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

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

#411

Post by donohoe »

Cd00d wrote: post #368
donohoe wrote: post #225

I quit my job writing/debugging code for a SMS/WAP gateway at a generic telecoms company in Ireland back in 2001. My plan was to head towards Asia, and come back via Eastern Europe. I had a friend in NYC who said "well, naturally if you are doing that you should come to NYC first" which made zero sense, but I did it anyway. I arrived the week after 9/11. I have been here twenty years and I'd argue I'm still getting t…

Oh, but at that rate, how will you ever put down roots ? :)

Fair. One day. When it "feels" right.

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

#412

Post by supernova87a »

hayst4ck wrote: post #408
supernova87a wrote: post #399

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> - I experienced Hong Kong before china destroyed it. I've just got to inject some skepticism on this point. This is such a knee-jerk opinion that's popular to parrot, because it feels right to say. Maybe some small degree of it is true -- but you were able to come to this sweeping conclusion for all of Hong Kong, all of its people, based on your visit? I would question how in day to day life of people there (in wor…

> I've just got to inject some skepticism on this point. I'll answer you, but first I want you to give me a good faith explanation of what I mean when I say "hong kong was destroyed" and a guess of why I might say that or believe it, one that doesn't assume I'm a sheep or manipulated by media.

Sorry, I'm confused, you want me to tell you what you're thinking, based on 4 words you typed?

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

#413

Post by ggregoire »

Xcelerate wrote: post #273
ggregoire wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I thought like you in my early 20s. I remember thinking that travelling was a waste of money. Until my first travel. I visited New York and it completely blew my mind. That was almost 10 years ago and I can still remember the first time I got out of the subway, I was speechless. Sure it looked like all the movies I had seen but being actually there and feeling the life in that city was such a mind blowing experience.…

> I visited New York and it completely blew my mind. [...] I visited San Francisco and it was kinda meh. Haha, my experience was the exact opposite of yours. The first time I visited NYC, I thought it felt dystopian and was glad to leave. Easily the least favorite city I have visited. But my first time visiting the west coast was intoxicating. Growing up I lived in a few different states in the southeastern U.S. and…

Tokyo will probably feel as dystopian as New York. The main areas are extremely densely populated, there are lights, videos, musics and noises everywhere, always hundreds of things happening around you. It's impressive. It's personally what I enjoy but I get why it's not for everyone. But by definition, it's a unique experience and the tourists are completely outnumbered so it feels really local. I was actually surprised each time I saw a tourist in the street. There are also some big parks in Tokyo for when you want to take a break from all the craziness.

About destinations where life goes a bit slower, it's hard to not recommend the classic ones, especially if it's your first time in Japan. 2 days in Kyoto, 2 days in Osaka, 1 day trip in Nara, 1 day trip in Kamakura, 1 night in a onsen… This is the traditional Japan. Since those cities are smaller and all the attractions are listed on every traveling books/sites, you will definitely see a lot of tourists, but you can't go to Japan and not visit those places at least once!

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

#414

Post by bfirsh »

npsimons wrote: post #372
bfirsh wrote: post #285

When I quit my job and went travelling I used this framework: 1. Go via land. You see everything in between all the places you should see as a tourist. You immerse yourself in how a place actually feels. You meet people who aren’t just trying to extract money from you. I cycled, because I like cycling, but any form of transport works. 2. My algorithm was something like “Go east. Stay somewhere if it’s interesting, un…

I've never done a trip this long, but I have to say I like your idea of traveling by land, especially by bicycle. I'm reminded of "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" and his commentary of "being in the scene" instead of "watching it on the TV that is a car window" (paraphrasing here). Also going by land is cheaper, and lower impact for those who care about that. It does cut your options, requires more time, a…

That exact same sentiment from ZAMM inspired me too.

I’m glad I did it on a bicycle rather than a motorbike. There’s something more human-scale and less intimidating about it.

Well, in relatively populated places like Europe and India at least. I imagine I might feel differently if I cycled through the empty bits of the US or Kazakhstan.

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

#415

Post by meiraleal »

faceless33 wrote: post #394
meiraleal wrote: post #308

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I interacted with foreigners in a daily basis for the first time and got to learn how to speak english. Next, I found a remote job as a software engineer for an american company and have been travelling the world since then, for 5 years. I multiplied my earnings by 5x while having 10x more fun in life in a common day. That's a lot of personal gains.

Do you work at top company like faang?

No, I work for a Inc 500 company as a contractor

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

#416

Post by hayst4ck »

supernova87a wrote: post #412
hayst4ck wrote: post #408

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I've just got to inject some skepticism on this point. I'll answer you, but first I want you to give me a good faith explanation of what I mean when I say "hong kong was destroyed" and a guess of why I might say that or believe it, one that doesn't assume I'm a sheep or manipulated by media.

