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It’s Monday in Mallorca and your jeans need to be replaced. They’re the only pair you brought for this trip, and you’ve dropped so much weight in recent months (GOOD THING!) that that they’re barely hanging on your hips, fitting you poorly. And you could live with that, but now there’s a hole near the crotch for some reason, and you can’t get by with that anymore.
If you didn’t care about fashion, you’d find the nearest H&M or Primark and get a crappy cheap pair. But you’re sick of looking like a slob. Jeans are a staple and a good pair is an investment. Only a quality pair will do.
But out here in a rural town on a Mediterranean island, the only shops are little touristy boutiques where they’ll charge you 200 euros for a belt and you haven’t seen any jeans on display. You’d have to head to a city and hit up a real store.
El Corte Ingles? You remember that that’s the big department store in Spain. They probably have one in Palma. They must have one in Palma.
But that would require taking the bus, and then probably a taxi, and you’d need data on your phone to make sure you found your way to an El Corte Ingles and back to the station.
But the data on your phone is gone. The only data option at Vodafone was 1.5 GB, and you knew that wouldn’t last you a full week. The ladies at the store told you that you could top up, which you’ve done easily with Vodafone in other countries, but for some reason, losing your data package on this account means that you can’t access any internet, even the Vodafone site, unlike virtually every other SIM card.
Oh, and have you mentioned that your villa has lost its wifi?
You call the number on the package. It’s all in Spanish and you can’t get through to any real human. Forget adding more data. There’s no Vodafone shop in the town where you’re staying.
Now the expedition to Palma is looking like a long bus ride, a taxi, and dropping into several cafes to find wifi so you find a place to buy the jeans. Plus saving all the bus schedules in advance and taking screenshots of Google Maps.
Assuming that you can find a decent pair of jeans there.
All of these instances are starting to add up.
I wanted to write a post detailing the day-to-day of what it’s like to be a nomad when things are spinning out of control. Because though I’ve been happily rolling with the punches for the past five years, it’s starting to get to the point where my tolerance is fading.
Don’t get me wrong — I am deeply grateful for being able to live this nomadic lifestyle, and there is so much that is good about it. I ended up in Mallorca on a whim because Cailin booked herself a villa and I thought, “Well, that sounds fabulous!” and flew out to join her. Our friends Candice and Vicky did the same thing.
How often do you get to see your friends like that? Cailin and I have actually hung out on four continents by now (Europe, Africa, Australia, and North America). That’s far and away my favorite thing about this lifestyle — hopping on a plane to see your friends someplace awesome.
There are some other major benefits, too. There’s chasing summer — hanging out on a Caribbean island while your friends and family are at home are miserable in yet another record-breaking New England winter.
There’s being able to enjoy things at their source, whether it’s Vietnamese food or salsa music. Or avocados that are actually ripe when you buy them.
There’s enjoying a high standard of lifestyle for very cheap — pupusa dinners in El Salvador for around $3, or a balcony apartment in Albania with the view to end all views for $35 a night. All while continuing to earn a normal salary.
And there’s learning more, every single day, about different places and cultures and the world that we live in.
But after five years, I can now admit that I’m tired. Things that didn’t bother me as much are now making me want to scream and pull my hair out.
Here are more snapshots from the solitary nomadic life.
More Instances
There’s getting to Albania and dying for a mani-pedi. And while you can find nail salons on every corner in New York City, you can’t say the same for Albania. None are in sight in Saranda, nor in Berat, and you cave and do your own nails, badly, in your hotel room.
There’s going out in a country, like Germany, where people can still smoke in bars, and your one winter coat stinks to high heaven after an evening out. But finding a reliable dry cleaner, especially when you’re only in town for a few days and don’t speak German? A huge hassle. You’ll settle for stinking.
Or there’s having to figure out how to do laundry. During your summer of Airbnbing, nearly every rental that had a washer did not provide laundry detergent. Another thing to track down and purchase in a foreign country. Not to mention how most washers are utterly perplexing to operate when in another language.
None of these are great tragedies. Just annoying.
And you start fantasizing about the strangest things — breaking a high-heeled shoe and going to your shoe guy around the corner and getting it back the next day, shiny and new.
