Who Needs an Education When You Can Travel the World?
Two thousand and ten, the year of our epiphany. My partner and I quit our jobs to backpack around the world. Travelling was on the top of our bucket lists, right above having kids. We were in our early 30’s and knew it was the perfect time to do one or the other. Thus, we made a pact to go abroad for one year. We sold everything, left our careers, and said good-bye to our loved ones. Nevertheless, we booked our first one way ticket to New Zealand with no set itinerary except our main inspiration was to “follow the sun.”
I have to say, I learned so much about life in the years that I traveled than all the years combined spent in a classroom. Not only did we follow our passion for travelling but, also in volunteering. For instance, in Australia, we worked on an organic farm and learned about growing fruits and vegetables. In, Guatemala, we volunteered to build a clean stove for villagers in need and in Dharamshala, India we attended a lecture on compassion from the Honorable Dalai Lama.
Travel opens your mind and heart
To this day, the knowledge and experience I gained has never left me. Honestly, I don’t think there is any better way than travelling to learn what matters most in life. Most traditional schooling does not teach you how to find your purpose in life or what happiness is. Exploring the world is what brings meaning to my life. It’s amazing what you can experience when you jump outside of your comfort zone and get immersed into the unknown.
Don’t get me wrong, education is important. But, it can only take you so far. If you want to delve deeper into your existence, find the meaning of life and see what else is “out there,” you have to take a risk. Because enhanced learning starts when you travel and it never really ends. Yes, travelling (just like life) is scary at times. But, you know what? You learn so much more than any text-book can teach you.
Travel is a catalyst for facing your fears
Most importantly, this was a journey of self-introspection and the human connection. I’m not going to lie, we did have many epic moments of awe and excitement, all intertwined into stories we plan to tell our grand-children. But, there were crushing moments of frustration and stress as well. For instance, we were stranded at the Abu Dhabi airport or when my husband caught a fever in the middle of the Kalahari desert. Sometimes, obstacles are really tough on the road when you only have the two of you to lean on. But you work it out, because you know you’re in this together. Not only was Alex my travel partner, but my rock, biggest cheer leader and eventually my husband as we got married on a beach ceremony in Phuket, Thailand. You could say, travel taught both of us to overcome life’s challenges and face our fears.
Travel brings like-minded people together
Monumentally, one of the best parts of travelling is the people. You never know who you’ll meet on each given day, what kind of conversations you’ll have with a stranger or the serendipitous moments that will change your life forever.
Surprisingly, we followed “the sun” for over two years. To be exact, we set foot in 6 continents and explored 56 countries together. For the most part, it was time to head home when our passports ran out of pages. To tell you the truth, it was a bitter-sweet home-coming. After leading a nomadic lifestyle for years and suddenly, having to plant our roots back in one place was terrifying. We felt as if nothing changed in our hometown. However, we changed. We returned with the answers to our heart’s pressing questions, albeit our main goals were to start a family, help and inspire others to travel, and be community volunteers. Truthfully, we wanted to share everything we learned on the road and that living out of a backpack is possible.
Travel is higher learning, awareness and education all in one
However, shortly after our return, our sweetest little globetrotter joined our family. “It’s too hard to travel, it’s not safe with an infant and kids can’t adapt.” We heard it all but never let it stop us from doing what we love. Furthermore, we started backpacking with our infant when he was 5 months old. Last May, we returned from a month-long trip in Ethiopia and Djibouti and can already see how much our three-year old son has learned through travelling. You don’t have to go to school to know how beautiful our world is. Most importantly, our hopes are to continue to immerse our son through world schooling so he too will learn the values of leadership, gratitude, kindness and compassion, not be afraid to speak to strangers and how to make our world a better place to live in. And, those are just a few more reasons why we continue to travel.
If you’ve ever thought about traveling (or even better, travelling with kids), we hope you will.
How has travel changed your life? Care to share what you’ve learned? Please share any experiences, tips, and insights with us. Thanks!
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