We’ve quit our jobs and sold everything we own to pursue the dream of travelling the world indefinitely. With butterflies in my stomach, I write the first blog post about the wildest decision we have ever made.
Written by Mette / Photo by Martin
Translated from Danish
The dream of leaving without knowing when and if we will return home is by no means new to us. We’ve been talking about travelling the world for the past 15 years, and either we had to stop talking about it or do it. Now we do. Free fall.
We have quit our permanent jobs, sold all our possessions, and packed our most important things into twenty boxes which are being stored in a friend’s attic. Instead, we have bought two one-way tickets to Bali with departure 30th of August 2022.
Our current life is now packed in two 20-kilo duffel bags and two backpacks with computer and camera equipment. It will be the beginning of our new working life as travelling freelancers, also popularly known as digital nomads. The office is in our backpack, and we can live anywhere in the world. If the internet is available.
A life as travellers
For the first time, we are without a home and address in Denmark, without a fixed income, unemployment insurance fund, and our pension savings have been put on hold. We have removed the checkmarks from all the things on the list which, in the eyes of many, are the recipe for the good life.
Admittedly, the run-up has been a bit long, so I guess it’s fair to say that we’ve always been a bit afraid to take the big leap. And now that the decision has been made, the fear still exists. What is going to happen? Where will we be next year? Or in three years? Are we going to miss our comfortable life at home? And will we succeed in establishing a lifestyle where travel and work are balanced?
But we didn’t anticipate that the gut-wrenching feeling of uncertainty has become a driving force. The prospect of being able to create a new and different kind of everyday life has ignited something in us – and to such an extent that the thought of NOT pursuing the dream has become far more frightening, than pursuing it.
Our itinerary
We start in Bali, Indonesia, where we will roam for the first two months. Next, we plan to visit various countries in Asia, before heading toward Australia, New Zealand – and onwards to Latin America. Anyhow, we only consider this itinerary a draft that can be changed from day to day. More importantly, is our desire to stay longer in each place, and delete the feeling of being in a hurry. This also goes well in hand with our strategy of travelling as much as possible via land and water.
Slowness is a new main ingredient in our travel life. Ever since our first long journey in 2011, we have always had a very packed program to experience as much as possible. Leaving too little time for all the impressions to sink in.
This time we want to linger in the places where curiosity entices us to stay. We want to have time to explore small streets and colorful alleys not found in the travel guides. Time to turn right when everyone else is going left. Looking back on our best travel memories, they are always linked to unexpected encounters with the locals. And that sort of thing rarely happens when you are in a rush. Or checking off boxes on the bucket list.
The plan is not to have a plan. Rather just be open and follow the journey as it takes shape along the way. Ha-ha, admittedly – ​​it sounds slightly hippie-a-like, and anyone who knows us well knows that we are hardly easy-going flower children. We like plans.
Really.
But the world has become different. Pandemics, visa regulations, and the state of the world are constantly changing. It is impossible to plan further ahead. Instead, we will try to navigate by shoulder seasons and visit the places when they are less touristy, the prices are ditto lower, and the weather is still perfectly fine.
Escape plan or travel dreams
Running away from everything dear and safe might look like an escape. But the reality is far less dramatic. We love our life in Denmark (not so much the weather). We both have good jobs that we value for more than just the monthly paycheck.
But we both feel somewhat claustrophobic at the thought of staying in the same place in life for the next several years. The desire to travel has always stirred in us. So, we are very excited to explore the chance of creating a life with the freedom to combine both travel adventures and working life.
However, it is not completely without fear. We worry about many things. But what’s the worst that can happen? That we spent all our savings and have to go home again with the experiences of a lifetime? The Danish traveler Mikkel Beha said it quite aptly in the conversation book about his travels: “Life rarely goes as planned – so you might as well gamble a little”.
If you are curious to know more or have any questions, you are always welcome to write to us via the comment box below. We look forward sharing our journey with you.
