Adventures from a year around the world.
In January 2019 my partner and I quit our jobs, sold our furniture and left Canada with just a bag on our backs. Our dream was to explore the beauty of our planet and experience first-hand what life is like for people in other countries. Our 12 month adventure took us around the world from the overstimulating bustle of Bangkok to idyllic beaches in Sri Lanka.
Confronting my fears and allowing uncertainty into my life made room for magic.
Every few days we woke up in a new bed, made new friends, and navigated the customs of a new place. Everyday assumptions about what constitutes a normal life were called into question. Is it okay to walk and sip your latte on the streets? Not in Japan. Should you expect to receive the bill as soon you’re done your meal? Not in Spain. What about jaywalking? Surely that’s globally frowned upon. Not in Vietnam. In fact, if you can’t weave through a stream of motorbikes, you’re probably not going to get anywhere.
Each new city was an opportunity to learn about a new way of life. It was a chance to try on a lifestyle for a bit and see how it fit. Sometimes it fit too perfectly and my heart ached when I had to say goodbye. For instance, we spent 2 incredible weeks living with a local couple, Jeanette and Francesco, in the Italian countryside. We helped them tend to their olive grove, drank copious amounts of local red wine, and spent our evenings playing cards by the fireplace. When it was time to go, I found myself wishing we could be adopted and never have to leave.
In other cases, I was all too happy to move on. These were typically mega-cities, like Jakarta or Delhi, where the density, pollution and noise were crushing. With increasing global urbanisation, these cities were cautionary tales of what life could be like in the near future for billions of people around the world. Challenges around mobility, shelter and safety were exacerbated in super dense cities and highlight the problems we need to solve to accommodate over 10 billion people on planet earth.
Beyond experiencing the beauty and culture of a place, backpacking forced me out of my comfort zone and transformed the way I interact with the world. Having visited over 75 cities and stayed in nearly 100 hostels, I’ve met people from all walks of life. These cellists, pilots, fashion designers, chemists, construction workers and poker players had different interests and outlooks on the world. Every conversation was a brush stroke, painting a richer picture of life than I could ever imagine on my own. And when I’d meet someone with opposing fundamental views, it was an exercise in empathy that added a new dimension to the views I held.
I embraced spontaneity and risk and found myself riding in a convoy of mopeds, rappelling off waterfalls and swimming with manta rays; things old Nabs would have never dreamed of!
The inherent nature of backpacking also meant that my only possessions were what I could carry on my back. As a result, minimalism and organization became my daily mantras (all hail the beloved packing cube!). Living with less was a stressful thought before I left, but once I was on the road I didn’t think twice about what I was missing. In fact, my capsule wardrobe and curated gear served me perfectly through the trip from icy midsummer festivals in northern Norway to surfing under the pounding sun in Bali. I learnt that layers are my friend and the benefit of meeting new people everyday was that no one saw what I wore the day before.
Although my wardrobe didn’t vary, my adventures certainly did. I fell in love with hiking and am so grateful to have been able to explore some breathtaking trails around the world (some literally breath-taking because of their height). I embraced spontaneity and risk and found myself riding in a convoy of mopeds, rappelling off waterfalls and swimming with manta rays; things old Nabs would have never dreamed of! Confronting my fears and allowing uncertainty into my life made room for magic.
This culminated in an intense month of Muay Thai (Thai kickboxing), putting my risk taking, openness to new experiences and perseverance to the test. Sweat was my signature scent for the month as I trained barefoot at a local gym for 4 hours a day, 6 days a week. Thousands of push ups, elbows, and roundhouse kicks later I can confidently say that this was one of the most difficult yet rewarding things I’ve ever done.
I’ve come back from this year in the best shape of my life and with a better understanding of how the world works. I’ve had the opportunity to learn and reflect on how I want to spend our most precious resource, our time, and developed an updated set of priorities to guide me. And even though I’m home, many of the best parts of travelling don’t have to stop here. There are new things to do and new people to meet anywhere I go, which is at the heart of the backpacking experience.
For those of you dreaming of your own adventures, I encourage you to take the leap of faith. The places I’ve been, the people I’ve met and the things I’ve done over the last 12 months were the most valuable form of education or investment in myself that I could ever make. The world is more beautiful and loving than you can imagine, so “may the wind under your wings bear you where the sun sails and the moon walks.”
You can follow our entire journey on instagram at @traveltangents.
This post was first published on Jan 27, 2020 on Medium.