Today’s guest post comes from Michael Hodson of Go, See, Write. Michael is a former lawyer who took off to circle the world without flying in 2008, and has decided to keep going. I’ve been following him on Twitter for a while now, and decided it was time to get to know him a little better.
In-Depth With the Mobile Lawyer
I haven’t gotten asked to write many guest posts, so I was especially happy to get a request from Amanda, because her blog is one of my favorites. Just the title of her blog, in and of itself, appeals to my sense of adventure — and frankly, I have a bit of title envy, which is similar to food envy and if you ever dine with me in the future, you will likely be subject to that also.
Considering my writing style is a bit stream of consciousness (one friend refers to it as tangentia), I asked her to get me going down some path with a few questions in the hopes that direction would help. I doubt it, but here we go.
What would your life be like if you weren’t a traveler?
Boring and mundane. Wait, I better not say that because some friends back home might be reading this. And also because it isn’t true.
I love travel and would be doing some form of it, even if I hadn’t basically given up my former life as an attorney a couple years ago and started long-term traveling. So the short answer is that I’d still be taking two-week trips here and there and probably sitting at my computer every day envying the people out there that have moved abroad and/or are taking long and extensive journeys.
The bigger and more fundamental question for me would be — what if I didn’t travel at all or had never started traveling internationally 6-7 years ago? To that question I am certain of my answer: my life would be far less fulfilling and complete. I am a firm believer in the power of travel. Meeting people from entirely different cultures. Seeing the size of the world. The differences and similarities from outside your comfort zone. There is no valid substitute in my mind — though I do suggest constant reading of Amanda’s and my blogs as one way to scratch that itch.
What made you desire or begin to travel in the first place?
I have always liked traveling. For whatever reason, my family moved every three or four years when I was growing up (and no, we weren’t running from the law). For the first decade or so of my adult life, I’d take extended solo driving trips in the States. I found that my best contemplation was on those trips and I loved seeing how incredibly beautiful my country is. Moving and seeing things has always been a part of my being, I think.
As to the sub-question, what made me decide to chuck it all and travel around the world for a few years? My two standard answers when asked this on the road were to alternate between “solid mid-life crisis” and “no wife, no kids.” Both are true, to some extent. I was able to do it, because I didn’t have anything tying me to a place. I had been a lawyer for about a decade and managed to be moderately successful at it, so I had the financial ability to travel. And, frankly, I was in a bit of a mid-life crisis. I had just rolled over into my 40s. Although I wasn’t unhappy with my life, I did want to do something different. I had lived in the same town for more than 10 years and had been doing the same basic work for that time.
Some change in life is a good thing, in my book. Change in the form of long-term travel is almost ideal, if you are able to manage it.
And how have those decisions changed you or the course of your life?
Well, I’m not exactly sure how it has changed the course of my life, though I am in the process of writing a book about the trip and if it somehow gets published, it might alter the course of my life in one big way — I need to figure out my next career.
One thing I do know is that I have no regrets at all about what I did. Extended travel, especially the way I do it, which is almost entirely overland, still enthralls me every day. As an example, I decided today to leave the great little town I am in (San Gil) and head on a 7-8 hour bus ride tomorrow to go to Bogota. I am quite excited to just get moving again. Just moving literally brings a smile to my face.
Bonus question: Which country, city or experience has made the biggest impact on you and why?
I am not sure that any particular place changed me the most. Climbing Kilimanjaro was the most difficult and rewarding thing I have every done. Any time I think back on that experience, it moves me. As to locations, there were plenty of them that I loved, but I’m not sure any had an impact in the sense you are asking. Perhaps the closest for me would have been Damascus or Istanbul. Considering what average Americans think about the Middle East and Muslims, at this moment in time, the reactions I got there from locals, the sights, and just the feeling of the place humbled me. And that can be a difficult thing to accomplish.
Visit Michael’s site: Go, See, Write
Follow Michael on Twitter: @mobilelawyer
thanks for interviewing me and posting this! Love your blog and I am going to have to come up with some good interview questions back at you and return the favor.
Michael Hodson recently posted..Photo Journal- Franz Josef Glacier New Zealand
My pleasure! And yes, feel free to pick my brains in return!