My name is Barbara Weibel and I’m the owner/publisher of Hole in the Donut Cultural Travel. I’ve always envied people who love their jobs. Unlike those lucky souls, my various careers over the years (marketing, advertising, selling real estate, working in a retail store, owning a public relations firm, and selling snow cones in the largest water park in Puerto Rico, among others) were just means to an end – a way to earn money and have a comfortable lifestyle. I never loved what I did and I can’t really say I was ever really happy, but I plodded on because I was raised to be dependable, to always give 110%, and to work hard in order to be able to enjoy a comfortable retirement. All of which meant going to work every day, regardless of how much I despised my job.
I knew I wasn’t being true to myself. My inner voice constantly nagged, “Who am I, why am I here, and what is my purpose in life?” I had often heard that we should do what what we love, what makes us joyful. So I asked myself, “What makes me joyful?” But I had no answer. I knew there had to be something better out there; I just didn’t know what it was. Then I got sick. Really sick.
My health had been failing for some time but the doctors couldn’t determine what was wrong. More than once it was implied that my illness was all in my head. Finally, after five years of suffering, I was diagnosed with what had by then become chronic Lyme disease. During the initial treatment I was practically bedridden. Since I could barely drag myself from the bed to the couch (much less go to work) I had a lot of time to examine my life. I decided that things had to change. I was like a donut – a wonderful outer shell with an empty, hollow inside. I could no longer ignore the need to feel that I was living a purposeful life. I needed to fill the hole in my donut. Again I asked myself, “What brings me joy?” This time, I had some answers. Photography. Writing. And travel. I promised myself that when I recovered I would find a way of living that focused on those things that bring me joy.
As soon as I was healthy enough, I left my job, strapped on a backpack, and traveled solo around the world for six months, determined to visit the places I’d always wanted to see. I traveled without major plans, took thousands of photos along the way, and blogged about every place I visited. Upon returning to the States in September of 2007, I rented an apartment in Florida and continued to travel more than half of the time, while simultaneously pursuing freelance writing opportunities. By the end of 2009 I was traveling so much that it made no sense to maintain a home base, so I sold or gave away my remaining furniture and hit the road full time.
For the next eight years I traveled perpetually, staying long-term in many countries in order to immerse in the local culture. But with age came some new challenges. In my early sixties, I began to experience hip and knee problems that were likely effects from my long bout with Lyme disease. More and more, I found it difficult to carry a suitcase up and down the stairs of railway and Metro stations around the world. I began to worry that my traveling days were over.
Fortunately, I was able to correct my joint problems through stem cell therapy. But the mobility issues I had suffered convinced me that it was time to have a home base again. Thus, in December of 2017, I rented an apartment and became an expat in Chiang Mai, Thailand. I’m still traveling a significant amount of the time each year but now I can return to my home base whenever I need a rest, and I no longer need to carry everything with me all the time. It has made a world of difference, and I once again believe I will continue to travel well into my 70’s or even my 80’s.
Throughout my years of travel, I have continued to publish stories on Hole In The Donut Cultural Travel that feature the destinations I visit, the interesting people I meet, the crazy (and often humorous) things that happen to me along the way, and the never-ending spiritual lessons that come from travel. With its self-deprecating humor and focus on the inner journey as well as the outer, Hole In The Donut has attracted a loyal following of readers who travel with me vicariously. So grab a chair and settle in for some unique and interesting travel stories.
You may also enjoy:
How Much Does it Cost to Travel the World Full Time
Travel Packing Tips
Everything You Need to Know About Booking a Round-the-World Flight
Travel Safety Tips
Volunteering Opportunities Are Not Always What They Claim to Be
Hello Barbara,
I’m Russian and have always been living in Moscow. I only travelled little in my life – I’m 22 years old by now. I sure am much less experienced in life and just haven’t seen most of it yet.
