Let me introduce myself first: I’m a ginger on the internet chasing a mad dream to live in 10 countries before I die. But, why?
Immersing myself in the culture, seeing the seasons change and the annual festivals roll around, these are the best things about travel in my honest opinion. If you’ve ever felt you’d like to stay a little longer, wondered what life in a tourist town is like during the off-season, or longed to better understand a foreign language, this is the travel style for you. Even just once in your life, the experience of living abroad is an invaluable one. Curious to see what I’m talking about?
The need to live abroad began for me when I realised that there was a world beyond my small village and started to develop a curiosity for what could be just over the horizon line.
Fast forward from there, it has been a stream of jobs found in creative places:
Taking off the rose tinted glasses, there have certainly been bad times.
Loneliness. The feeling that life back home is racing by with a hundred crucial weddings and christenings a year that you guiltily miss. The day my grandmother died on the other side of the world. Friends who have drifted apart from me with every year I failed to move home. Still, if I could go back- I’d do it all again. I have made a conscious effort to return home every Christmas, even when it meant flying from Australia, and that has kept a strong tie with the friends and family who matter. Sometimes a job is just a way to keep traveling, but I’ve steadily built skills and a career path by studying cheaply in Milano, Paris and online, that leaves me better equipped than when I started.
28 Responses
Eric || The Bucket List Project
I love this post! I wish I had known that these were possibilities when I was 18 or even just in my early 20s! I would have gone in a heart beat to travel and teach or bartend or whatever as long as I was exploring!
I think you are lucky that you have modern tech like social media because I think that can help bridge the gap of being away, though I know the pain of missing out on the death of a loved one. I wasn’t around when My Grandmother passed.
I hope you continue to develop and have great adventures.
LocalNomads
You’re so right! I’m so glad i didn’t waste any more time before leaving home… Our life of travel has been far more rewarding than the lives we were leading before. Social media has been a huge factor, not only in our ability to keep in touch with friends and family, but also with finding work opportunities.
Sue Reddel
How inspiring that you are living your dreams. Can’t wait to see what country 9 and 10 will be. I envy your courage. I love to travel but I’m a home body and don’t think I could leave home for that long. Great post!
LocalNomads
Thanks Sue, Luckily thanks to social media the world has become even smaller! It’s easier now to keep in touch with family than ever before. We’ve even realized that we can communicate with our families much better now that we’re on the road, as weird as that may sound. Thanks for your comment!
Abhinav Singh
That’s very informative and useful. I am sharing this with a friend. We had long wanted to live in a country for a long time. I hope you too fulfill your dream. All the best to us!
Ankita Kumar
Ah! What a great post. This is all the encouragement I needed to just get up and do it. So long! Maybe I’ll see you on the other side. Cheers! 🙂
LocalNomads
So glad to hear you were inspired! If you ever need advice or guidance on how to get started or just want to share your excitement, please feel free to keep in touch!
Chloe
Amazing and inspiring! Work and travel has always been my dream. Thanks for the awesome tips and courage support!
LocalNomads
It’s never been easier to work and travel the world. You can gain such an amazing perspective into a place by living there for an extended period of time. You should definitely check out CoolWorks.Com for plenty of jobs in great places!
Luca
I hope you’re going to check also the two spots left from your list, it would be great! I’m at three only, but I have never thought about a goal for this situation.
I experienced how it’s hard to stay away from family and friends, but I also discovered how real your friends are when they try to stay in contact with you no matter the distance, and not only when you’re with them.
LocalNomads
Being far from home definitely shows you who your real friends are! Your true friends understand that geography isn’t what makes a friendship.
Emily
I remember feeling full of nerves when I left the UK to teach in France when I was 20. It was definitely a character-building experience! I think it’s great that you’ve worked in 8 different countries; very inspiring!
Sudipto De
Wow. That is indeed an inspiring post. I am thinking about joining Doctors without Borders. How does that work for travelling while working??
LocalNomads
That sounds like a great plan! There are so many places in need of medical assistance. Although there are a lot of people in the USA who need medical assistance and also can’t afford it as well.
Ashley
I often wish I knew that I could have left and traveled after high school. Either way, I’m happy that I realized this was a passion of mine and have pushed through it. What I love about reading this post is that it is now about checking countries off a list but really living, exploring and learning about them rather then hopping around. Exactly my type of travel.
LocalNomads
Blazing through the tourist sites and checking off our bucket list has never been the way we’ve gone about travel. We try very herd to travel as slowly as we can, making sure to leave as much room as we can for improvisation and for fate to take over. It’s so rewarding to travel this way. Thanks for commenting. Glad you’re out there living it!
Lee Rosales
Now that I jave been traveling a lot, I was so eager to live in a country for a month or 2 however, as much as I can I cannot bec Im a mom now.
Gareth
A really enjoyable post man and a dream that I share, at least in part. I’ve always wanted to live in a country for a prolonged period of time, 6 months minimum and really get to grips with daily life their. To date, excluding my home country of Northern Ireland, I’ve managed to live and work in 7 countries although I’ve no intention of slowing down. And while I wouldn’t change anything, I emphasis with what you said about the trials of living abroad. It really is important to head back when you can and keep those bonds close
Ehsanul Haque
This was such an awesome read. I agree with this sentiment so nicely. I spent the last year living in China, working as an english teacher. Now my entire outlook is this same way!
maryrose quintero
I absolutely loved this post! It’s amazing to have a goal and living in 10 countries is a great one. Thanks for sharing such a fun read!
Fairytale Studios
Loved the write up. I wonder how it will be to live and work in 10 different countries. It will certainly be wonderful to know so many cultures and people around. Wish you good luck with your dream
Sia
I’ve only lived in 1 country abroad and it was such a fulfilling experience. With its ups and downs, it thought me so much. It was always interesting to attend the local festivities, learn about the culture through its traditions on holidays etc. It is a great goal to have and wishing you good luck!
Wanderlust Vegans
Great Post. We love living in another Country. It’s just so different from visiting. You get to know an area inside and out, create amazing friendships and learn the culture. We are Canadians living our 19th month in England. We have 4 more months to go before we head back to Canada to a little bit. I don’t know if I would go as high as living in 10 different countries, but we would definitely want to live in a couple more. Have fun in your next adventure!
Sarah
This is such a heartfelt account of living abroad. I can imagine the loneliness you have experienced while on this path, but it seems like you have put it into perspective perfectly. Those who care enough to support your lifestyle are the people worth keeping in your life. Whether separated by 1 year or 10 years, they are the ones who will still be anticipating your return home at Christmas. Safe travels to you! 🙂
Emma
I’ve only lived in England and France (Scotland too but not sure if that counts!) living abroad is an amazing experience! One I wish I could do more of!!
Jitaditya Narzary
Do not stop at 10! Surely you can cover many more countries in your lifetime. Although I am still exploring my own country, I have been wthout a permamnet job for several years now and surviving on freelance online work that enables me to travel.
WhereMonicaGoes
Oh, this is such a nice read! I have only lived in three countries and I really hope to add more to that. keep on writing article slike this to inspire people to travel and go out of their comfort zone.
Mansi K.
Inspiring! You’re living a traveler’s dream. Though I’ve only lived in 2 countries, I have to say that a short trip is never enough to truly discover one. You may see the highlights, but stay longer and you learn a lot not just about the place, but also about yourself. If I could go back to my 20s, I would’ve loved to live in France. What’s next for you?