Ask HN: Those who quit their jobs to travel the world, how did it go?

About 3 years ago I traveled for 13 months with my wife (then girlfriend). Mostly traveled in Asia then the transiberian to Europe, some Africa and the middle east then a road trip across the US. Lots of awesome advice here. One thing I'd add is to not be afraid to do something just because western travelers rarely do it. There seems to be a lot of "common wisdom" about what is a safe/reasonable thing that is just off. As for money, I programmed 10 hours/week (mostly on overnight bus trips and the like) and our costs were approx $50/day/person in less expensive countries then $100/day/person in more expensive countries.

I think the comparison to third culture kids is quite relevant.

My dad was in the military for my first 15 years, which meant we lived in a lot of random places. My parents wanted to expose me to other cultures, so they typically lived off-base and sent me to local schools. The whole experience made my childhood more stressful than most, but looking back I'm very thankful. I admit I'm missing out on some things. I don't have a home town. I don't remember the names of childhood friends, let alone keep in touch with them. I find it hard to care about local sports teams. But the benefits far outweigh the downsides. My view of culture is much less parochial than most. I've seen the same mental algorithms running on different data sets. It's almost like cultures are using one Mad Libs template, but substituting different words. And unlike a lot of people in my demographic, I've been on the receiving end of racism (both explicit and unconscious). I find this helps me empathize with victims of current discrimination.[1]

It's fascinating to hear from someone who first experienced other cultures later in life. The realizations seem similar, but more unpleasant. While reading the grandparent's post, a strange thought popped into my head: "It's as if an adult just discovered the truth about Santa Claus." Writing this, I can still see the resemblance. GP: Please don't take that as an insult. Most people never realize how provincial their worldview is.

1. It also helps me see the perpetrators as victims of their own culture. Obviously, this doesn't excuse their behavior, but it does help one understand it. Had I spent my whole childhood in Alabama, there's a decent chance I'd be an unpleasant bigot. Instead, I see such people and think, "There but for fortune go I."

I have the same question as heliodor does - what's the disconnection do you mean? Thanks.

I've only been in CM for ~1 week and have spent most of the time working (or late night partying with Europeans / expat Americans). I spent 2 weeks in Bangkok before....

I think there is "authentic" Thai here and in Bangkok; there is still a strong majority of Thai's / SE Asians in CM and BKK. Certainly some areas of the city more-so than others. And you can find the places where they frequent...

CM is a pretty cool and affordable place. The weather is much nicer than unbearably hot Bangkok, you can get a nice quality single AC room with a queen size bed for ~$20/night in the center of town. Authentic meals cost $2-$3 (the Western-style / tourist meals are more like $5-$10). It has pretty good wifi - much better than BKK. And they have a familiarity with dealing with Westerners; though, it is ironic that Thais are particularly bad at English. I hear the worst at English in SE Asia, despite it being the biggest ex-pat and tourist country. People are pretty friendly up here too.

As heliodor mentions below, language schools will sort you out.

In Brazil I walked in and made gestures that I wanted to learn Portuguese (they refused to speak English, even though some of them could, a little). The conversation went on like that and eventually one of the staff took me on a bus to where I would stay with a family. I ended up with a relatively wealthy family, others at the same school were in totally different environments.

One thing I hadn't accounted for was the paranoia of that situation.

My host family were really nice, but early on we had a discussion about how much people earned in the UK (with the aide of a translation dictionary). The next night I heard them arguing, I could tell it was about money, I was fairly sure it was about me. I recorded a little snippet of it and when I played it for a friend later when I got back to the UK he said they were talking about footballer's salaries :)

At the time it made me really self-conscious. It's tough when you're all alone and you don't have anyone to talk to in your native tongue. Leaves you entirely alone with your thoughts.