When I eventually ran into your blog I got stunned for I while and could’t speak. This’s strong. Wish someday I could venture to do what you did and embark on a travel which would change my life entirely. That’s a deep and huge feeling. I actually don’t know why I’m writing this. I just think it’s amazing that you had that faith and courage. You were absolutely right to start this blog because if the heart of someone like me is moved by your life story – that’s worth it. Thank you. And maybe someday you drop by in Russia, who knows. I believe you’d love these people and culture here. Thanks.
Hello Vladimir! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment. When I read things like this, it makes me feel that I am doing some good in the world. I would absolutely love to visit Russia some day. In addition to Moscow and St. Petersburg, I’d love to take the Trans-Siberian Railroad across the country. However the problem is the cost and the HUGE problems with paperwork required by the Russian consulate. First, I need a letter of invitation, which I have to pay for. Then I would have to give them a list of all the countries I have visited in the last ten years, with dates I visited; a list of all my previous employment with the names of my supervisor; and a list of all my educational institutions. That’s pretty difficult for me, given the way I travel and the fact that I’m almost 60 years old. Finally, the cost to get the visa – somewhere between $300-400 – is just too high for me. I’m just a poor travel writer, struggling to make enough money to live. As much as I want to go, I’ll have to wait until the Russian government gets more reasonable about it’s requirements. However, I’m going to keep your contact information and if I ever get to come, I’ll definitely let you know so we can meet in person.
Hello again! I’ll be waiting for a chance to meet you in person too. That’d be great!
Wooohoooo! Man I love to hear this! I’m so glad you decided to get up and go. How crazy and beautiful life is. I definitely plan on following all of your adventures!
Hi Barbara,
Your story is so inspiring. I share the same passion for traveling, and I really admire the courage you had to step out of your comfort zone and go backpacking around the world. I’m 20 years old and I recently went on a backpacking trip with my friends last Christmas. We went around South America and it was amazing. I hope that even when I start my career (I want to be a lawyer, and that will most likely keep me in one place), I hope I will be able to travel and see more of the world. For now, I would like to share with you my absolute favorite travel video, I think you’ve probably been to many of the places. I hope you like it! :)http://www.shortform.com/Kathleen/wanderlust/watch/3944783_time-is-nothing-around-the-world-time
Sincerely,
Kathleen
Hi Kathleen: What a wonderful video – but there are more places on it that I haven’t yet seen than those I have. Definitely enough places to keep me occupied for the next ten years. So glad you got to backpack around South America before having to put your nose to the grindstone, but don’t wait another 35 years to do it again, like I did!
Dear Barbara,
My name is Cathleen Hackett Brewster, I am currently writing to you while sitting at your former beach house in Old Nags Head Woods, at the Outer Banks, N.C. My sister and her husband purchased this lovely little slice of heaven from you in 2008. I have truly enjoyed reading your blog and noted that you and I have similar interests and thoughts about life. I too am fifty-something and trying to decide what I want to “be” when I grow up. As a child when I was asked that question, replay was – “a world traveler.” After college I was a Travel Agent for 2 years until lots of life changes, i.e.; marriage, 3 children, dogs, 9 moves to different cities in 27 years. I have always worked part-time in sales, admin positions, and fitness training. Our 3 boys are now grown and off the family payroll. I now feel “free” to pursue a career for my second half of life. My husband is not much of a traveler, he is a workaholic and would never stand in the way of my passions. I believe I just need to step out of the box of what is “expected” and go for it. The key is to find the courage to take that first step. To paraphrase J. Krishnamurti “the whole universe lies within you….you only need to find the key to unlock it.” I hope to find that key sooner than later. Any additional thoughts would be greatly appreciated. I hope someday to meet you or maybe chat over the phone. You are an inspiration, a fabulous decorator, and writer.Best Regards, Cathleen Brewster
Cathleen: You cannot imagine how much this means to me. My previous home in Old Nags Head woods was a gift from the Universe and I hated to give it up, but it was time for me to move on. I have always been delighted that it was sold to people who treasured it as much as I did, and now you tell me (if I read correctly between the lines) that they kept the decor that I had. That makes me all warm and fuzzy inside, because I loved redecorating it. Will email you separately with a much longer message once I can carve out a little time.
