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Go Backpacking > Travel Blogging > Dare Me – Recounting My Hits and Misses

Dare Me – Recounting My Hits and Misses

April 21, 2009 By Dave

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Pre-sailing party - Airlie Beach, Australia
Pre-sailing party - Airlie Beach, Australia

In 14 months of traveling the world, I received 17 dares.  Family, friends, former coworkers, and plenty of readers I've never met were happy to challenge me to step even further outside of my comfort zone than simply putting myself in the middle of a new country or culture.  As a result, I had a lot of interesting experiences, and garnered a few odd stories to tell. 

Did I finish with a winning percentage? 

YES!   I completed 13 of the 17 dares, or 76%. 

My Successes

  1. Picking my nose in front of Auckland, New Zealand's sky tower
  2. Tons of single, young women with their hands on my shoulder (most profitable)
  3. Getting a shot with 6+ women with their hands on me at once
  4. Eating a burger with the lot in Australia
  5. Getting monkeys to climb on me in Bali
  6. A photo op with Thai ladyboys
  7. Riding a scooter down a really crowded street (meant for China, completed in Bangkok)
  8. Eating spicy Vindaloo (meant for India, completed in Bangkok)
  9. Go to an underground Muay Thai fight in Thailand
  10. Eat dog (meant for Vietnam, completed in Cambodia)
  11. Take a Muay Thai boxing class in Thailand
  12. Cage dive with Great White Sharks in South Africa
  13. Eat Skop (sheep's head) in South Africa
Delicious dog meat - Battambang, Cambodia
Delicious dog meat - Battambang, Cambodia

My Failures

  1. Get a photo with a topless girl on the beach
  2. Eat scorpion or fried pigeon head (in China)
  3. Get a tattoo
  4. Ride the roof of a train (in India)

A BIG thanks to everyone who participated by sending me a dare.  I really appreciated the payments which helped to defer the associated costs, or buy me a dinner and a night's rest! 

You can access the full write-up for each dare, along with photos and/or video by going to the Dare Me page.  And since I have yet to return to the USA, I remain open to any dares which would apply here in Medellin or Colombia.

Monkeying around - Bali, Indonesia
Monkeying around - Bali, Indonesia

Planning a trip? Go Backpacking uses and recommends:

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  • Rail Europe for train passes
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Filed Under: Travel Blogging Tagged With: Dares

About Dave

Dave is the Founder and Editor in Chief of Go Backpacking and Feastio. He's been to 65 countries and lived in Colombia and Peru. Originally from New York, Dave now calls Austin, TX home. Find him on Instagram and Twitter.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Nate says

    April 21, 2009 at 2:58 pm

    Awesome post, Dave. You sure are an adventurous guy.

  2. Dave says

    April 21, 2009 at 9:09 pm

    Hey Nate, thanks for checking out my blog!

  3. Dave says

    April 21, 2009 at 4:09 pm

    Hey Nate, thanks for checking out my blog!

  4. Nate says

    April 21, 2009 at 7:58 pm

    Awesome post, Dave. You sure are an adventurous guy.

  5. jerine says

    April 21, 2009 at 8:04 pm

    What is that white thing on top of the veggies on your food photo? They look like snake’s skins to me.

  6. jerine says

    April 22, 2009 at 1:04 am

    What is that white thing on top of the veggies on your food photo? They look like snake’s skins to me.

  7. Dave says

    April 24, 2009 at 3:28 pm

    Those thin white strips were somthing called young banana. It didn’t really taste like banana, but I liked it. They were cold and crunchy so it was a nice additive to the dog meat. Eventually, I was just dipping the crunchy banana and mint in the sauce and eating it, leaving the dog completely aside!

  8. Dave says

    April 24, 2009 at 10:28 am

    Those thin white strips were somthing called young banana. It didn’t really taste like banana, but I liked it. They were cold and crunchy so it was a nice additive to the dog meat. Eventually, I was just dipping the crunchy banana and mint in the sauce and eating it, leaving the dog completely aside!

  9. Hotels Sydney says

    October 28, 2010 at 11:54 pm

    I can’t imagine myself eating a dog meat. But hey, kudos on these achievements. So adventurous!

  10. Adam says

    April 29, 2013 at 7:30 am

    Great Idea for some great stories to share over a cold beer, I hope to steal your idea for a future adventure, hope you don’t mind
    Great blog and keep living the dream

  11. Shelley says

    June 6, 2014 at 11:44 am

    Linked here from my travel blog success lesson. I might try this with a poll, though I may end up eating scorpion pizza :P

    • Dave says

      June 7, 2014 at 6:03 pm

      Hi Shelley, thanks for stopping by Go Backpacking too :)

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