gas. This was at a time when if you saw a VW camper coming towards you, you could probably just pick up your grip cuz your ride had likely arrived. No kidding.
I hitchhiked up and down the left coast dozens of times between L.A. and Vancouver, BC, and all points in between. At that time, the US/Canada border was the longest “open” border in the world. All you needed to cross was your local (wherever local was for you) identification.
Of course, it was always risky. A friend and I got picked up once by a guy, a big guy, who had apparently just been released from San Quentin on murder charges. He said he’d killed a guy, then after he was sentenced he killed another prisoner with a shovel. And, of course, he’s on fucking probation and wants to be sure we don’t have anything illegal on us. No, no way (except the two joints in my sock which remained hidden even though my friend Jim and I SO wanted to smoke those joints (of shitty Mexican shake!)).
I treasure those memories, and I fear times will never be like that again.
El Salvador was the most interesting hitchhiking-wise.
It’s a way of life down there. Mostly in the back of pickup trucks. The transit “system” is so poor that it’s really the only way to get around some places. Anyone with a pickup truck is a taxi.
“Amigo, gracias, un poquito deniro para usted?”
“No no gracias.”
“Por favor, por cevecas amigo.”
“Ok gracias.”
I remember getting into one, this time in Guatemala and this guy wanted money, but he was taking me somewhere specific not on his way, and I was going up a steep mountain blanketed with fog towards a natural volcanic sulphur hot springs. It was an awesome day. But I stank of sulphur afterwards 
I think not only in the poor countries in the Americas.
I had a friend who was a fairly early Peace Corps member in Mali. He didn’t have a car, and while working the Corps provided transportation. Not so in their off time, and everybody hitchhiked everywhere (unless they owned a bicycle, which Ted didn’t). Over the course of his (as I recall) two year hitch, he was picked up by Mali’s president twice!
You are more adventurous than I. I never hitched in a non-English speaking country. Sadly, I’m mono-lingual.
That’s awesome. Got my vote.
I did some language learning prep for my trip. And also did a week of classes in a tiny little mountain town when I was there. It was great. It was supposed to be a homestay with a family for practice but I didn’t do that. I wanted to go out at night and party so got my own room but still went to the half day classes.
Classes? On vacation? It was actually really nice. A little structure on 3 months of vagabonding was a good thing. Then I’d go off in the afternoon and watch a volcano erupt.
Plus I speak French which is pretty close to Spanish so worst case scenario if I got really confused I could just start speaking French and they would get the gist of it.
In Cuba, if you have a car, you have to pick up Cuban hitchhikers.
A couple was telling me about the hard time they had renting a car in Cuba. They got refused from some places. I think you can go to jail for a collision if I’m remembering correctly so it’s a pretty big risk.
If you get into an accident both drivers go to jail until they figure who’s in the wrong. I drive very carefully when I’m there.
damn, at first that seemed too much. but I thought about it a bit, and we probably are too far in the other direction in the US.
our justice system is so insanely slow to move on anything, people finally get sentenced for crimes like a year later. I blame the almighty billable hour, its created an incentive system for lawyers to delay delay delay at every step
Certainly an incentive to drive carefully, or at least one might think so.
There aren’t anywhere near as many cars there per capita, as we’re used to in our countries. Bicycles are the most common mode of travel, and have the right of way over cars.
I lived in Israel for six months when I was 24. I went all over the country and did some hitch hiking. There it can be dangerous if you get kidnapped so I only did it a few times. It was when I was still drinking and the dollar was worth four shekels and I was drinking hard every day. My cousin told me to stop and just smoke weed and I didn’t listen. I spent five figures basically on alcohol during that time. I’ve made the money back since then but what a mistake. This cool girl who cleans my house, she never got to leave the country and never even been to a frat party because she got knocked up young and her kids father died so she’s been working. Some people never get to live the fun part of life because of bad decisions when they’re young. I did lots of dumb stuff thankfully never slipped one past the goalie.
Looks Like Gandalf is doing quite well for himself… 
All the fecking time!!! Story of my life!
