News

Salem State grads travel world in a pair of Chucks

By Amanda McGregor
STAFF WRITER
Published: December 23, 2008

SALEM — Shannon Cormier and Chelsea Osborn are bubbly, best friends who explore continents on a shoestring budget with backpacks and a map — no itinerary.

"We basically buy a plane ticket and we go," said Cormier of Salem.

They have one seemingly-peculiar item they never leave home without: their Chuck Taylor Converse All-Star shoes, or "Chucks," as they are commonly known.

"I've been wearing them forever," said Osborn, of Gloucester, "but it just so happens they are the best shoes to travel with."

Chucks are such an integral part of their voyages that the unmistakable canvas shoes inspired the name for their Web site, www.travelinchucks.com, which they fill with videos, blog entries and photos from the far corners of the earth. They hope to spur other would-be travelers to take the plunge. Their next destination is South America, leaving on Jan. 27.

"You live on this amazing earth," Osborn said. "There are so many awesome, crazy, beautiful things you should go out and see."

From the vast salt flats of Bolivia to the peaks of the Black Forest in Germany, the two women, both 23, have seen many amazing and remote places. They have eaten llama, guinea pig, goat brain, horse, alligator and crickets — to name a few of the more exotic cuisines.

To stretch their savings, they set daily spending limits and delight in a world of hostels, packed bunk rooms, endless bus rides, mobbed train compartments — and the communal bond that backpackers share.

"In Edinburgh (Scotland), I stayed in a hostel with 40 people in one room," Osborn recalled with excitement.

"You're there to meet people," said Cormier, who said they have made friends around the globe. "With bunk rooms: the bigger the dorm, the better."

It's not that either of them set out on this path, but they believe fate had it in store. Cormier and Osborn met as freshmen at Salem State College and forged a friendship during a Geography Department trip to Paris in 2004.

"It's kind of a romantic story," Osborn said.

"Paris was the place we got to know each other, and when we fell in love with traveling," Cormier said, finishing Osborn's sentence, which is something the pair often do for each other.

The duo took a leave of absence sophomore year and traveled to 13 countries in 41âÑ2 months.

"That was really the start of the backpacking," Cormier said. "So basically, every year since then, we left the country."

A year of study abroad in London for Chelsea, and Shannon's stay with a host family in Germany only whetted their thirst for travel.

"This is going to be our lifestyle for the next four to five years," Cormier said.

What's up with Travelin' Chucks?

The love of Chucks prompted Shannon and Chelsea to create a logo and put together a portfolio package that they presented to the Converse shoe company, which is now tapped into the adventures of the Travelin' Chucks. And Converse is providing the young women with free Chucks sneakers.

So what makes Chucks so great for traveling? Osborn and Cormier can provide a litany of reasons.

"They're light, they dry fast, they're stylish," Osborn said. "They fit in everywhere; you don't look American. You can hike in them or do any type of activity. They're supportive, they're comfortable."

"In Europe, you can dress them up for a club with a cute outfit," Cormier said. "They're very versatile."

Osborn has been wearing the same indestructible pair of black Chucks for years. Cormier has multiple Chucks, including a purple pair and leopard pattern pair.

"I treasure them," she said.

With the new Web site, built in September, they hope people from all walks of life will revel in the their dispatches and footage from Argentina, Brazil and other places.

The pair complain that many travel shows and food-travel shows cater to big spenders — or even moderate spenders.

"The Travel Channel is not geared to younger people," Osborn said. "That's not the price tag we see. We have a lot of budget tips."

To afford the prolonged trips, Cormier and Osborn work frantically while at home, piecing together long work weeks with baby-sitting and waiting tables.

"We've had to make sacrifices, but you do it," Cormier said. "It means shopping at Marshall's and thrift stores."

They figure that they can squeeze by on $40 a day during the upcoming four months in South America — to cover food, museums, taxis, hostels, and everything else.

"We just want to let people know, 'You can do it!'" Osborn said.

Cormier graduated from Salem State with a degree in social work; Osborn's degree is in writing, with a minor in geography. But for now, this is their passion.

"We're so motivated," Cormier said. "We want to go everywhere, to every continent. We want to backpack everything."

"It's a huge high when you're on a plane," Osborn said, "going down, and thinking 'I'm going to Peru and I don't even know where I'm going to sleep tonight.'"

To see photos, video and blogs of Shannon Cormier and Chelsea Osborn's adventures around the world, visit www.travelinchucks.com.