Or spilling red wine on a white cashmere sweater and pouring the white white and vinegar on it, as they’re both stocked in your pantry, before taking it to your local dry cleaner who knows you by name.
Being lost and calling up an Uber on your phone without tracking down wifi or asking a local to call you a taxi, without knowing whether it’s even a legitimate taxi.
Breaking a heel in Guatemala? You’d be totally clueless.
When this is what you fantasize about, not winning the lottery or being a backup singer for Kendrick Lamar, you know it’s time to make some changes in your life.
And A More Significant Part Of Things
Then there’s meeting a guy while hanging out in a group of your friends. He’s fun. He’s great to talk to. And yes, he’s handsome. But you don’t pay that much attention until he goes to the bathroom and your friend grabs you and says, “Kate, he likes you! It’s so obvious!”
“You think so?” you ask, dumbfounded.
“Watch him! He’s only talking to you!” she exclaims.
So you watch him. And your friend is right. He’s talking to the whole group, technically, but really, he’s only talking to you.
So as the night goes on, your friends peel off one by one to go to bed and you stay out in the hostel courtyard with him, still chatting, each of you with a big $1 beer in hand. After an hour or so, he takes your face in his hands and kisses you.
And so another Three-Day Boyfriend, for lack of a better term, is christened. You’ve had a lot of those (and you’ll have more of those in the coming months). You spend the days doing your own thing, mostly, but you two meet up whenever you can, dancing in the bars and strolling hand in hand. You drop into his room and jump on him for a quick make-out session before heading out with your friends for dinner. And you have no intention on it lasting any longer than until you leave this destination.
Most of these Three-Day Boyfriends are the type you wouldn’t dream of bringing home to your family. But after a few days, you’re struck by how good a guy this one is. Super hot. Super sweet. He has a very cool, creative, somewhat autonomous (if not entrepreneurial) career, and he’s successful at it. He treats your career with respect and admiration. He’s American, for once (good job, Kate!), and the kind of guy who flies to a random Central American country for a long weekend.
You have a ton in common — far more than the guys you’ve dated seriously. But more importantly, you get along amazingly with this guy in every way possible.
As he prepares to fly home to the west coast, you’re struck by uncharacteristic sadness. It’s not that you’re in love with him. Nothing like that. Just that, well, if you two lived in the same city, you would have been a great couple. The kickass fun couple everyone loves to hang out with.
As it goes, you hug each other goodbye and talk about staying in touch and how nice it would be to meet up again somewhere. Maybe in his city. Maybe somewhere random.
But stop. Wouldn’t it be worth pursuing something more with this guy? No. Out of the question. You’ve done the long-distance thing before, as well as the half-and-half visa regulation relationship. It fucking sucks and you have zero desire to do it again.
You are sick of meeting awesome guys full of potential and knowing that no, this will never lead to anything more. The relationship has a postmortem before it even begins.
Because, let’s face it, when you live a life of traveling the world and running your own business, the dating pool becomes exponentially smaller. Most guys don’t know how to relate to you whatsoever, and vice versa. A lot of the worldly guys look down on travel blogging as a career; a lot of the entrepreneurs don’t travel beyond Vegas and Florida.
This is one of the biggest costs of living a nomadic lifestyle. Having no roots, not even an apartment in a city that you stay in a few months of the year, means that there’s zero chance of cultivating relationships, both romantic and platonic. And while I’ve lived this way for quite awhile, I’m not quite up to doing it further.
As I spend a final winter in the tropics and settle down in a new apartment in the spring, I feel satisfied in my decision. When it’s time to make a big change, life will tell you, and I know I hear it more than ever now.
AMEN, lady. I haven’t traveled super long-term like you, but that’s because I realized quite early on that all of the things you just mentioned would drive me nuts if I dove into full-on digital nomadism. I LIKE having an apartment and a cat and a semblance of a routine when I’m at home. It also lets me make a more steady income, which is incredibly helpful for my mental health.
I love traveling, but after a few weeks all the little things you mentioned start piling up. No shame at all in wanting a little change from that!
