Why Travel?

Before my trip gets underway, I’d like to do a brief introduction to explain what motivated me to plan this adventure. Some of the reasons are obvious, they're what motivate the average traveller: a desire to explore different cultures, to marvel at natural and manmade wonders, to experience a history, language, and religion different than my own. In short, I wanna see the world baby! There's always been a restless, driving force inside of me, compelling me to explore something bigger than my own small existence. But why plan an around the world trip at this juncture in my life? To quote Don George in By the Seat of My Pants, Humorous Tales of Travel and Misadventure, travel “ultimately teaches us not just about the people and places of the world we didn’t know existed – but about the unknown, unexplored corners of ourselves.” I’m at a place where the decisions that are going to affect the next half of my life are looming: careers, lifestyle, relationships. Verdicts are going have to be made, paths need to be chosen, the future is coming! They say the 20’s are supposed to be about self discovery and, well, I’m over halfway through and I don’t have a clue. So part of what I’m hoping to gain from this trip is some perspective on myself, on life, and maybe find some inspiration. I want to remove myself from all the things and people that influence me and figure out who I am, and what I want, while I still have the freedom to leave life behind. Whether this will happen for me or I’ll just end up miserable, lonely, broke, and cursing the rickshaw I rode in on remains to be seen. But regardless, the plane tickets are booked, visas are in order, and I have 2 weeks to pack my bags. I’m going on a trip around the world: 15 countries, 17 individual flights, 4 continents, and 1 life savings. Please follow me on my blog, and come along for the ride!