About a month ago I received an email from a young traveler who had recently found herself trading in her junior year of high school for a round-the-world education.  She had started a blog called Dear Lunch Table, and once I paid her blog a visit, I couldn't help but wonder how a 16 year-old goes from sitting behind a desk to traveling the world and blogging about it.  So I decided to ask KJ, and 4 other young people, to share some of their thoughts on traveling the world.

Enjoy!
 

Recently I read an article about a parent who had decided to publish a book about the challenges life brings after having children.

The essence of the book is simple:

I regret having kids.  I can't do the things I want in life anymore.  All they do is whine.  20 years of my life is lost.  Don't have children!

Now, I'd love to give you the title and author of this attention-seeking masterpiece, but I just can't do that.  Why promote nonsense?

Instead, I want to use this parent's silly agenda to set the record straight.

It's not your kids that are stopping you from doing the things you want in life - it's YOU!

Have you ever seen the Amazing Race?

How do people act on this show as they gallop around the world?

Are they calm?  Are they enjoying their travel experiences?

No - they're not.  They're frustrated, angry, and tired.  They keep making mistakes and they just can't seem to figure out how to stop.  The race often ruins the trip.

And not only does racing around the world bring out the worst in your personality, it manages to suck the money out of your money belt as well.  The faster you travel, the more money you spend.

And nobody likes a grumpy dad with an empty money belt.

So here we are.

Today we woke up, we got dressed, we ate.

Maybe today we went off to some job we've been working at for the past 5 years.  Or maybe we worked on putting some value back into that dream house of ours.

Maybe we kissed loved ones goodbye.

Maybe we sat on our butts and watched TV all day.

Whatever you did, good or bad, I'd like for you to answer one question.

How did you get to where you are today? 

I've got a secret for you.  And yes, it works just like magic.  But first a story.

Some time ago, before the days of Wifi and Facebook, I found myself running an internet-based business out of a concrete apartment on the outskirts of Nanning, China.  I was 26, and not only was I creating my first business, I was also deeply entrenched in my first trip abroad.  I had been in China only 6 months.  I didn't speak the language, I was struggling with culture shock, and between my wife and I we had about $1,500 to our name.  And yet, here we were, starting a business, and the pieces were just falling into place.