(PS, let me know where you’re going to be this winter – maybe I’ll come hang out!)
I’m glad you agree! And let me know if you want to come down to Mexico or Central America….
Awesome post. Speaking as someone that has done the nomadic lifestyle for a while now and can relate on absolutely everything you wrote, just a few ideas (this is what I’m doing):
– I refuse to go anywhere I can’t stay at least a month. That gives me time to really get to know the location, people, language, and culture. I love the first time I explore somewhere new but cringe at the thought of those first few days when I’m totally lost and need to buy all the new things required. Airbnb monthly rentals are good savings often as well
– I’m going to start traveling more around the more familiar countries. A month in Nashville and Portland. A month in Northern UK. A month in Ireland. A month at a Canadian ski resort. These places are just as interesting and fun but are full of the familiar things as well.
– I travel for a few months and then go home for a few. It helps me avoid burning out on travel, keeps me in touch with local friends and family., and then gets me excited about the next destination.
Perhaps you’ve tried it or these things aren’t your style but they help me after similar issues. Best of luck on whatever you decide!
These all sound like great tips, Dan. I’ve never been much of a slow traveler, but maybe I wouldn’t be so burnt out if I traveled slowly every now and then.
I think it’s totally normal after some years of traveling to want to “settle” down a little in your own space, even if it means just renting an apartment somewhere to stay a few months of the year. Traveling makes you appreciate the luxuries of actually living somewhere, especially getting to know and see people on an ongoing basis rather than always saying goodbye and wondering “what if” 🙂
That’s true, Dalia. You always start to appreciate the opposite after you’ve done something for awhile!
Kate, a beautiful and honest post as always.
I had that same experience when first traveling, about meeting so many awesome guys and it always being a goodbye, see you never. But then I met Nathan, and I had that same sadness at our parting as you explained. We had to do long distance for over a year and it was not fun at all, but I think with a nomadic lifestyle, those kinds of things can be more complicated, but still so worth it! I definitely think you could find the balance of travel and “settling” you want, especially if you find a like-minded guy.
So, for what it’s worth, I think pursuing something more is possible. It’s just another type of adventure 🙂
Awww, I didn’t know he was a three-day boyfriend as well! 🙂 So sweet.
Kate, you just proved that life is a reality, cannot be an illusion! I absolutely love your post and the honesty in which you shared your experiences. I always follow your posts but this one is really worth patting your back for. I am happy I found a life partner to travel with, but that was years of long distance and waiting as well. And travel was what connected us back then and even now, when we are married. It’s always about finding the right balance, and being nomadic all the time can imbalance a few things. We all deserve breaks 🙂
Thank you so much, Lovya. I really appreciate that!
Good for you! I never led the nomadic lifestyle you did, but living in different countries over the years I was facing some of the issues you described. I kept buying clothes and giving them away after half a year because they wouldn’t fit in my suitcase. I’m ready to get an apartment too; I’ll still travel and I might occasionally live in other places, but I will not live in a country without having my own base in my home country.
Good luck with The Next Step, Dominique!
This is why I choose to have a home base. While I too love meeting up with friends in awesome cities (just took a spontaneous trip to Costa Rica for exactly that!) I love my dog and want to come home to him. I also love veging out in a bed I KNOW is clean and no one else’s naked boded has touched. I have absolutely been in a foreign country and had something as small as a clothing malfunction ruin my day because I didn’t know how to deal with it there. It’s exhausting! I know that I am more of a home base with lots of trips kind of person. Yes, it sucks paying rent, but I also really love having a place to call home.
Ugh, I don’t like to think about other people’s naked bodies in beds! I can’t wait to have my own bed with big, comfy pillows.
Are you leaving us with a cliffhanger about where you’re choosing to settle down?
It’s been a bumpy year for me, both emotionally and physically, leading me to reach the same conclusion, but now I’m faced with trying to figure out where I want to try and put down those roots!
New York. Most definitely. 🙂
The thing is, I feel like you’ve put down roots in Medellin. Do you miss the US?
Great article Kate!
Thanks, Erisa!
Sounds like you need to start family travel! Haha. Come on join the club! Get your hubby, pop out some chunky babies and see the world through fresh eyes!
