During my final few weeks abroad, I found myself repeating the same line over and over, often while chuckling: "yeah... I've been gone a while..."
On December 10th, I arrived back home for the first time in nearly a year and a half. I had taken off for Korea on July 1st, 2017, and hadn't made even one reappearance since then.
So yes, I've been away a while. In fact, if we take into account the year I spent living and travelling in Europe, I've been away for 19 of the last 29 months. During this time, I've missed out on many family events, fell out of touch with some friends and definitely disconnected myself a bit from the local culture.
Many people tell me they'd simply be unable to spend a prolonged period of time away from home, yet this is the type of thing I thrive on. Despite all my time away, I have seen and done some incredible things, and long to just go ahead and seek out new experiences.
But first, it's time for me to reflect on a few things during this holiday season..., and these are probably thoughts that cross the mind of many travellers/expats:
1. Being back home again
It's weird. You realize that everything around you is the same, yet you start to draw comparisons from your previous life. The first funny thing I noticed is that toilet paper squares here are smaller than in Asia. This is such an insignificant detail, yet something I was noticing for a good 10 days. I've also found myself expecting to see bugs crawling here and there, yet there aren't any bugs to be found, either at home or outside. I guess all that time in tropical climates has been getting to me...
Beyond toilet paper and bugs, however, you start feeling the need to reintegrate back into society, well, sort of. Naturally, while away, you lose touch with some friends, and even when you do keep in touch, your relationship with someone won't immediately return to the level it was at beforehand with most people, including family members. For example, my sister and cousins have grown a lot closer in the past 17 months, and I'm not necessarily a part of it.
Additionally, people don't generally care about your trip or the time you've been spending abroad. I first came to this realization after coming home from Spain, and I even wrote this blog post about it, but it still rings true today. People have been asking me how it was to live abroad, but generally people are unconcerned and want to go on with their everyday lives and their everyday preoccupations. Some people in my entourage even make it a point to remind me how little they care every time I refer to my time abroad. I don't take this badly, nor do I particularly take any offence to this, however this is something that is bound to happen to many returning travellers/expats.
2. Future Plans
What are your future plans, shall I ask?
Well, this is something else everyone has been asking me about. And to be honest, as of today, I have NO IDEA what my life will look like even a month from now.
Should I go back to school? Look for a job? But, what would I study, or what type of job should I even look for? Should I settle down, or should I, once again, seek out temporary employment abroad?
I am personally leaning toward working abroad one final time before settling on a career, though plenty of people are pushing me to "finally" settle down and start my career, because apparently I'm "getting older" and figuring this stuff out in a couple of years could lead to problems finding a job going forward.
Yet, my point of view is drastically different. I believe there's more of the world to explore. I believe we are all better connected the more people travel. Additionally I think the time is now, while I have no real responsibilities, no girlfriend, spouse or children, no job to walk away from. I can pretty much leave with no repercussions, though maybe the same cannot be said if I were to leave, say, five years from now. Of course, this view is relatively unpopular among my family, for obvious reasons.
For now, the plan is to sit down and figure stuff out once he holidays are over, though this by itself is a pretty daunting thought. In the meantime, I'm not doing much at home.
3. Teaching English in South Korea
This was the purpose for going abroad in the first place, and it's been something I've been reflecting upon a lot since getting back.
So, in total, I spent 14 months teaching English in Seoul, so just a bit over a year. Throughout these 14 months, I learned a lot about myself, I honed my teaching skills and I discovered a culture and a way of life that most westerners know very little about - both the good and the bad. Of course, I plan on elaborating on my experience in a future post, though the time I spent in Korea will definitely remain with me for the rest of my life.
First off, Korean culture is very different than Canadian or Western culture. There are certain cultural particularities, such as the complete inability to say "no" or refuse a demand of an older person, that simply don't exist for us. Additionally, the Korean study and work culture are quite extreme, as kids hardly ever get a break from homework, and company workers, better known as "salarymen," work ridiculous hours with little to no break or vacation. Korean culture is very high-pressure, and can be judgmental as well, and as a result of all of this, depression and suicide rates are quite high.
While it was tough bearing witness to the aforementioned for over a year, the majority of my memories of Korea are quite fond. Korea is a very safe country, people are outwardly very friendly, the food is delicious, and the travel opportunities are endless. Seoul alone merits at least two weeks in order to properly experience, and the mountains, folk villages and beaches throughout the rest of the country are breathtaking. Korea is a beautiful country to visit and I am grateful for having spent such a long time exploring it as much as possible.
And, well, teaching. I remember arriving in Seoul on the evening of Sunday, July 2nd, 2017. I started working the following day, with little to no instruction, no training, and really, very little help. Looking back at that day, and comparing it with how I was teaching toward the end of my stay, I think it's safe to say that there was been fantastic progress. I managed to learn how to manage my time, how to manage my class, and all of this while dealing with very frustrating management.
Probably my greatest source of pride coming out of my entire time teaching is the relationship I was able to build with my students. For the most part, the kids loved me, and I loved them back. They were always running up to me and hugging me, we were always smiling and joking around together, and we all got emotional when I was leaving. We had fun classes and an amazing time together, and I will always hold on to these memories quite fondly.
4. Travelling in Asia
Without a doubt the most amazing journey in my entire life.
Between September and early-December, I headed off on a solo trip throughout Southeast Asia, a journey that would take me across seven countries: Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Of course, I visited more of Asia during some of my vacation time in Korea, hitting up places like the north of Vietnam, Taiwan, Hong Kong & Macau, and Japan on two occasions.
If I had to pick a favourite country, it would have to be Vietnam. The combination of stunning landscapes, bustling cities, tranquil towns, beautiful beaches and delicious food propel it to the top of my list, though every single country I visited is incredible in its own way, and I still can't believe how amazing my experience was.
I plan on fully analyzing each of the places I've been to in future posts, but I do want to comment on long-term travelling as a whole. Moving constantly for three months is incredibly exhilarating. Every day you experience a high after discovering something new. There is constant novelty as you're always in a new and exciting place, and there are always interesting people to meet. This said, travelling for such a long time is exhausting, and, well expensive. You're constantly moving; catching night buses, flying every 10 or so days, sleeping in a new bed every few night, and walking around a new town all day. You're often going out drinking, hiking mountains, taking in markets and searching for restaurants at which to eat. You're always on the move, always meeting new people, and even rest days provide you with some adrenaline and novelty. This is amazing; it is what I live for, it is when I'm at my best, at my most confident, yet this is exhausting. Toward the end of my trip, fatigue definitely did set in, and I was even getting sick, though the excitement of being in a new place was still putting a smile on my face every single day. This is travelling, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
5. Solo Travel
For the most part, I travelled alone. I travelled with friends in Korea, for the most part; my mom joined me in Japan and I was accompanied by some Canadian friends for 10 days in Thailand, but other than that, I was on my own. The comments from back home never stopped: "Aren't you tired of always being alone," "why don't you come home and find a friend to join you...," "wow you're quite brave."
The truth is, I was never truly alone. Sure, there were days during which I had little interaction with other people, but for the most part, I was in good company. Staying in hostels is a great way to meet and connect with other travellers, and often these travellers are in the exact same position as you, and are willing to make new friends as well. I have never had this much ease making friends in my life, and I was surrounded by like-minded people who think the same way as me. Travelling solo, in my opinion, is the best way to travel, and I will undoubtedly head out again, on my own, for another adventure in another part of the world.
Alas, these are my first thoughts upon returning back home. I look forward to writing some more in the coming days and trying to capture the full essence of my experience as much as possible.
In the meantime, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a Happy New Year to everyone!
-Daniele
