15 lessons from our journey around the world

15 lessons from our journey around the world

The main reason I didn't want to write this post is because it's impossible to do this kind of summary without sounding wacky. I'm sure millions of words have already been written about the virtues of travel and the wisdom that comes from life on the road.

I gave in because a post like this feels like a natural bookend to our year on the road. We'll continue to write about our trip and focus on some of the sights we haven't covered yet, but now feels like a good time to reflect on what we've learned. Here are 15 lessons from our journey around the world.

1. Travelers can be the biggest bores

Author Elizabeth Drew once said, “Traveling too often, instead of broadening your horizons, only prolongs the conversation.”

We have certainly learned the truth behind her words. In 5 Things Travel Writers Don't Tell You, we introduced readers to 'Mark', the backpacker we met in Fiji, who spent 40 minutes lecturing us about all the authentic, remote places he had visited in Tonga (all of which were in the guidebook... and TripAdvisor... and on the itinerary of every backpacker who made the trip to Tonga has undertaken). Traveling in itself does not make a person interesting.

2. Traveling can be cheaper than living at home

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In How to Save for a Year of Travel, we explained that we saved £20,000 ($30,000) for our year abroad. We set aside 25% for transport and expensive things like our Machu Picchu hike, which meant our daily budget for food, accommodation and daily activities was £40 ($60).

I suspect many Londoners spend more than that in their daily lives. Between mortgages/rent, council tax, gas, electricity, internet and phone, groceries, tube travel and leisure activities, it's easy to spend more at home than when away.

3. It's okay to not have a plan

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Here is an exchange that took place on about my third or maybe fourth date with Peter several years ago:

Me: Is 12:30 too early? We could meet in Canary Wharf, have lunch at Carluccio’s and then go to West India Quay to see a film? Burial is at 2:30 p.m. The trailer is terrible, but it has good reviews.

Peter: Sure, but it all seems a bit disorganized... Could you put it into an Excel document and email it to my assistant? I will discuss it with the board and see if it is practical. Do you have any data from 2009 to support this?

Me: Ok, point taken.

I've always been a planner. When we started our trip, my plan was to get a good job when I returned and get back to real life. Now I'm planning our next trip. I learned that it's okay not to have a plan or a career that automatically pushes you higher. That doesn't mean you're wasting your life.

4. The frugal life is not to be feared

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As the daughter of a Bangladeshi immigrant, I've always been mindful of money - not enough to chase it, but enough to ensure I always have a buffer. I never had a credit card before our trip (and the one I took out for emergencies sits dusty and unused), I paid off my student loans early, I always paid my bills as soon as they came in, and I've generally been super-responsible with money - until now.

We returned to London and for the first time in my adult life I had no savings. This would have freaked me out a year or two ago, but today I'm okay with it. Our year of travel was absolutely worth it. I wouldn't always live without a buffer - but what's the point of saving if you don't use it for something great every now and then?

5. It's okay to have friends who only eat one serving

We shared a Tongan feast with Natasha and David on Tongatapu and went on a 20-mile walk with Mandy on 'Eua - and then never heard from them again. They had written down our details, but we couldn't take theirs and they never got in touch. In other cases it was the other way around. We learned that this is okay. Sure, you can add fellow travelers on Facebook and exchange the occasional like for the rest of your life, but it's also okay to spend a day or evening in really good company and then let them go. That's just the nature of travel.

6. We are part of what we hate

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We have done our best to promote environmentally friendly tourism in the Galápagos Islands, but we cannot avoid the fact that as tourists we are part of the system that produces dozens of gas-guzzling boats that travel between the islands several times a day.

It's easy to lament the crowds at major attractions or crow about how you discovered a destination before it became mainstream, but the fact remains: all visitors are tourists.

7. It's easy to forget our inherent privilege

The very fact that we have been able to travel the world means that we are some of the most privileged people in the world. Encountering smart locals on the street reminded us to check our privilege. to remember that we are not where we are through intelligence, dedication or determination, but where and for whom we were born.

8. More sunscreen!

If you're asking yourself, "Do you think I need sunscreen?", the answer is yes. It's always yes. Our travels exposed us to extremely strong sun and we were not always adequately protected. I don't burn easily, but the sun has dried out my skin. Sun damage doesn't happen overnight, which leads to complacency - but it catches up with you, so be faithful.

9. Pay-as-you-go is better than RTW

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We've already talked about the pros and cons of a round-the-world ticket. For us, the pay-as-you-go model worked much, much better. It allowed us to spend a month in Tahiti, take a last minute luxury cruise, visit Mauna Kea (the highest mountain in the world), and take a spontaneous road trip to the US. We will definitely follow this model on future trips.

10. Traveling with a guitar makes you look like an idiot

At least a dozen people have proven this dictum. Don't do it.

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11. Sentimentality isn't worth the space

The first time Peter visited my apartment, he asked me if I had just moved in. I shook my head. “I’ve been here for about a year.” He glanced at the bare walls, the plain coffee table, and the minimalist dishes. “Oh,” he said blankly. He soon realized that I wasn't the least bit sentimental.

Being on the road gave him the same feeling of detachment. After a year of living with only a backpack's worth of belongings, he realized he no longer needed to keep his massive collection of CDs, DVDs and dozens of band T-shirts from his days as a sound engineer.

12. We prefer places to people

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It may be taboo to admit this, but we travel not for people, but for places. We love meeting locals and are in love with certain nations (Fijians, Samoans and Cambodians are our favorite peoples in the world), but it's the natural landscapes and stunning architecture that really draw us abroad.

13. Samba is not the sound of South America

If I had been asked to describe the sound of South America a year ago, I would have said samba or salsa. Now I know differently. Really, it's this:

This can be heard seemingly anywhere and everywhere within the borders of South America. On Taquile, a car-free island in Lake Titicaca, we heard it drifting from the shores of the mainland and realized there was no escape.

14. Traveling will not get travel out of your system

Our big trip was supposed to be our big trip, our one long adventure before we returned to normal life. Unfortunately, we haven't gotten rid of the travel bug yet. If anything, it made us even more excited to visit places we hadn't seen yet: Asia Minor, most of Africa, Greenland, Canada, Antarctica, and more. There is a world out there and we have only seen part of it.

15. It's not that hard

Before I left, I was worried about how I would adjust to life on the road. I mentioned above that I am a planner. I like to know how things are going and I like my comfort. I worried that I would be overwhelmed or tired or bored with life on the street. In reality it was much easier than I expected. Everything was easier: the saving, the quitting jobs, the planning and packing, the goodbyes, the 32-hour bus rides, the delays, the cockroaches, and even the ending and returning. It showed me the true meaning of freedom and I still believe unequivocally and unequivocally that it was the best decision I ever made.

Here's the next one.

Mission statement: Atlas & Boots

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