I guess I am a traveller now

The first time I realized, that I am living a different life in my 30s than most other people I know, was when a friend told me he thought about moving.
He felt his time in the current was coming to an end, and he got everything out of that experience and was ready for the next step and phase of his life. Something more rural and further south was speaking to him.

Nice! Which country are you thinking about? Maybe Italy?

I asked.

No! Just from the North of Germany to Central Germany maybe? A few cities over.

He answered my question laughing.

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I got so used to living an international life, not just based on my ever-changing location which is rarely home, but spending it speaking mostly English with my partner from Spain, which I met while travelling. Through that experience, borders of countries melted away, and I am personally very open to considering most places in most countries as a future, more permanent home.

That my perspective had shifted so much, never occurred to me until that moment.

Travelling and seeing new places was always something that impressed me in others. And while I was a frequent train enjoyer, making spontaneous trips in Germany to meet friends, go to events or go on unusual dates, I was never really a “traveller”.
All trips were limited in distance and there was always a predefined destination. Typically, a person, that could host me, or maybe an event. Never a place I wanted to see, just of my own desire.

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2023 changed all of that, when a colleague of mine and I made plans to try the digital nomad lifestyle and use the maximum remote working capabilities of our employer. The main push was to work on shared projects.
Without him, without that drive, my butt would have stayed glued to my home for who knows how long.

I like to say

I like working on the computer and meeting new people. One is right in front of me, the other one requires a few extra steps.

And that is literally true, as I struck up conversation with people just 10 steps outside my door on multiple occasions.

As soon as I leave the room, the house, the city, the country, I find somebody to have a conversation with immediately. Travelling light and choosing Gran Canaria, digital nomad island, as our first destination, it was immediately a great experience for me.

At the end of this first 4 months trip, I already found me a girlfriend, travel buddy and now life partner.
With her for the first time in my life, I travelled to places, not people.

And I love every second of it.

PS: The photo is from Hong Kong.