I officially traveled around the world. I learned the following

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I asked a question on Quora seven years ago: What is the world tour? It triggered an interesting discussion there and later on our own side. We have decided that the number of countries visited or the crossed borders does not matter, but the number of regions on the risk card they saw. The logic was that the visit half of the 42 risk regions would offer a better selection of the world.

A recent journey through Australia means that I finally visited 21 risk regions and can officially say that I have traveled to the world.

old = ""Fair useKia visited 21 of the 42 regions of the risk card

Traveling has taught me a lot of things and I wanted to take a break and share it here. These are not practical tips or travel tips (you can find them in our book about travel). They also do not reflect life as a blogger (which can be found here and here). Instead, they offer general insights into life, love and beyond.

1. Travel builds up a well -lived life

Cancer has been diagnosed with two young family members in the past two years. Last year Peter lost his mother to cancer. The year also marked my father's 10th anniversary. Death and illness knocked on our doors, so it is not lightly that I say that if I had only a short time on Earth, I would be satisfied that I have lived a fulfilling life.

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Family, love and laughter made me happiest, but travel really made me feel like having lived a fulfilling life. Exploring 50 countries means that I stood the northern light on the crater of an active volcano, belonging to the crackle of a wonderful glacier, dipping on the Galápagos, swimming with humpback whales and jumping out of a plane - more than once.

I saw the Easter Island and explored numerous wonders of the world, including Petra, Machu Picchu, the Colosseum, Chichen Itza and Christ the Redeemer. I really have the feeling that I have a well -lived life, and that's mainly due to travel.

2. Most people don't care about the environment

The world doesn't get any better and most people don't care. Hotels urge us to reuse towels of the environment for the sake of the environment, but then fill shampoo and flushing into disposable plastic containers, which means that most people use two bottles a day.

Disposable plastic straws, coffee mugs to take away, small butter packets and knives and forks are absolutely everywhere-and most of us use them without thinking or care. Sometimes we only use a plastic object a few seconds before we throw it away without thinking that it can take 400 years for it to decompose.

3. Trust is like a muscle

When Peter and I started our first big trip, he took over most of the logistical gerangel: he bought tickets at train stations, asked for timetables, booked tables in restaurants and so on. It was generally more direct and less reserved.

Six months later we arrived in South America, where I took over the reins because I had basic knowledge in Spanish and not. I traveled through the continent for five months, I was the one who made calls, asked questions and booked rooms.

All of this in my third language has strengthened my self -confidence enormously. I didn't even know how much until we visited her Turkey a year later and Peter commented that I was much more direct. I realized that confidence is like a muscle: the more he is trained, the stronger it becomes.

4. If in doubt, spend the money

When it comes to experiences, I learned that I should just keep going and spend the money. In Patagonia we did without a trekking tour on the Perito-Moreno-Glacier because it cost $ $ 100 per person. Years later I regret not having done the hike. If I had spent the money, I wouldn't think of these $ 100 at all.

old = "perito-goreno glacier"Atlas & BootsPerito-Moreno glacier

I have the privilege of living in a developed country, and in reality $ 100 is not very much for me-one or maybe two dinner in London. Is that comparable to trekking on the Perito-Moreno glacier? Not for a minute.

Well, if I have doubts, I spend the money.

5. People are a product of their environment

Lists like this often claim that "people are naturally friendly" or "inherently the same are people". I'm not sure if that's true. I believe that people are a product of their surroundings, which means that some people are friendly and others are not.

I would like to believe in a universal asset that connects us all, but I don't think that's true. If each of us had grew up in a vacuum, we might have just as pure moral values ​​and impulses, but we are not and I don't think we are doing it.

6. Older people are often more interesting

Most people tend to feel drawn to the peers. This is logical when you are under 28, for example, but in later years you will probably find that older people are more interesting than younger people.

I prefer to talk to a 45-year-old than with a 25-year-old. In my experience, those who are older for a decade have a wealth of interesting insights and bizarre stories, certainly more than those who are younger.

7. You are not too old to learn new tricks

I learned cycling at the age of 28, about 21 years after most of my friends. I learned riding at the age of 30 and at 31 I learned to dive. I have suffered more than a few injuries from these newly recorded activities, but I have improved in my skills over the years and have always been fun. Traveling taught me that I am not too old to learn new tricks, and you probably not.

Kia ran her bike through Burma, although she learned to drive at the age of 28

8. Comparison is the thief of joy

Theodore Roosevelt once said: "Comparisons are the thief of joy". Travel taught me that this is true - at least for me. Sometimes I see my friends in London with their careers, large houses and several cars and wonder if I do the right thing when I travel instead of working in an office and trying to exchange my one-room apartment in London for something in the suburbs.

When I meet with these friends and they tell me how much they hate their work and wish that they could do what I do, Roosevelt's quote sounds like.

9. Telefone destroy our manners

I have a strict rule against the use of telephones at the dining table. I will not tolerate that Peter uses his phone while we eat and I always reply the courtesy. Too often I saw couples (no less in places like Mauritius, Fiji and Tahiti) who stared at the dining table in their phones instead of talking to each other or enjoying their surroundings.

Alt = "Interesting facts about Australia Whitehaven Beach"Atlas & BootsEven in paradise, people stare at their cell phones

There is a lot of fussing that we had other ways to ignore each other before telephones became popular (books, newspapers, etc.), but nothing feels as intrusive or omnipresent as smartphone use. I really have the feeling that this collective addiction is lost.

10. There is really no place like at home

When Peter and I opened our first big trip in 2014, part of our motivation was to find a new home. We were tired from London and tired of Great Britain's bad weather. We wanted a warm place, preferably near a beach and within walking distance of a good Indian restaurant.

Since then we have learned that nothing is comparable at home. Nothing can replace the ease and understanding they feel among their compatriots, as well as their common culture and their common humor.

The family also plays a major role. Last year I wrote about the joy of spending time with the family - something I am sure that it will never change. After visiting 50 countries, including Ushuaia, "the end of the world" and the antipodes, I learned that there is really no place at home.

Our Lessons Learned are read here at Atlas & Boots by 150,000 people every month. We have put together our best tips and advice in a practical guide entitled Don’t Offer Papaya: 101 Tips for your First Time Around the world.

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