I don’t think that you found what you need. I am willing to generate some discussion with you
Barbara, As I read the comments on your blog, it is clear that so many people would like to cut the cord and free themselves to travel. It takes tremendous courage and insight to follow the inner voice. I have been to many places in the world with a similar passion for “cultural experience.” No one can ever take that away, making it the gift of gold. I thank you for being an inspiration for so many people through your actions, rather than just talking about it. Should you ever find yourself in the beautiful mountains of N.C., you have a place to stay.
Thank you,
Caty Carlin
http://www.culturaltravelnews.com
Hi Caty: What an absolutely lovely comment to receive from you! Thank you so much. I lived in North Carolina for 10 years and have been all over the state. I particularly love the areas around Asheville, Boone and Brevard. Where are you?
Hi Barbara, thanks so much for inspiring and confirming to me that this is my next chapter. Travel is my passion. After losing my job this past year, I feel it was a definite omen and can’t wait to get started. I am doing major research and wanted to know if you have any real budgets for review and also how you feel about an older woman traveling solo. Thanks, Rosemary
Hi Rosemary: So glad I could help in some small way. I’m afraid I don’t have any budgets for review. My travel is pretty unplanned, so I never know where I’m going much in advance and most of the time I get a last minute one-way ticket to a continent or country and then just wander from there. Even if I do have a reservation at a hostel when I set out (usually not), I only have one for a day or two. That way, I’m free to go wherever I want whenever I want, if someone tells me about a lesser-known place that’s a must see, etc. It’s hard to budget for my kind of lifestyle. However, I will say that I try to keep my accommodations at a maximum of $15 per day, including breakfast. And I try to live on $10 per day for food. That’s very do-able.
As for an older woman traveling solo, well, I am one. I’ll be 60 in April and I’m going strong – perhaps a lot more so than when I was younger. Solo is the only way to go, as far as I’m concerned, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be alone all the time. For instance, in Chugchilan, Ecuador I teamed up with a younger French man and Aussie girl to hike to a small village in the mountains. We became fast friends and met up later in Banos, Ecuador, where we shared a few meals together. I’m still in touch with the French guy and may be visiting him in Paris this summer. You will meet wonderful people in the hostels, especially in the dorms, which I love. In Guayaquil, Ecuador, I met a woman in the dorm who is from Lima, Peru. Two months later I met her in Lima and treated her to a birthday dinner. In turn, she and her mother picked me up two days later and treated me to a full day at
their oceanfront private club. You will make friends for a day, and friends
for a lifetime. Go for it!
I second your idea that solo is the only way to go! I’m 41 now and did my first backpacking adventure a year ago. I severed my ties with a stagnant relationship and finally felt the freedom that I had always dreamed about. It was the backpacking trip that made me realize that the depression I was suffering was totally psychological. I’ve been traveling extensively, as often as I can get the time off and it has done wonders for my mental well-being. My next big trip will be to asia. I’m hoping one day to take a gap year (at least) to lose myself and then find myself again 🙂 You’re absolutely right about making friends for a day and friends for a lifetime while traveling! Next year I’m planning a trip to south america covering brazil, peru, argentina, galapagos, and easter island. Perhaps we can share stories over a meal if you’re still in Peru (you are still there right?). I too have become an avid photography enthusiast. I enjoy your pictures very much too. What camera and lenses do you use?
Hi C_restrepo: I am long gone from Peru! My stories run 6-8 weeks after my actual location, so at the moment I’m in Nepal.I’m really pleased that you like my blog, and especially my photos. I work really hard to produce content that readers will enjoy. I currently use a Canon T3i, but it’s not the body that counts, it’s the lenses. I never buy the kit lenses as they are usually poor quality. My walk around is an EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM ultra wide zoom. I also carry an EF 50mm f/1.4 USM fixed lens, which is my choice for shooting video at night, and a Tamron SP-70-300mm F/4-5.6 Di VC USD telephoto.