CHUNKY BABIES!!! This is my favorite comment on this post. 🙂
I have tried several times to test out the nomadic life, and it’s just not for me. And yet I still think it sounds so amazing, and that if I could just figure out the piece(s) I’m doing wrong, that I’d enjoy it more. But no, I know that’s not true for me. It’s what you said, needing friendships that are near impossible when you move around so much being the biggest component. Also, I like having my comfortable bed and my kitchen things and not having to figure out how things work and where things are in a new city every few days or even every few months. It’s exhausting, and it means that life just takes more energy. Good luck finding a city to call home. Good thing is that you can still have the flexibility and freedom to take off and travel, but you’ll always have home to come back to.
Thank you, Ali! I look forward to whatever The Next Step is.
Wow Kate. Amazing post. A great read and an interesting look at life. I wish you all the best whether your roaming or decide to semi put down roots as I don’t see you ever giving it up forever. Looking forward to more and if that guy turns out to be the guy and love turns something more know that it’s pretty damn easy to travel with kids 😉
Thank you so much, Sarah, and LOL! I don’t expect anything more with that guy in particular, but I appreciate the comment nonetheless.
A-FRIGGIN’-MEN to all of this!!!!! Being “home-less” is hard. I would love to have a home base, at least for part of the year, but my problem is I’m still searching for that place. I haven’t found it yet. It’s not NZ or Australia. It can’t be the US or Canada because of immigration nazis. England is too miserable most of the year to count. Lee and I were just talking about what the HELL we are going to do next year. We’re both worn out, our kids are driving us CRAZY and we want to stick #1 in school for a bit to get him out of our hair. We want to concentrate on some business projects but there just isn’t time at the moment. It’s like we’re swimming around, barely keep our head above water, looking for a boat but none of them are quite right. Gah!
Oh, man. Have you thought of heading to Mexico or Thailand? They’re cliches for traveling families, but cliches are cliches for a reason.
Hi Kate, My comment is only in regards to the first part of your post.
In the early 80’s I traveled throughout Thailand, Nepal, India and then all over Europe, all without a cell phone or internet. My friends did the same. Later in life, working in travel, I visited cities all over the world for the next decade, all without a cell or internet. I have high hopes that future generations will decide to limit the constant reliance on tech a bit (much like my generation, raised on hours of TV, eventually did with television – raising our kids without it). My youngest child, now 20, has been traveling for 1 year abroad and doesn’t have data. I insisted he have a phone in case of emergency, but so far it has only been used to make me feel better being able to check in with him. He writes long letters home, and I’ll save them for his children to read one day. I’d hate for young travelers to think they really can’t go to new cities without data, or google. While those things make your life easier, there’s a whole generation walking around with their faces glued to their phones, creating a filter between them and the world around them. There are millions of photos online of famous art, yet you go to any museum in Europe and people, when allowed to take photos, have their phones between them and the experience. I recently went back to Thailand, then to Italy and France, all with no smart phone. It’s wholly possible, not terribly difficult with a little planning, and refreshing to be in touch with your moment to moment experiences without the filter or distraction of the online world.
Thanks for sharing, Delia. I totally agree with you — I think it’s good to become less reliant on technology and to detox from the internet. For me, it’s not an option because this is my work, but I think we can all benefit from taking time off from the internet every now and then.
Kate, thank you for this post. I thought I was reading out loud my own thoughts. I just got back to my Airbnb apartment in Berlin after a dinner out with a so called 3-day boyfriend, got lost on the public transport because they unexpectedly had some detour which obviously was only announced in German and ended up in some random empty station and no more data left. Long story short I had to walk a few blocks until I finally saw a cab who could barely understand my german pronunciation of the address (thank you Airbnb app for storing the info)
All first world problems that to your travel stories, but problems you wouldn’t have to face if you’ve been settle in a place for at least a few weeks/months.
