If you asked anyone who knows me, they would tell you that traveling is an important part of my life. The thought of it tempts me to wanna jump on a plane and forget about my second semester of school.
On second thought, that might be a little bit ridiculous. I mean, the last four years of my life were basically 'gap years', as they would call it down under. Unsure of which direction my life was headed, at 18 years old, I began to devote my life to travel. It all happened, unplanned and unexpected, but I quickly realized how much I loved it. I guess you could say, I started with small trips. Aside from conventional family vacations, I often went on little camping adventures to Prince Edward Island or Fundy National Park with friends.
A little disclaimer..
Now, it wasn't till the summer of 2005 that I experienced my first full on, travel adventure. At the time, I was still trucking away, trying to finish my high school diploma (more so Grade 10 science). My life as I knew it, started to crumble. It was July, and I had just got fired from a local grocery store that employed me for 5 years. My relationship with my parents wasn't a healthy one. Furthermore, I had just broken up with a beauty girl, who I had seen for 6 months. More importantly though, my spiritual walk with God, was non-existent. I guess you could have called me a lukewarm Christian.
This season of my life was frustrating, to say the least. I was yearning for an escape. Something unlike anything I was used to. It was a change of scenery would surely do me some good.
My cousin, Jonathan Boone, had lived with my family I, for four months that summer (April - July). He had been operating his own asphalt paving company. It was that July that he was gearing up for a journey, back to his home in Montreal.
His last night in town, Johnny and I jumped in his truck and went out for our usual midnight run to MacDonald's. The one thing you gotta know about Booner, is that he generally drove about 15 km an hour down the road. He didn't give a rat's ace about the traffic behind him. These long drives made for some good conversation.
That night, as we were slowly cruising down the road, I asked him if he would consider letting me join him for the drive back to Montreal. When he realized just how serious I was, he pondered the thought. Upon returning to my house, he jumped on the teli with his girlfriend, Gillian, to discuss the possibility of me joining him. She gave the 'ok'.
I nervously gathered a few essentials and loaded them in the truck. An hour later, we were on our way to Quebec.
I still recall my parents calling Johnny's cell, as we drove across the boarder, into Quebec the next morning.
In Montreal, I would house sit for Johnny and Gilly, as they vacationed for a month. Their cat, Koutr would become one of my best friends. I landed some work at a coffee shop (Java U) across from the old Montreal Forum, on Saint Catherines St. I quickly found out, that working in coffee shops were not exactly my bread and butter. Especially in Montreal, where I hardly knew a lick of french.
I went on to work at Dollarama Box factory. Of the 70-80 employees, I was one of the few white folk. Most of the dudes were imported from Africa. They were mostly starting new lives, or studying.
This job was only temporary, and frankly wasn't worth my time. On my feet all day, long hours, at $7 an hour.
On my days off, I would often walk down Saint Catherines Street, talking to poor people, checking out the shops. I had no curfew. No rules. No mom to cook my meals and fold my laundry. Aside from work, looking after the apartment and feeding the Koutr, my responsibilities were limited. I quickly gained a sense of independence.
After a month in Quebec, I returned home to patch things up. I ended up graduating from high school the following year.
So, as a naive 18 year old, this was my first travel experience. I was ignorant and unaware of what it was like to be on my own.
Now, I wouldn't necessarily recommend making a 3 a.m. spontaneous decision, as I did that night in July. Whatever floats your boat I guess..
Since then, I've been fortunate and blessed to travel overseas. Working sweet jobs, meeting awesome people and experiencing God's greatness.
Now, for anyone who has never traveled, I can imagine the fears that would encompass their anxiousness to wanna leave. In my case, it was always about turning fear off - turning faith on. Easier said, then done.
There is also the misconception that traveling is bloody expensive. Thats the biggest bunch of rubbish I ever heard of! Most places in the world are attainable without digging to deep into your bank account.Understandably enough, if you hit up a a 5 star resort in Tahiti you might be giving up an arm or a leg. This traveling that I'm referring to, isn't where you are staying in a luxury resort, 3 meals a days, getting hammered everyday you vacation. No, I'm referring to the travel scene where your dealing with a limited budget, you rarely pay for accommodation, and simply rely on God to take care of the rest (faith).
Do not let money hinder you from anything. Be smart with it though. Whether you have a little or a lot. Do not let it be an issue. The money you invest into your travel experience will be priceless, when it comes to the memories that you will created. Memories are worth so much more than finances. Its just money... believe me, you won't miss it..
Three years ago, a dude named Mark, who I was an acquaintance with from church, invited me to join him for road trip through the United States. The two of us planned to hit 34 of the 52 states. This 31 day trek would only cost me $1500. There were only two nights that we paid for accommodation. We rented a car (Chevy Cobault) for entire month. We also managed to pick up a few unofficial sponsors along the way. Now, before I go any further, I should tell you that these sponsorships weren't exactly ethical, but none the less, God blessed us. Another part of this trip that should be mentioned, is the friendship that was created as a result of me sleeping, eating and doing life with Mark everyday.We became best mates. This pod cast tells the story a little bit better.
It doesn't take long before traveling becomes almost an addiction. At least, it has in my life. To me, nothing beats the thought of proactively living out your faith, by means of travel. Whoever said the only people who could travel, had to have deep pockets and dollar bills coming out of their ears.
Mark takes a closer look into our trip in this podcast.
http://pmarko.podOmatic.com/player/web/2007-10-23T20_33_40-07_00
For those of you who haven't made a New Years resolution yet. Let me offer you an idea. Do something out of the ordinary this year. Plan to leave your island, town, city, province, state, country, whatever, and consider doing life overseas. Just for a few months. Like Mark said in his podcast, leave your comfort zone, test your faith, challenge yourself, try new things. See that you don't discover new passions, you never knew you had. See that God teaches you new things. See that He will line up your path up with friends. Life long friends. Watch God take care of your every day needs. Watch Him bless the pants off you.
I love those Switchfoot lyrics, "This is your life, are you who you wanna be". As you move into 2010, maybe this is the year where you finally take a chance in life. Maybe you don't have any concrete plans instore. Make something happen..
For those of you who have a a keen interest or curiosity to travel, I would love to talk turkey with you. We can look at potential destinations, help you with passports, visa, travel itinerary. Formalize the plans for your epic trip, waiting to happen.