Your pics are great. Just upgraded to a Nikon D7000 and bought my first prime for the night capability. The only thing I ever worry about while traveling is getting mugged for my camera but I would never travel without it. I get much the same responses from people about my adventures and my
pictures. Enjoy Nepal. I’ll be nearby in Tibet very soon.
Hi Rosemary: So glad I could help in some small way. I’m afraid I don’t have any budgets for review. My travel is pretty unplanned, so I never know where I’m going much in advance and most of the time I get a last minute one-way ticket to a continent or country and then just wander from there. Even if I do have a reservation at a hostel when I set out (usually not), I only have one for a day or two. That way, I’m free to go wherever I want whenever I want, if someone tells me about a lesser-known place that’s a must see, etc. It’s hard to budget for my kind of lifestyle. However, I will say that I try to keep my accommodations at a maximum of $15 per day, including breakfast. And I try to live on $10 per day for food. That’s very do-able.
As for an older woman traveling solo, well, I am one. I’ll be 60 in April and I’m going strong – perhaps a lot more so than when I was younger. Solo is the only way to go, as far as I’m concerned, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be alone all the time. For instance, in Chugchilan, Ecuador I teamed up with a younger French man and Aussie girl to hike to a small village in the mountains. We became fast friends and met up later in Banos, Ecuador, where we shared a few meals together. I’m still in touch with the French guy and may be visiting him in Paris this summer. You will meet wonderful people in the hostels, especially in the dorms, which I love. In Guayaquil, Ecuador, I met a woman in the dorm who is from Lima, Peru. Two months later I met her in Lima and treated her to a birthday dinner. In turn, she and her mother picked me up two days later and treated me to a full day at
their oceanfront private club. You will make friends for a day, and friends
for a lifetime. Go for it!
Hi Barbara! Nice to meet your blog. You are doing exactly what I want to do, what I feel called to do, and for it to be more than just my hobby, but my full-time life. I have the motivation, strength, and just enough craziness in me to actually go through with it. I have already left my safe home, job, life in the US to live in Sweden (been here for 2 years)… only now I have a created a good, stable, safe life here. 🙂 Still, it’s an adventure. And still, the yearning to travel & write full-time is calling my name. My question is, how did you fund all of your travels in the beginning? How do you do it now? Where do you find people who want to buy your writing? These are all the practical things that I have no idea about.
Thanks for being an inspiration!
~Liz
Hi Liz: Originally, I funded my travels from savings, keeping faith that it wold all work out. It took about 2.5 years before I made the first nickel from my blog, but now it generates enough to keep me on the road, albeit in budget digs most of the time. My income is almost entirely from advertising on the blog.I sell the occasional photo for publication and write the occasional piece for other publications, but believe me, there is very little money in writing. Any writer will tell you that it is very difficult to earn a living from writing income alone; it is likely you will need to develop a secondary source of income.
There are more great people in the world than not so cool ones -that’s for sure. You’ve been very brave. I really admire that. I am following my dream too at the moment – lets hope it works out for me and my family the way it has for you. Thanks for the beautiful photos and site. http://www.adventuretravelshop.co.uk look us up when you get a minute. We’re looking for guest bloggers on our new site and you are warmly invited.
Barbara, with regard to travel and the risks inherent in doing so, I wholly agree with you that there is an exaggerated sense of the “dangers” involved in traveling abroad. We have traveled to a whole lot of countries – and most of the time we do it on our own as opposed to using a package tour. Only once did we encounter a problem – it was in broad daylight in Nairobi, Kenya when a young guy grabbed the necklace of an English lady who was walking with us. Now the interesting thing is that my wife saw this guy following us and call it female intuition or just being more aware and she warned us to be careful of our wallets and handbags.
Most of the time, we have found people to be overwhelmingly helpful and considerate – more so than the assistance that the average American would accord to tourists in the US. The one thing to keep in mind is that when we go abroad, the norms and customs are different than in the US and it is incumbent on us to go with the flow. It makes for a whole lot more pleasant experience as opposed to expecting to find a miniature version of the US in some foreign country.