Enjoy this next chapter, it’s nice to settle down for a bit every so often 🙂
Awwww, girl, I feel your pain. I know just how frustrating this can be! But hey, at least we have the three-day boyfriends. 🙂
Having a base to travel from is pretty awesome – the best of both worlds – although just coming back to mine for a couple of weeks after travelling for 3 1/2 months solo has been hard. It is the longest I have travelled for to then return to everything the same as I left it. I’m away again for another 3 1/2 months from tomorrow and I wonder how I feel when I get back here again
Really appreciated this post, Kate! I just embarked on the slow nomadic life with my boyfriend, starting off with three months in Singapore. Even in an English-seaking, super organized country like this, I have moments of frustration or confusion — and things definitely take longer here as I figure them all out. I’m hoping that slow travel will alleviate some of that pressure, having the time to figure things out, find favorite haunts, hopefully meet some locals.
If you end up with New York as your base you’re going to have a blast! Best of luck with finding your home base!
Singapore can be challenging! I remember when I got there after months in Southeast Asia and I felt like it was a utopia, but still, it was so different from home.
Oh man, I connected with this one. Towards the end of our last round the world trip (which granted was only 12 months not 5 years) I teared up looking at fall decorations on Pinterest. For some reason I wanted so badly to carve pumpkins and do all the fall/halloween stuff at a house where I felt some permanence. We moved back shortly there after. Every situation, no matter how fabulous has downsides. Love reading about your adventures!
Awww, fall decorations! It’s amazing what really moves you.
You know what I want now? Slippers. No reason for slippers on the road, but at home — perfect!
I totally hear ya and I get exactly what you mean!
That is why I’m living an expat life in that brilliant city of cities – Berlin – I’ve already done the travel-all over-the-place-GAP-year-thing and I don’t regret a minute of it. It needed to be done and I’m all the richer for it however, it was when I returned from India 10 years ago (yikes!), that I knew for sure that Berlin was really where I wanted to be and that was that. Berlin became my “real” home LOL!
Good! And you’re not the first person who I’ve heard say that. 🙂
Pretty honest post…this sums up my feelings when I decided to move back home in 2012.
Thank you for this post.
Thank YOU for reading!
Freakin Amen to that! I actually just wrote a big long post on this myself, as I’m struggling right now with the nomadic lifestyle as well. And I’ve only been at it 14 months! I’m realizing having a home base might be what I need, but then finding said home base and a job I actually enjoy to go along with that is a whole different ballgame. Good luck!
Thank you! And to you too! I hope you find yourself a little nest somewhere.
AMEN. When I moved to Switzerland from NYC speaking not a lick of German, I had to send a package to the States for work. Couldn’t send it from the post office, because they only accept Swiss Post bank cards. There was a FedEx that was nowhere near public transportation, so I trekked on foot for 1.5 hours to get there. It was a package sorting facility… they had a desk to send packages from, but I think I was their first customer since opening the place 15 years ago. After an hour, with four employees helping me, we sorted it out. And when I left it was just like… in New York, that would’ve taken 5 minutes, max. Print out form from computer, pay with credit card, drop off at pick-up box in office. As you said, these things aren’t horrible catastrophes, they’re just annoying — and I really, really do miss the days when everything was SO DAMN EASY.
Michelle
http://www.wherewevegone.com
Ugh, I grimaced just reading that! Sending mail in other countries can be so hard.
Once again your honesty is one of the reasons I love reading your posts. Travelling its all sunshine and rainbows and I think many people forget that.
These are some of the reasons I don’t think I could ever travel permanently long term. I love the idea of taking a 15 month trip like I am next month, or an even another year that I intend to take shortly after that but I know the life of a permanent nomad is not for me.
I’m far too close with my family and I doubt I could be permanently away from them. I love Melbourne too much; I’d miss brunch and footy season if I stopped living there. And the relationship thing is a big one- one of my biggest fears about my upcoming trip is falling in love and having to break my own heart because I’d never ever do a long term relationship.
Good! You’ve got a great handle on what works for you. Thanks for the comments! 🙂
As much as I would hate to see you cut back on traveling because I love your writing, five years of the nomad life would get to anyone. You deserve a little bit of stability in your life. Best of luck with your plans in the spring!
Thank you! And believe me, I’m going to keep up the writing like crazy!
