Between February and June 2002 I dropped everything and headed off on a round-the-world jaunt. Quite brief by some standards, but I credit this sojourn as a top contributing factor in making me the writer I am today.
Why? Well, until this point, my life essentially lacked any purpose and direction. I had completed two years of university, but became disillusioned with what I was doing towards the end of this time and opted to take a year out to think things over. I worked two jobs from July 2001 to save up and then took off. I saw many sights - mangy dogs in Bangkok backstreets, ultra-clean Singapore trains, a giant clam in the Great Barrier Reef, I climbed up a glacier in New Zealand, was blessed by an elephant goddess in Bali and saw sailors swinging from trapezes in a gay club in Rio. Sorry about the lack of pictures - my scanned photos aren't in the right format.
In short, I saw more of life in four months than I had in the previous 21 years and came home full of inspiration. I enjoyed keeping a diary of my voyages and my first idea was to become a travel journalist or foreign correspondent, but this soon translated into more general reporting work and I started studying journalism in Glasgow in August 2003. My journalism background will be discussed more thoroughly in my "J" post (surprisingly enough), so if you're interested make sure you come back then.
Have you been inspired by your travels?
23 comments:
Travelling is one of the best inspirations there is! When you only ever see and experience the same things, you don't really learn very much. Sounds like your travel adventures were amazing!
Yes, I have done quite a bit of traveling and it has been enriching. I know I would not be the same person without it. I have been writing, however, since I was a seventh grader. I wrote and performed in my first play with a couple of other seventh graders then. Never been published except for my blogs over the past four years. The writing is there, but not in book form. I enjoyed your post. More blogs to visit. Best regards to you. Ruby
I love to travel and consider myself lucky to have had the opportunity to experience many different places. But the one that marked me the most was my trip to South Africa. That was an amazing trip.
Yes, I LOVE to travel. I think backpacking through Europe inspired many stories.
So much of me wishes that I had the finances just to get up and travel the world. There is a ache inside of me screaming to just do it...
I'm glad you got to experience that and that it made you a better writer!
Love to travel and it definitely helps my writing. I just got back from visiting an animal sanctuary in Utah last week. Lots of stories there. I've blogged about it a few times already for the A to Z Challenge.
Great post!
nice post nick. and isn't it interesting that we must find ourselves within.. not somewhere.
thanks for following... and reading...
daphne
Lost and found... and sometimes lost again. It's the story of our lives, ain't it?
I spent most of my twenties traveling and I continue to travel as I work through my thirties. There is nothing quite as amazing as treading in an unfamiliar place. The beauty, wonder, and curiosity are just what a muse needs. The places I've been are a constant source of inspiration!
I can imagine how enlightening and exhilarating your travels must have been. There are so many incredible wonders in the world to see, but enlightenment and inspiration are there for the finding right in our own back yards, if we open our minds and hearts to it. (Says the old lady who's never left the U.S...)
Wow. That's an incredible journey you've been on ever since. Hey - if I make a trip to Scotland, would you take me to see some of those amazing castles?
I agree that traveling (on its own) isn't where we find ourselves. Granted, it is definitely one of the best ways to get the ball rolling; I know it worked for me. More on that when we get to "T". Great post.
I've always wanted to travel. Hopefully it's not too late :-)
I've done a fair bit of travelling, but always nice to get home.
new follower,
mood
Moody Writing
Kyra - It certainly opens your mind to think about how other people live. Thanks for your comment!
Grammy - Oh yeah, I was writing plays in school too, but it wasn't til I went travelling that I started to focus towards what I'm doing now. Good luck getting published!
Elise - I would love to visit there. Only been to Tunisia on that continent (twice though!)
Karen - Thanks for your kind comment. I just wanted a break from everything and it was certainly refreshing.
Ciara - Nice to hear travelling inspired you too.
Jennee - It can be done fairly on the cheap if you don't mind bedding down in cramped dorm rooms!
Dawn - Sounds like a great experience. I will head over and have a look!
Danneromero - Good point. Yes, you're the same person everywhere, but every new experience adds something, I think.
Cathy - Well said!
C.B. - You're lucky to have travelled so much. You must have loads of inspiration!
Susan - Good point. I think the longer you write, the more you learn to be inspired by even seemingly trivial things.
Jay - With pleasure! I think we would have to start off with Edinburgh.
Mel - Yeah, it can definitely light a spark, but ultimately what you write comes from within. Look forward to your post! This was going to be T, but I came up with something else for that.
Sarah - Never too late. I met people travelling who were in their 70s. You're clearly a long way off that! ;)
Mood - Thanks for following. I think getting home is a highlight of any trip - hopefully you've recharged the batteries and are ready to get back into things.
I did the same thing for 2 years in the 80s and it's changed me for life. You see some of what I learned on my blog.
Rhia from Five Minutes for Inspiration (about # 802 on A through Z Challenge list).
I haven't done as much world traveling as I would like, but we travel as much as we can. It's lovely! Thanks for stopping by my blog, pleased to meet you!
Yes, I do get inspired by my travels. When I'm in a different country or even just a different part of the country, I'm constantly reminded of how big our world is. Plus, I like learning about different cultures and trying new food.
Hey Nick, fellow A-Zer. You definitely learn a lot about yourself while traveling. I think the main thing traveling taught me is to be more aware of my surroundings, and that certainly helps with writing.
Rhia - Two years is a long time. I'll head over to your blog!
Sheila - My travelling is in much shorter bursts now with a family, but we still get to a lot of places. We've got a Baltic cruise at the beginning of May and I'm really looking forward to St Petersburg and Copenhagen in particular. Nice to meet you too!
Cynthia - You're lucky there's such a diversity of places just in the US. (You are American, aren't you?!) Oh yes, food is a big part of the experience!
Tim - Very good point. Pleased to meet you, thanks for following!
I loooove to travel. Last sumer I was in Scotland, and England. As often as I can get up and go I do. I always get so much out of it. Really had an awakening while in Costa Rica not long ago. Can't wait for my next trip.
Jo - I'm glad you enjoy travelling so much! South America is an amazing continent.
Post a Comment