I’m a homebody traveler. I don’t have what people call “the travel gene,” which is a fun label for those who are strongly drawn to explore and see the world. Like my mom. She’d be the archetype.
Not like me. I’d never given much thought to traveling. It wasn’t a dream of mine; it was hardly on my radar. I was more the “get married, live in a house with a white picket fence and a ton of adopted children” kind of gal. I mean I still am, except somehow I ended up being a full-time traveler.
My homebodiness as a traveler shows itself in funny ways. I like running around seeing new places. I really do. It has become its own addiction. But after exploring new places a bit, I like to “go home.”
What’s going home for a nomad?
Those who have stayed in contact with us know we haven’t been back to the US since we left.
Home now is the places we’ve been to already, and I loved. There’s no stress for the arrival- the figuring out of a new country, not knowing exactly what to expect and all that jazz.
That doesn’t even mean going back to the same city- just the country as a whole.
I’m pretty sure that’s a big reason we ended up in Malaysia FIVE times during our two yearish stint in Asia. My mom would make fun of how happy I was every time we returned there. She said I just loved Malaysia because of the food. Well yes. That’s a big part. I won’t deny it. (:
I’m very thankful my mom and I usually end up having somewhat similar thoughts and feelings about each country we visit. We may be total opposites, but we have shared values. She doesn’t love Malaysia quite as much as I do, but she saw its value enough to be easily convinced to going back so many times. I mean, seriously, the food there is so good!
At the moment, my homes are: Malaysia (you saw that one coming!), Taiwan, Turkey, Romania,…. and well, I’m not in love with Thailand, but it’s an easy place to return to.
My mom’s list would be different. She loves England, Ireland, and Israel a lot.
It’s creeping up on four years of living out of backpacks. After so much movement, my homebodiness is kicking in a bit more strongly now. Even for my mom too- we’re all a bit tired, although our bucket lists are simultaneously growing longer. We’ll keep going, just at a slower pace. 聽
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