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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?

#71

Post by meric »

remar wrote: post #70
amag wrote: post #62

I fully agree with aidos. It's much more rewarding if you go to a place and live like a local. In my case I've done a few voluntary work trips, the longest I did together with my wife and it lasted a year. I always try to learn the language in countries when I stay more than a couple of weeks. It quickly breaks the ice when you work side-by-side with the locals, trying to speak their language. You may not get to see…

Could you elaborate on what you mean when you say you feel disconnected from others when you get back? Do you mean in the sense that you feel their understanding of the world is limited compared to yours because you've seen/experienced more of it? Or in the sense that you had a different kind of fun/adventure that they'll never experience or know about?

If you imagine everyone's personality is formed by their experience and strangers are strangers because you've had completely different experiences in your life - then by having different experiences than your family they would begin to feel more like strangers than before. It's not necessarily 'more' or 'less', I've been to half a dozen countries in SE-Asia and my cousins have been to half a dozen countries in Europe and America and I feel very disconnected from them.

I went on a trip to Pakistan and on return, it's like I can strike a conversation with a Pakistani/Indian/Nepali anytime anywhere but with a Chinese or Caucasian (I'm Asian Australian)? It's harder to build rapport and feel connected in conversation. It's still possible, but I notice it takes a little more time. I think it'll even out over time, though, since I wasn't in Pakistan too long.

The author of the parent comment may have a different perspective.

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

#72

Post by heliodor »

muzakthings wrote: post #68
aidos wrote: post #31

I've done a few 3-4 month trips in the past. I was fortunate to be earning a good day rate as a freelancer before I left and I was young, with no responsibilities and no need for a life plan. It was easy to quickly save up a little money, and travel can be really cheap, especially when you don't care about sleeping in a nice bed. The first couple of times I travelled a lot. Too much. Moving on every day or two. Seein…

also curious how you found families willing to host!

I believe in cases like his, where you take language lessons, the language school provides the opportunity to stay with a host family.

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

#73

Post by walterbell »

reddytowns wrote: post #42

I quit my job to travel the world about 5 years ago. I lucked out in some investments and am now in an early retirement, mostly spend my day working on my own computer projects, surfing, and occasionally going on trips to different places. I came back after a year, but after spending 18 months in the states, wanted to go travelling again. I'm currently staying in Taiwan, and periodically travel to the neighboring cou…

Possibly relevant: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_culture_kid

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

#74

Post by Jack000 »

vosper wrote: post #58
Jack000 wrote: post #50

A lot of detailed posts here, I'll try to be brief - It gets tiring after a while, I kind of missed my car/TV/desktop. - Finding a new place to stay every month or week is a bit of a pain. - I think it helps to have something to do other than existing in a different place. Eg. My photo blog: (shameless plug) jack.ventures - I definitely don't think the nomad lifestyle is right for everyone, it can be very isolating.

I think this is one of the most useful responses to the question, and I suspect it's closer to the average experience. I have done a decent amount of traveling, and so have most of my friends, and my opinion (and theirs, I think, through our conversations) agree with this. None of us are extremely introverted, or extroverted - I'd say we're pretty normal, unremarkable people. On the nomad matter I would go further, a…

I had planned on making the nomad transition permanently, but now I think 3-6 months is the way to go, like an extended vacation. I thought I needed a complete lifestyle change, but I just needed some time away from everything.

some more points I thought of:

- I packed a full suitcase with everything I thought I'd need (mechanical keyboard, projector to replace my tv, a full week's wardrobe etc) and it turned out to be impractical. Next time I'll just bring a single packpack with my laptop, camera and two changes of clothes.

- discovery is a big problem that I haven't solved. The best experiences I've had were when I knew someone in the city and they could show me around.

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

#75

Post by [deleted] »

kosma wrote: post #41

Strange how all the stories here are positive & cheerful. I did the very thing two years ago, mostly due to peer pressure and reading too much HN, and it was a disaster. I didn't meet any interesting people, had no exciting adventures, tasted no great food, had no job opportunities, and pretty much only existed, lived in crappy hostels, drank bland coffee and burned all my cash reserves. I came back tired, broke, lon…

[deleted]

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

#76

Post by heliodor »

remar wrote: post #70
amag wrote: post #62

I fully agree with aidos. It's much more rewarding if you go to a place and live like a local. In my case I've done a few voluntary work trips, the longest I did together with my wife and it lasted a year. I always try to learn the language in countries when I stay more than a couple of weeks. It quickly breaks the ice when you work side-by-side with the locals, trying to speak their language. You may not get to see…

Could you elaborate on what you mean when you say you feel disconnected from others when you get back? Do you mean in the sense that you feel their understanding of the world is limited compared to yours because you've seen/experienced more of it? Or in the sense that you had a different kind of fun/adventure that they'll never experience or know about?

