Rereading Le Guin’s Earthsea saga.
Personally, I think she might be on par with Tolkien and actually surpasses him in a few ways. The 4th book (about a tired mom just trying to get by and care for people in a fantasy world) is the best one, but you need to work your way there.
I’ve been using the same net and tarp for like 15 years and on more trips than I can count.
No problems yet, just a few repairs that cost next to nothing.
That most camping gear is horrendously expensive and over engineered.
Get old and used gear, repair things, and make your own if you can.
A good bug net and a tarp are going to be just as effective as a modern tent, and breathe better.
For a backpack, those old aluminum a-frame packs are so easy to repair, and you can clip/tie things to the frame.
Imagine how funny it would be for the Fed to give Britt better booking than Mariah.
There are a lot of great answers here, but I’d like to add one that I think is often forgotten in these conversations:
Purposeful incompetence around supposedly non-masculine skills.
It drives me up the wall every time I hear some dude talk about how they don’t know how to do basic tasks of living because the women in their lives take care of it for them.
Guys who act like laundry, cooking, dishes, changing a diaper, gardening, grocery shopping, etc. require arcane knowledge they just don’t possess.
Everything’s coming up Mortos lately.
Love to see it.
Kenya. I have friends there, which would help.
I’d definitely be the obvious foreigner, given that I’m pale and ginger, but that’s worked in my favor when traveling before.
I’m also supposing here that there wouldn’t be quite so many other American expats to compete with.