Recent events in my life have effectively forced my hand a little, but the choices were mine to make and I made them. When I factor in the plans I had made and the financial budget I have, all things considered, a break in the travelling seems the optimal choice. A month or so ago I finished a 7-day detox fasting course in Koh Samui, Thailand. I have mentioned the immense benefits of doing these cleansing programs before, so you can see what it was all about. It’s half the reason I go to Koh Samui normally, the other half are the amazing friends I have made there.
Why the break?
Travelling, at the least sort I’ve been doing, is a taxing past-time. Having no firm base of operations for your life requires you to have a very transient infrastructure for all your daily tasks. Things as simple as going to the toilet, sourcing decent food and water, interacting with strangers, not interacting with anyone, planning your next trip, finding a place to stay, keeping your valuables safe, booking a flight and not getting shafted in the process, navigating public transport in a foreign language (and not getting shafted), are not necessarily non-trivial tasks. It’s taxing and it can only continue for a finite period before you have to chill out.
The final 3 months of my “travelling” have been documented quite thoroughly in regards to the volunteer work I was doing, and since it was based in a single location (kind of), many of the daily tasks were made easier because there was routine and structure, but it wasn’t always the case. I was extremely busy and travelling to and from the school by motorbike was a 15km journey one-way. There were a lot of moving parts and while exhausting, the experience has been one of the most rewarding of my life.
By the time I reached Koh Samui in the 2nd week of September I was shattered in more ways than one. Following the week-long fast, I got word that a close friend had passed away and I made the decision to return home for the funeral and to be there with other friends and family. That’s where I am now and as the days have gone on, I gradually made the decision to, rather than return to Asia and continue with the plans that I had made, stay here at least until the end of the year and live out my days as a stationary nomad.
So what’s the plan now then?
Well there isn’t one as such. I’ve basically decided to take a little time out at home and settle. I don’t intend to stay here either for a long time, or indefinitely, but I’m making inroads towards starting my own business as I’ve always wanted to do. I’m trying to also set myself up in a legal and tax sense for any work I do and money I earn as I travel, if at all. This means I wont get taken to the cleaners upon my return for tax evasion and the like.
There is heaps to learn and I think that’s part of the reason I’m sticking with it. I’ve grown a little lazy over the last few weeks to be completely honest, so getting myself stuck into a project such as this can only be good.
Long term, well I don’t know. I still desire to travel and continue working in philanthropy, and I also have aspirations to create enterprises that earn me money and contribute to the greater good somehow. I don’t know how that will work, but I’m going to play it by ear and see how it goes.
I will keep this site running since my travels aren’t over and return to it properly once the work/travel/volunteering kicks off again in earnest.
Thank you for following along this far 🙂
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