Do you know what happiness is to you? I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately. Because I always thought I knew what made me happy. Turns out when your away from home, not around your friends and family and outside of your comfort zone – what makes you happy changes. It actually changes every day, every minute, with every breath you take it might change. Because when you’re backpacking you change.Your mindset changes because of all the experiences you’re making, all the people you meet and all the stories you hear. This is a completely different world. I actually don’t feel like I’m backpacking at the other end of the world right now. It’s more like I’m living here, enjoying life, and discovering myself. It feels like time stands still. You don’t know what day it is – you simply lose track of time. Time doesn’t matter, age doesn’t matter, origins and religions don’t matter. Because everybody’s the same. Everybody’s traveling, nobody’s home and at the same time everybody makes the place you’re at right now their home for the day, a week or maybe even forever. And that’s what it’s all about I think. Finding a home somewhere far away from everything you’re used to, everything you know and you’ve seen day after day. Adapting, connecting with people and falling in love with places and your life all over again. In my opinion that’s the essence of backpacking. Besides so many other things I’ve learned, seen and experienced so far, that is what I love most about all this.

It’s so hard putting my thoughts and feelings into words right now but reading through this it doesn’t sound too bad of an attempt.. So let’s just leave it like that and let me give y’all one advise: love your life and make the best of it. And most importantly, do what makes you happy because it’s so worth it.