You go to a new place and start doing things differently. You discover better ways to do things and realize people back home don't understand what they're doing.

For example, in New York City, it seems the main activity for young people is to go out to bars and restaurants.

You pack your bags and head somewhere tropical. You pick up a water sport like surfing or kiteboarding. You start waking up at 6am with the sunrise and realize it's amazing. Back in NYC, your awake hours were more like 10am to 2am. You start cooking at home.

Now, you look back at your friends and view them as wasting their life in bars and restaurants. You start identifying with the older crowd who comes to the office at 6am or 8am instead of 11am. You also start wondering why your friends don't ever do anything outdoors.

When you move, you end up with new habits. Your brain has a need to feel correct, so it views any changes as improvements; therefore, the ways of before (and of your friends) are now considered wrong, otherwise your mind experiences dissonance. You'll find a way to justify things to stop the dissonance.

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

#77

Post by smm2000 »

jbutewicz wrote: post #23

I got laid off from a job I was at for four years. Always wanted to travel but with school and work never had a chance for any extensive travel. I took two trips on my time off. USA Road Trip. 14 days. 17 states (NJ, PA, MD, VA, TN, NC, MS, LA, TX, NM, CO, KS, MO, IL, IN, KY, WV). 6,000 miles. Total for two people: $2750. Per person: $1375. Per person per day: $98. http://jbutewicz.com/usa-road-trip-video-concluding-…

Nice trip but your daily driving distance is insane. 428 miles/day is ~7 hours driving per day. It's pretty much driving the whole day. I recently did 2500 miles/20 days trip and felt that I was driving too much.

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

#78

Post by butwhy »

kosma wrote: post #52
cylinder wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think travel as a universal solution for everyone and every problem is clearly overdone. Having said that, I'm assuming you are introverted. You probably would have had a better experience traveling in a pair with a highly extroverted friend who can break the ice with other people for you then bring you into the fold. Just a thought.

It's not the travel itself that matters, but the challenges and new perspectives that it brings. You won't get an epiphany on an all-inclusive trip; and I've seen people relocate across the globe and continue to live the same life they had back in their home countries. Trying to solve anything by running away is just that - escaping. It may work for a while, but at some point you'll have to stop and face your demons.…

You say it isn't a problem of introversion; I say it is. It 99% is. What you have described is absolutely the opposite of travel experiences I have. Once you solve the introversion part, you will absolutely have a great time, meet amazing people and do really enjoyable things.

Funnily enough, we seem to have taken very different roads. Travelling was the the thing that actually turned me from being semi introverted to not being introverted at all. Hostels are great in that they put me in touch with very extroverted people and showed me how easy it is to approach people, as most are friendly and welcoming. Once you get that down, you then hang out with people, go on pub crawls, go sight seeing or on road trips together etc.

"It's not a matter of introversion, as I know plenty of introverts who can strike up a conversation with a stranger. I can't, no matter how hard I try" - this sounds disillusion. Perhaps you should look up what being an introvert entails. What you have just described is a person that's less introverted than you. Being introverted occurs at different levels in everyone. You having a lot of trouble talking to people actually means that you're more introverted than him. If you think it is something else, then what is your diagnosis? Do you have a physical speech impairment that prevents you from talking?

"Trying to solve anything by running away is just that - escaping" - so what? You "escape" into a totally different lifestyle to make new relationships, enjoy new activities and cultures, and ultimately change your life. It can be a permanent "escape" for some.

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

#79

Post by nemo1618 »

cylinder wrote: post #45
kosma wrote: post #41

Strange how all the stories here are positive & cheerful. I did the very thing two years ago, mostly due to peer pressure and reading too much HN, and it was a disaster. I didn't meet any interesting people, had no exciting adventures, tasted no great food, had no job opportunities, and pretty much only existed, lived in crappy hostels, drank bland coffee and burned all my cash reserves. I came back tired, broke, lon…

I think travel as a universal solution for everyone and every problem is clearly overdone. Having said that, I'm assuming you are introverted. You probably would have had a better experience traveling in a pair with a highly extroverted friend who can break the ice with other people for you then bring you into the fold. Just a thought.

Absolutely agree. As an introvert, I knew myself well enough to bring along an extroverted friend when I chose to venture into the unknown. He was a total life-saver; the trip would have been a disaster otherwise.

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

#80

Post by sciguy77 »

cedricd wrote: post #13

I quit my job for a year and did this with my wife. We didn't work while traveling -- it would have been too hard / distracting. This might sound odd, but traveling takes as much time as a real job -- the amount you spend just figuring out where to go next and what to do is significant. If you want to work while travel then your best bet is to taking a break from travel and live somewhere for a little while. It's not…

This is great advice, thank you. I backpacked through Europe with my best friend and we tried to do too much in too little time. As you said, there's a lot of value in taking it slow and making decisions based on how you feel, rather than what you think you "should" do.
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