“I grew up in Australia. For the first twenty-three years of my...

“I grew up in Australia.  For the first twenty-three years of my life, I lived and worked and partied within the space of a mile.  I had no goals.  I went out every night of the week.  But then in 2007 I went to visit a friend in Japan.  It was my first time on a plane, and suddenly I became addicted to the feeling of seeing something new.  I’ve travelled to fifty-one countries over the past ten years.  From March to October I work as a bartender on a small Scottish island.  I don’t take days off.  And that allows me to save enough money for another six months of travel, as long as I book far in advance.  And stay in hostels.  And limit myself to two meals a day.  I always avoid the expensive attractions.  My favorite thing to do is sit in parks.  After this I’m headed to Niagara Falls.  Then it’s up to Alaska.  I’m not sure what the end goal is.  I don’t have a bucket list.  I don’t feel the need to see every country.  In the beginning I was running away from my partying.  But now I’m just addicted to the unfamiliar.  Most of my friends are starting families and settling into their careers.  And I don’t have any savings.  So there are definitely times when I question if it’s worth it, but never while I’m traveling.”