How One Month
Of Travel
Turned Into Seven
by Tommy Scargill
Travel is exciting for me, travel is enlightenment for me, it’s my self-actualisation, and it helps me learn and puts so much into perspective for me each and every time. The travel bug at some point definitely bit me in my life, it’s an addiction for me and I simply need a fix often, to travel forever is the dream. However my latest trip the decision was to get away from everything really, to find a new alleyway for myself, and sure as hell it was spontaneous.
I wanted to figure out if I could do something else with my life, I’d been working in the nightclub industry for three years at that point and worked my way up throughout that time, and the idea was to start up my own business. I can safely say the business that I went to set-up never materialised, but something greater did — my travel site. My real passion, to express my love of travelling in writing with the hope to inspire at least one other person to travel. I have accomplished that, however I don’t want to stop at just a few people now that I’ve got a taste for it, I want to inspire so many!
Making the Leap
The decision to travel was both easy and difficult. I had to quit my job, never the easiest decision really. It was a well paid job but I’ve never been too fond of money. I had an emotional struggle with myself but ultimately decided it was time to go do something I wanted for a change. So within 2 weeks I had left my job a nightclub manager and was in Bali. Nonetheless it wasn’t even that simple, I had a greater and even more difficult decision to make. I had a girlfriend at the time, of nearly a year and a half, and sure I was in love, and she was so supportive, she told me to go do it, she could see how unhappy I was back in England. Having someone like this is rare, but that made it all the more difficult to leave, and this taste of travel I have gave me an ultimatum at one point.
Do I continue to travel whilst I can and I’m in Asia and lose my other half? Or do I go home to her, and find a job I could be unhappy in and so to say, ‘suffer’?
So I did decide to extend my trip. I may have another opportunity to travel Southeast Asia, but right now seemed perfect, other than the relationship situation. However she was off to America for three months and then Germany for a year, so in hindsight it wouldn’t have worked anyway. I had the money to travel, I had the desire, so why not?
So that’s what happened, one month turned into seven,
one country turned into seven.
The Lessons
I’ve learnt so much, I really have, and I have a group of friends back home who always joke about people going away and coming back a changed person because of ‘travel’. Well it does change you.
Get out of your comfort zone.
Getting out of your comfort zone is one thing it certainly teaches you and with that comes not caring what everyone thinks about you, so I reckon I’ve changed and for the better. I’ve learnt that humans aren’t actually too bad. Living in England, especially around London, gives you so many chances to doubt mankind and very little to believe in it, and sometimes people can’t help but bring you down. When I’ve travelled, you have little else to do but invest in people, you have to understand people, their backgrounds, their ‘real’ stories, how people differ, you learn so much from people.
I also learnt to try.
Try anything, something new is always interesting whether it’s an experience or food, something you wouldn’t do back home. Cracking a smile at a stranger — a smile I’ve learnt goes miles, it can make that persons day, you really never know, but what help is a frown doing? Nothing. Along with that I learnt to strike up conversations more, because more often or not people actually want to talk to each other. Nowadays we tend towards alienating ourselves, maybe through lack of confidence or maybe because it’s ‘weird’ to talk in person with technology at our fingertips. Another lesson that I gained that was valuable is that life really isn’t that serious, accept humility, because what happens, happens, go skinny-dipping, jump off a cliff, what’s a broken bone to an awesome story?
Be a bit crazy, normal is boring.
One major realisation was that the problems that you perceive are problems back home, are probably little more than an issue if anything at all, it’s probably nothing. You probably think it’s the worse thing at the time, take a step back, does it really matter? The answer is probably no. Then why stress? No point hey? So relax. I used to be like that. I was never the most relaxed person, but now I’ve learnt to feel a bit more comfortable in my skin, just relax, it sounds easier said then done, but give it a go.
Feel comfortable being you.
People seem to care too much about pleasing everyone, and don’t get me wrong it’s great to make people happy and smile, but when it comes down to it you just can’t please everyone. If someone doesn’t like you or doesn’t agree with you, then don’t worry, it probably means you stood up for something you believe in. Guess what? There are still seven-billion people in the world, so I’m sure the odds of people liking you are in your favour.
What’s Next?
Well to settle down is a horrifying thought, it likes the great quote I once saw…
“If you think adventure is dangerous,
you should try routine, it is lethal.”
So training in the art of avoiding routine is one thing I plan to do, but to put it simply I need to make some money, damn I hate money, how some paper can run your life. So I’m going to be putting more work into my website, look for a sponsor that has the same beliefs and ethics as me, that will help me propel forward to continue writing whilst travelling. However with regards to making some money I’m looking into writing opportunities and collaborations, and following another passion — coffee. I love coffee and I’m looking to train as a barista for a little while, hopefully for an independent company, it’s strange, but it’s something that excites me, and whilst it’s nothing glamorous it’s interesting to me!
The Money Question
I have worked since the age of fourteen, at that age I was cleaning cars and cutting grass. At the legal age of sixteen I tried to get jobs and I did so, at the age of seventeen I was working six different part-time jobs, all to fund my travels in the future, and since then I’ve always saved up, and been religious in doing so. I tax myself, knowing that the government are going to tax me anyway, I tax myself on-top of that, so I know that money will be going towards my travels. Towards the end I did run out of money. My Dad, being a great man, did help me out fortunately enough, but it’s great because he knows 100% he’s going to be getting back whatever money I owe him. I also used some credit too, which I’m not proud of, but when it gets serious, you have to. I always have a contingency plan for stuff like this. With this trip it has made me think what do I really need in my life, so when I get back home, I’m selling everything that is not needed. Sorted.
The Hard Bits
I didn’t find too much hard in reality. Learning to get out of my comfort zone was a bit of a challenge initially but because I jumped into the deep end I had no option. I found it particular hard saying goodbye to friends that I met along the way, several in particular.
I travelled with an Israeli guy for nearly nine weeks, a Mexican for six weeks, an Australian for two weeks, and I met a lady from Germany who was fantastic, and saying goodbye to all these amazing people was really difficult. However they’re all people I plan on seeing in the future because each and everyone of them made such an impact on myself but more so my travels. It’s the people you meet whilst travelling that can make it that much more special. The last difficult part for me was the realisation of heading back home. Being The ‘Hopeful’ Vagabond, I’m hopeful to be back on the road again soon!
Tommy Scargill is an adventurer and travel blogger. He got bitten by the travel bug when one month of travelling turned into seven . He is currently based in London whilst writing up his latest adventures on his blog: The Hopeful Vagabond.