I totally get you, Kate – which is why I decided to settle in London in 2013. I don’t know if I’ll stay here forever (those damn itchy feet) but right now I love seeing the same friends all the time, and finding favourite places, and actually becoming a local somewhere.
Cheers for a really honest, relatable post!
Thanks! I hope you’re able to get that visa and stay even longer.
I’ve been reading your blog for years and this was one of my favorite posts. Your writing felt really good and I totally understand your feelings. After a while certain aspects of any life style get a bit grating and it’s time for a change. I’ve been living in NYC for a few years and I’m in a phase where I hate how obtuse/pushy/crowded NYC can be, I think it will pass though. But anyway, loved this post.
Thank you! I’ve heard that everyone in New York goes through that phase at some point. Some leave, some stay. I wonder how it will affect me.
Settling down doesn’t necessarily mean “settling down” – I think we are living in a really exciting time where so many of us have flexibility to live differently than previous generations have dreamed of. Over the past 15 years I’ve mixed a nomadic lifestyle with a stable one and I think this will be a popular way forward. I’ve always believed that travel is about freedom and living a life you love, so it’s great that you’re listening to your heart and finding the path that works for you. There are no set rules except being true to yourself.
On a side note, I just married a ‘3 day boyfriend’ (last weekend!) and at 34 I’m pulling up my roots again, so it just shows you never know what will happen in life 😉
Congratulations, Jennifer! So happy for you! Glad you found love and mixed it with a very cool lifestyle.
The wonderful thing about ‘digital nomad’ lifestyle, is that you can continue doing what you do from anywhere in the world, including from just one location 🙂 It’s really more about being free to move, to travel, to do your own thing as much as you want, rather than about travel per say. Welcome to ‘settling down’ — something tells me you will be traveling for a month or few weeks here and there quite often! 🙂
Exactly! I often forget that. You can do whatever you want!
We only travel a 100 days a year and yet we still find ourselves longing for our home base and it’s simplicity from time to time. So we definitely understand your desire to settle down.
Best wishes to you whether you’re home or abroad!
Thanks so much! Glad you’ve found a way to incorporate both travel and settledness into your life.
Great points. I totally agree, most things aren’t tragedies, just annoying!
I still think the bad definitely outweighs the good, but I haven’t been away as long as you have so we’ll see!
Annoying is a word. 😉 For sure!
Kate,
Your words are so insightful, thank you for sharing with us your thoughts as you transition to a slightly more settled lifestyle.
For most of my twenties, I kept rushing towards a life like yours has been for the past five years: completely nomadic. But I never made it to that lifestyle. I got sick again and again and my medical bills ate my plane ticket money. What worked out during that time instead was meeting a wonderful man and getting married. I’ve been based in Pittsburgh for six years now and in the year since I’ve been married I’ve made more progress on my goal of being a full time travel blogger than ever. And I know it’s because I finally accepted that I’m going to be a travel blogger with a home base and there’s a huge amount of satisfaction in that.
I share all this to say it’s amazing how dreams evolve and how life works itself out in unexpected ways. I wish you so much happiness in your new apartment!
Erin
Thank you so much, Erin! I’m so glad things worked out so well for you. As they say…you don’t always get what you want…but you might have gotten something better. 🙂
This was really refreshing to read, thanks for your honesty, Kate! Five years is a LONG time, daaaamn! I can definitely see how the nomadic lifestyle would get old. The good thing is, you’re the kind of free-spirited and nomadic person that will always be traveling and jetting off for new adventures–regardless if you have a base somewhere. So life is always going to be interesting and fun. I look forward to reading more and seeing where you end up in the Spring!
You’re right, Mary. This is not an end of traveling, it’s just an end of nonstop travel! Thanks.
I think this is why you see the people who have been traveling for a long period of time, (which you seem to fit the bill now.) end up getting a “base of operations.” A place they can call home for half the year and travel the other half when they start getting sick of the monotony of a “regular,” life. While traveling all the time may be exciting at first everything loses it’s appeal if you do it long enough.
five years is a long time to keep doing this and you’re amazing for being able to keep going. Perhaps you need a holiday! 🙂
Ha. A holiday? What’s that?!