Hi TJ: Thanks so much for your comment and suggestions – all excellent. I’ve always said that we should listen to our gut and do whatever it tells us when we are traveling, so I completely concur with your “female intuition”theory, though I think it applies to males just as much 🙂
I’ve been trying to live my life this way for a while, but so many people look down on me for it. Thank you so much for being an inspiration.
Mandy: There’s an expression I learned a long time ago that has served me very well: “What others think of me is none of my business.” It is my mantra. Now, when anyone tells me why I “can’t” do something, I say aloud – “cancel, cancel, cancel.” Then I go and do it.
I just found your blog. It always brings me joy to see stories like yours. It gives me hope that one day, perhaps I can make my own dreams come true. I’ve been unemployed for over 4 years now, and I know something has to change. I just wish I knew how.
Hi Mo: Sorry to hear you’ve been unemployed so long. Many people I know who have lost jobs have decided to just go out and start their own companies in order to do what they love, which I think is what everyone should be doing, rather than selling our souls. Maybe that would work for you?
I don’t have qualifications/knowledge for that, but thanks. Something will work out, somehow.
I’ll hold a good thought for you Mo
Appreciated, thanks!
Mo
Hi Barbara,
I have been reading various travel pieces by you. Great content / detail and pictures. My parents lived abroad 40 years ago in five Countries for a total of 18 years…the five kids really enjoyed those days! Thanks………….SteveV
Thanks so much, Steve, for your kind words about my writing. I love what I do, so it always makes me feel like I’m doing something worthwhile when someone says they like my stories and photos. And traveling around the world with FIVE kids? Your parents were super heroes!
Barbara, got to your blog when I was looking for a way to incorporate revolving images on the header of my blog – http://www.josephclan.com/tjblog/ and I just love what you have done with your blog and your travel experiences.
I am glad that you have been able to indulge in your passion for travel. We do a lot of the same thing though not as extensively as you do. Maccu Piccu is definitely on the cards for us. In fact, South America is the one continent that we would like to spend some time exploring.
We were fortunately in that circumstances allowed us to take early retirement and since we both enjoy traveling it became something of an obsession – and it has taken us to a lot of countries over the years.
The one advice I would give to those who are contemplating doing something similar is to do it while you still have your health. We are certainly glad that we did and although we are both in relatively good shape, there are some things we did in years gone by like trekking in Nepal, that we could not do today given the strain involved in such a trek.
We are presently in Kerala, India where we have a flat (condo) and we come here every year to spend the winter away from Northern VA – and use it as a base for traveling to nearby countries. If you have not been to Kerala it is something you should not miss. It is nothing like North India – which I think you have visited – and the scenery here is out of the world.
I have bookmarked your blog and look forward to reading more about your travels.
Hi TJ: Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. If more of us speak out, maybe we can finally get the word out that overseas travel is not a dangerous activity! I have been to southern India, but not to Kerala, and it is indeed on my list of places I want to visit. I will definitely get there some day. Thanks so much for bookmarking me and do get to Machu Picchu if you have the chance – it is spectacular.
Barbara;
I found La Fonda by asking the 7 Crowns hotel desk clerk for the best breakfast in La Paz. I had their first breakfast item on the menu and wolfed it gently, savoring each bite. I have some questions about the food and would like to re-create it at home. Can you help?
Gary Shuck
Hi Gary: I laughed out loud when I read your comment. I’m pretty much an expert in eating food, but I don’t know the first thing about how to cook all the delicious stuff I sample, so I’d be the wrong person to ask. So glad to hear you loved La Fonda, and that the food is still as great as it was when I was there a couple of y ears ago.
Congrats Barbara. At 44 I am in the exact situation you are describing. I am trying, though, by writing a novel for my three children (and along with them at times), to break through.
I will keep trying.
Guess how I found you page? I was googleing what the net said about safe traveling by car from central Mexico through Durango to Chihuahua.
By the way, I’m Mexican.
