In November of last year (2014) I embarked on a 4 month solo trip around Asia, and loved it! The reason for my trip was one of frustration of living the 9-5 life and not seeing the world around me.
Since leaving school we’re pushed into thinking only about career and our working life. We’re never told to explore or enjoy ourselves, which makes it feel a little taboo and frowned upon to quit your boring life and fly to the other side of the world, for no apparent reason.
So, I booked a flight to Bangkok in October, told my boss I was leaving, and left in November. This was the most exhilarating feeling I’ve ever felt and I hadn’t even arrived!
I arrived in Bangkok on a warm, humid November night and my life changed forever. I didn’t know it then, though. So like most solo travellers I headed straight for Khoa San Road and entered the madness, and after many, many Changs later I was lauging with a group of new found friends.
Over the next four months, I travelled across Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam (my favourite) and had a blast! I met so many people who I call friends, and seen so many things. The beaches, the food, the heat, the alcohol, the TEMPLES, the rivers, the history but most of all, the people! These people have very little and survive of tourism coming into their country. Without doubt these are some of the happiest people I’ve met, and this lead me to the fact that happiness isn’t about how much money you have, or how big your house is. It’s about how you spend your time!
If I could urge you to do one thing in life, it would be to take a trip alone. It forces you into new situations and new people from all over the world. It makes you reassess your own life and your own values.
I’ve come back to the UK as a new person, with new ideas about life.
I’ll revisit my travel experience in more detail on individual countries in later posts..
Our Unguided Existence 