ALL of this AND more. 🙂
It’s a good summary of some of things you take for granted when you live day-to-day in your home land. Nothing is the same and people don’t wait for you to come back to move forward with their lives. A lot happens in just a few years.
AMEN!
Sounds like you’ve had a lot of time thinking about the what ifs, and honestly i think having a home base is almost necessary at certain points in your life. Not so much for materialistic possessions, but for having a place where you feel at home and can truly recharge your batteries.
you’ve described a life i don’t want.. that is why after trying for many years to be “normal”.. I just can’t.. and I live in Upper East Side – one of the best neighborhood’s in Manhattan. Maybe it’s cause I can’t stand beauty salons and do everything myself and also I’m the owner of apt since the age of 19, that I always rent out ) It’s nice that you are honest about what you want.
I’ve been with a guy for almost a decade and we live on different coasts and soon different continents, because I’m moving ) Some people are nomads at their core and a an apt with a gym memebership is just not their thing.
Btw I don’t agree that you can’t make meaningful and lasting relationships with people on the road.. after my stay in Cuba, I have family there and next time i went I brought clothes for kids, who’s parents can’t afford them. I have a home to come to a nd a loving family waiting for me in almost every country I go to…
But then again, I don’t spend time at hostels , with “travel bloggers” (I just read them). 98 % of the time I spend with locals.. always… that is a totally different way of nomadic life.
Enjoy New York and a more stable life!
Well, you know, I didn’t mean that it’s impossible to have meaningful relationships on the road. Not at all. But to keep a relationship that you continuously nurture in real life, not just online, you need to have some kind of roots.
Woah, I just wanted to say that there’s nothing wrong with H&M. They definitely care about fashion – they’ve even created a collection with Balmain recently.
True, their designer collections can be very good. When it comes to most of their stuff, though, I find that it looks old very quickly.
Great post Katie. Hope you enjoy some time where you are and appreciate what you have done and decide what you really want to see and do again. We have never traveled like you, but there have been places that we enjoyed and I’d liked to see again, and other places it’s like “seen that, done that”. Enjoyed your honest post. Enjoy the holidays planted in one place. 🙂
Great post, Kate! I love how introspective and honest you are.
Frankly I was never drawn to the nomadic lifestyle despite my love for travel; I love having a home (and everything that entails) to come back to every other week. In fact, travel has made me appreciate Montreal even more and even though I’m always excited to gallivant to a new place I’m never disappointed to come home.
And as far as relationships go, being on the same page is far more important than being on the same continent. Find someone who not only appreciates but mirrors your independence! That’s what I did, and we’re nearing a decade together, so I’d say it worked out quite well 😉
I love when bloggers write about how its not always sunshine and rainbows to be on the road all the time. I get major travel envy that I cannot be abroad as often as I would like, but posts like this put things into perspective. My longest stretch without a permanent home was eight months and it really showed me that being a nomad is a lot more exhausting than it looks online. I think it’s great you are able to feel change coming and are willing to embrace it with open arms. Thanks for always keeping it real!
I was really touched by the part you wrote about relationships because I actually feel the exact same way as an expat in China. When I travel for a month or two at a time, I don’t mind being single, but when I’m LIVING in a place, it can get very lonely. For me, I have yet to hit it off with any Chinese guys (and I don’t plan to stay here forever, which is a huge issue with most of them) and all the foreigners are constantly in a state of transience. Rather than the 3-day boyfriend, I’ve got the 3-month boyfriend, which I think is almost worse, since you actually have time to get attached.
I honestly feel like travel bloggers almost always need to end up together to actually make things work. While it’s a small pool at least it’s full of great-looking, adventurous guys who can take a half-decent photo of you and won’t roll their eyes at your obsessive need to document everything 😉 hahaha
Ha. You know how they say the odds are good, but the goods are odd? Like at engineering schools and whatnot?
In travel blogging, for straight women, the odds are NOT good, and the goods are VERY odd. 😉 I say that without intending offense! Just keep in mind that travel blogging is overwhelmingly dominated by women from a numbers standpoint and there are VERY few straight/single/non-creepy/not-trying-to-fuck-everything-that-moves male travel bloggers.