Sorry, I'm confused, you want me to tell you what you're thinking, based on 4 words you typed?

Sorry, I said good faith explanation, but I meant good faith guess.

I want you to explain what "Hong Kong destroyed" might mean when I say it because if we're not speaking the same language then we can't hope to see eye to eye. Clearly the city is still standing filled with people who aren't dead. Clearly it's not "destroyed" in that way.

I want you to guess why I would say it, which means brainstorming potential ideas. In good faith means taking those potential ideas and evaluating them yourself, if you don't find them remotely compelling, chances are I won't either. To say or think I believe something that isn't at the very least plausible to you is bad faith.

You accused me of potentially "parroting knee jerk opinions," which I interpret as meaning you cannot imagine why a functioning person capable of critical thinking might believe it or say it.

I will start by explaining why I think someone might find the statement "Hong Kong has been destroyed" spurious: Hong Kong is clearly still standing and the day to day life of a person in Hong Kong probably isn't significantly different than it was 2-4 years ago, businesses still function, people can still feed themselves, I doubt there is military in the streets, the average person can probably still say what they want. If the day to day life of a person isn't really that different, then it's kind of hard to argue that there has been a fundamental change, much less a "destruction."

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

#417

Post by mikem170 »

AdamN wrote: post #349
volkl48 wrote: post #269

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 3. Try to blend in and adopt local clothing, culture, foods, etc. Read books by local authors, watch local films. A bit obvious, maybe, but I've met many people who insisted on only eating Western food, reading Harry Potter, and watching Netflix while abroad. At that point, why even bother traveling? Depends on the purpose/intentions of the travel. While I feel similarly about much of my own travel as you do, it's…

Hmm, maybe it's an American thing but when I say 'travel' it really doesn't include a beach holiday. That would be called 'vacation' or 'a trip'. 'Travel', to me at least, implies some sort of cultural/sightseeing intent, even if it's just going to Paris for a visit to the Louvre and a few nice meals but talking to nobody.

I'm an American and I make the same distinction. Cultural travel is not on the radar of the typical vacationer, so most people don't make the distinction.

I'd add "tourists" as a third category, ranging from the one week family trip somewhere new to see the sights up to and including those racing city to city, hostel to hostel, site to site, collecting likes on instagram or whatever.

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

#418

Post by hayst4ck »

cpursley wrote: post #220
hayst4ck wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nope. Until you travel you don't even have the slightest clue what a privilege it is to speak English or be from America. Educated middle/upper class people everywhere except china (where there is almost no english at all) generally speak at the very least broken English, if not fluent english. That being said: One of the most interesting people I met was in china, and I'd say complex ideas were 75% communicated in e…

Not to nitpick, please don't use the term "broken English".

You are getting downvoted because it's completely unclear why the term "broken english" is offensive or not fit for use. You also did not propose an alternative.

I promise my use of it was entirely descriptive and not at all a judgement of the person speaking it. I have the utmost respect for anyone who can communicate an idea in another language at any level. I see my self as deficient for not being able to do so and think of myself as lesser and a poor citizen of the world for only speaking english.

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

#419

Post by eric4smith »

notional wrote: post #341
eric4smith wrote: post #246

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes I do have a kid. She will move here with me when she finishes high school (currently lives with her mom). This kind of life is not really compatible for younger children unless you have the funds to travel with them and can home school them as you go. I try to maintain at least 3 permanent or semi-permanent bases in 3 countries but that’s now down to 2 because of the pandemic. Yes, it’s good to have a few anchor…

Fantastic details and stories, thank you. fyi your website in your profile is not resolving.

Weird - must have been some temporary dns issues. Thanks.

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

#420

Post by cpursley »

hayst4ck wrote: post #418
cpursley wrote: post #220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not to nitpick, please don't use the term "broken English".

You are getting downvoted because it's completely unclear why the term "broken english" is offensive or not fit for use. You also did not propose an alternative. I promise my use of it was entirely descriptive and not at all a judgement of the person speaking it. I have the utmost respect for anyone who can communicate an idea in another language at any level. I see my self as deficient for not being able to do so an…

The term broken means something was once whole and is no longer. There's plenty of alternatives like non native speaker, beginner speaker, etc. I'm generally extremely non PC but this one is a pet peeve of mine.

As a native English speaker living in Russia, it really made me realize how difficult and nerve racking language learning and speaking is. I don't consider my Russian skills "broken", just very incomplete; a WIP.

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