The Life of a Full Time Traveler: What They Don't Tell You

Kyoto, Japan

Full time travel is not a glamorous lifestyle. Sounds like I am trying to be annoying right? "Oh poor Kasey, traveling the world and posting pictures all over Instagram is such a hard life." That is what you're thinking right now isn't it? You are starting to hate me and I can tell.

BUT

I hope you continue to read this post to understand that I am not trying to down play my admittedly pretty amazing life, but to bring awareness to you that the simple matter of the fact is, life is hard.

There is no one set way to live our lives yet, our society tells us that if we do not get a 9-5 business job, a fancy house, an expensive car, and so forth that we are living life wrong. Let me be extremely clear... people that chose the life I just described are NOT at all choosing "wrong" or "being dumb" or whatever you think I am calling you. I know plenty of people that live this life and enjoy it immensely. They will go on to have kids, get a promotion at a job that they love, etc. However, maybe I am hardwired differently but, I just don't see the world this way. I thought for the longest time that I was alone in these thoughts, that something was wrong with me because I didn't want kids, or do the same thing five times a week to only feel like I am living for the weekend; because that is exactly how I felt for the last two years of my life since graduating college. That constant yearn for more was always in the back of mind and I thought I simply had to push those feelings down and continue on with life because that was what being an adult meant. However, that is simply not true. Doing what you love takes courage, what is easy is settling for a life you don't truly want.

I have been fortunate enough to find a community of friends who love and support me fully, some of which that also chose to live this alternative lifestyle of travel. I am unimaginably thankful for them in a way that we all want, someone who makes you feel less alone in this hard and confusing life. One of these beautiful souls I just so happened to meet before we knew what our lives would one day become.

Cue college senior Kasey at the bars enjoying her last semester with her friend Michelle.

Little did Michelle know, that her choice to buy a one way ticket to Thailand the summer after she graduated (one year after me) would inspire me to set out on a similar journey. So, I thought I would give her some recognition since I neglected to in recent posts that I have quoted her on. Hi Michelle!

We have both recently returned home to the States to reset before our next adventure. What I thought was simply going to be a few months at my parents house, saving up money and planning so that I could leave again, has turned out to be way more complicated than I anticipated. I have found myself doubting my choices, feeling just as confused as I did before I left for the first time and frustrated to the max about the not so glamorous parts of this lifestyle I was referring to at the start of this post.

I had to find a job that was going to allow me to continue to travel as much as I wanted, catch up on some bills that I had let fall wayside during my travels and make some tough life decisions involving my future. On top of that, I have a lease on my car that is ending soon that is turning out to be a GIANT pain in the you know what...For example, since I made the adult decision to enter into a two year contract, I was obligated to pay it off. So while I traveled I was paying for a car that I was not using. In an attempt to save some money I switched insurances to an out of state policy which turns out is not legal in the state of Florida and my license was suspended for FOUR MONTHS before I even found out. I just paid 400 dollars to switch back insurances, have my licenses reinstated and my tags renewed. Talk about a headache.

Take me back to Sorrento where I was only worried about

 which bathing suit I'd wear to the beach that day.

Furthermore, I am facing inquisitions about my decisions. Some in a way that was anticipated and some in a way I didn't think I ever would.

My family and friends are asking me "When are you going to settle down?", "When are you going to get a real job?", "Why don't you just move back to Orlando and continue doing what you were doing?" "So you're not going to use your degree you went to school for?"

All questions that are surely meant to mean well because, they love me and want what is best for me! I am so lucky to get those questions as one person pointed out to me after responding to a post of what I thought was a harmless, empowering quote to Instagram. What I didn't realize was that my posts, that were meant to make me feel better about my life, ended up impacting others in a negative way. Making them feel that I was implicating their lives weren't as important or amazing because they chose this aforementioned traditional lifestyle. This could not be further from the truth!

I've also had to deal with some not so nice accusations and hurtful comments from people. Insinuating that my parents pay for my travels (man I wish!) That I am taking the easy or lazy way out of life by not getting a job and working hard (ouch grandpa). That this isn't a sustainable way of life and that I will have to grow up eventually. Thankfully my man Walt Disney reminded me that...

"growing old is mandatory, growing up is optional." 

As per recent usual, I turned to Michelle who offered me this..  "that this lifestyle we've chosen is not the mainstream majority of people's vision for their life. And in the way that I love posts (articles/memes/tweets) that empower me to keep this (lifestyle) up, some people who have chosen differently might take it as a dig. But what they don't realize is a lot of these posts are for us more than anything... I guarantee you no one is questioning these people's decision, meanwhile everyone from our grandparents to the bank teller is asking "what are you doing with your life?!"

Well bank teller, I'm questioning what I'm doing with my life everyday too!

Smalltown U.S.A with some of my favorite people on earth.

The reality is that my choices come with going from living life at 100 miles per hour to under 25 miles per hour in small town U.S.A. I went from everyday in a new city, exploring until my feet were throbbing and learning new things, to saving money by living with my parents for a few months and leaving the house maybe once a week. From being friends with people from all over the globe who just get you, to trying to maintain those friendships strictly via FaceTime or Facebook messenger. To "you can make more money but you can't make more memories" to "what was I thinking leaving a comfy paying job for a life of uncertainties?!"

My French friend Marie and I in Lyon, France. 

Friends for five years and half of that has been on separate continents.

So you see just another Instagram post of me having the time of my life on the cliffs of Santorini or trying foreign food in Japan and think wow she is so lucky! Yet, I face the same struggles every other person my age does. I'm just trying to create the life I love and leave this place a little better than I found it. So to everyone who has either been nodding their head this entire post saying "YAAAS GIRL I FEEL YOU" or asking yourself "why did I just waste 5 minutes of my life I'll never get back?" I just want to say, live your best life! Make choices that you can wake up every single day and say I'm proud of what I am doing and I am happy. In the end, that's all that matters!

The "I love you" wall in Paris, France.

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