Hi Neuras: Thanks so much for leaving a comment and especially for letting me know how you found my blog. Stick with what you are doing and hold onto the vision – you’ll make it! And if you do that drive between Chihuahua and Durango, please be very careful and do NOT drive at night. I love Mexico, but in that part of the country you have to be very careful.
I feel lucky to have found your blog, Barbara! It’s almost everything I want to do with my own life, too! I travel as much as I can, but never had the opportunity to visit places the way you do. I admire your spirit and I just wanted to let you know that you are doing an excellent job! I hope you managed to give a new meaning to your life! Keep up the good work!
Thank you so much Angelos! I appreciate you taking the time to leave comments and for your lovely compliments about my blog.
Glad I found your blog love it
our inner voice says to farm one hundred acres
but when you have no help to get something then what?
Dear Ms. Barbara Weibel,Hello! It has been a pleasure to follow your blog posts and articles. I did notice your wonderful articles about travel safety which I found very inspiring and practical. I love how your articles encourage volunteering and include your personality. As a fellow blogger, I have found that there are a lot of challenges to meeting and understanding the locals and discovering new places. I was wondering if you may have something to add about interactions with strangers?I am currently assisting on a film that captures the spirit of traveling in the US, titled “American Bear: An Adventure in the Kindness of Strangers,” and thought your readers may be interested in learning about it? I saw that you did do product promotion, and we were wondering if you would be interested in writing a post or doing a guest post about the film for the blog website? We are really trying to get the ideas and enthusiasm that you touch upon out to our audiences, and we would really appreciate the help.“American Bear” centers on an exploration two independent documentary filmmakers take on as they travel across the country for 60 days relying on nothing but the kindness of strangers for shelter each night. The insight that they shed on subjects such as community, trust, patriotism, spirituality, and nature are very powerful.Please feel free to check out our trailer at: http://www.AmericanBearFilm.com and contact us at [email protected]. Also on our website, if you would like, please feel free to submit a Your Voice post, where a contribution of your travel experiences would be a great addition. Thank you for your time.Sincerely,Cullie
Dear Ms. Barbara Weibel Aunti (since you would not necessarily be my Didi, in Hindi you use Aunti to call an older female family friend by respect),
You are amazing! Thanks so much for sending in a Your Voice post about Nepal! I really enjoyed your story and your writing is wonderful as well 🙂 The post has gone live and can be viewed here: http://americanbearfilm.com/your_voice?page=1 for the date 01.10.2012. It was a real pleasure working together, and we appreciate the support so much! Have a wonderful evening.
To all those reading, this woman is a sincere person and talented writer!
Cullie
P.S. Thanks for helping out a stranger 😉 haha
Hi Barbara,I need to admit you truly have an inspirational and motivational gift and I am so grateful, that you had the courage to share your story …forI was just about to give up my dream one more time, when I run by chance into your site and I was drawn to read it all the way through… I feel exactly the same way right now. I was amaized to find out that someone else did, too… The only defference is that I never had a successful job or money behind my back…I just move from one stupid office job to another with big gaps of unemployment in between, when actually I dream of being a writer, journalist, explorer…just like you!May be help other people in some way, too… But how I am going to achive my dream without means and money, how I am going to travel for exampel, when I can’t even pay the bills…?!I tried for so long to find a decent job, to safe something, and postopone my dream for later, that indefinite ” later”,the one that never comes, again and again…The truth is, I can’t live this way any longer. I am depressed to the point that is painful. I strive for meaningful life NOW!…But I don’t know what to do about it. Where do I start? What is the right thing to do?…Can you help me? Please,…
Hi Mirelle, i have been fortunate to have spent the last 10 years of my life traveling, exploring, and living a variety of different lifestyles. For me, Travel IS the meaning of life. What other purpose could we have, than to explore, learn and experience the world we live on.
Regarding money, I also didnt have much. Hardly anything, really. And the truth is, outside of the US and Europe, you dont really need much. In some of the most interesting places on the planet, you could get by (and have a great time) for nearly 15-20$ a day.
I would suggest just doing as Barbara did – make the decision and take off! Leave! A great start would be to volunteer in a foreign country – peace corp, humanitarian projects etc. Once you surround yourself by other travelers, you will learn the secrets of getting by on nothing, yet having the most fulfilling life. Immerse yourself.
-D
Hello Mirelle: Sorry for the delayed reply but I have been traveling without Internet for the last couple of days. Without a little “nest egg” to start out, it will be difficult to get started, however I echo the suggestion of Dluxe006 when she said: “A great start would be to volunteer in a foreign country – peace corp, humanitarian projects etc.” As she so correctly pointed out, one you get out on the road, you learn the secrets of traveling on a budget and volunteer organizations are a great way to do this. Although it may sound simplistic, you must first envision your dream – create the life you want in your mind down to the very last detail and hold onto that vision, never letting anyone tell you it can’t be done If you do this and have complete faith in that vision becoming reality, it will happen.
Good for you! Best wishes.
great site
we are a single parent family of three i have maintainance and farming background as well as contruction and welding
we are 45 24 and 19 and we are looking for a place to live and work for room and board
to have people like us and care about us the three of us will work up to sixty hours a week
so thats 180 man hours a week
we would take a beef farm or goat farm sheep farming cattle or pasture we are all hard workers
[email protected] please someone help us find a farm to live and work on
Hi Rob and Family
Try HelpX – you get free board when you work on farms etc
Hi Barbara,
Thanks for this wonderful blog and the background info as I enjoyed your story and parts of it sound exactly like my own. I too feel very similar as outwardly I look solid and have everything society said I needed to be happy (I’m a 32 yr old woman, w/ a career, a master’s degree, live independently, have lots of freedom–no children, spouse, or house tying me down, tend to live modestly but own the necessary material possessions etc) but I’m really not happy b/c I feel hollow inwardly with no real purpose or drive (since you’ve already claimed donut, can I be the hole in a bagel:). It’s like okay, I’ve achieved these life goals now what do I do with my life? It’s like I go thru each day operating on auto pilot just going thru the motions. How did you get the courage to make such a big decision to leave your job to travel? I can’t even begin to imagine the amount of planning and preparation it took to achieve . Thanks again for sharing your photos and stories, it’s truly a gift!
Hi Hamorgan1998: Thanks so much for all the kind things you’ve said. I never set out to be an inspiration to anyone; I only wanted to pursue my passions. However, my journey seems to have touched a chord with many people. Part of that, I think, is our American way of life. For so many decades we’ve believed in the American Dream, that if we just worked hard we’d be rewarded with a nice home, a big car, all the material things we could ever dream of. But many of us found that we felt empty even though we had all those things. And then the economy toppled and many of us, me included, had to face the loss of everything. In my case, the severe Lyme disease and the economy were a double whammy that made me look up from my life and realize everything was a lie. It took just a little preparation to go – you’d be amazed how little – but a lot of mental commitment. You can do it, if that’s what you want. But go into it realizing how difficult it is. Most of the time I’m in the dorms of hostels or very inexpensive, basic guest houses. I move every few days and often function on four hours of sleep, by the time I’ve downloaded photos, done my social media, written articles, etc. I’m alone a lot of the time. It’s definitely not an easy life, but it’s very rewarding.
hi its so weird how i left my job six months ago and want to travel
just wondering how u kept up with money
Hi Djyes: I didn’t make a dime on my blog for the first three years, then started to get some advertisers. That, along with a little bit of income from other freelance writing and photography sales, earns me enough money to stay on the road, but I’m definitely not getting rich.
hi barbara,in connection to hamorgan may i recommend to her a place which you can live a very low budget, more and more foreigners has settleddown here,buying their own land here. i’m too has a american brother in law now residing here. just check it out ronaldo’s inn & restobar,gen. luna,siargao island,philippines.
Hi Barbara, I very much enjoyed your story. I can relate with so much of it. Happy adventures and life! David
Thank you David. Hope you are also finding a way to follow your passions.