Mar 3, 2023Liked by Brent Hartinger, Michael Jensen
I'm with you, Brent! First off, speaking of tech, DUDE, ditch the physical SIM cards! Check out Airalo.com, it might just save you hours dealing with SIM cards. It's the best.
That said, for my first big overseas trip right after college in 2005, a year wandering the world, all I had was an old iPod. No Kindle books, social media, laptop, phone. I was totally disconnected from home most of the time except in internet cafes and I think that solitude gave me a new sense of autonomy and independence that has led to many other successes in my life.
My oh my was there a lot of introspection on that trip, hours on SE Asian night buses and the Trans-Siberian railroad looking out the window. It did help me decide WTF to do with my newly minted engineering degree (ditch it and start my own unrelated biz!).
Would I do it now? Hell no! Love having my phone trips. But I'm glad I had the opportunity to travel large sans-tech and think there's a middle ground for travelers to check out of their home lives and focus on what's in front of them without the comforts and connections to home. But bring a phone that can do Spotify, I got SO sick of the songs on my iPod!
Mar 3, 2023Liked by Brent Hartinger, Michael Jensen
As I'm aging traveling is getting more difficult keeping up with technology. Much of it is easy peasy and a portion is a pain in the derriere. For example, I rent a car and get lost because the GPS isn't hooked up and my phone service is sketchy. Or, I'm exploring a new city and get lost because the GPS has me circling the same block over and over unable to recognize a street (or an entire block) is under repair. Recently I attended a concert in Detroit and needed a parking app to get into the parking garage. It didn't punch out passes or tickets - I had to use my phone to get in, pay, AND get out.
Airline travel is easier, or is it? I don't like being cramped like a sardine and it's too expensive to buy business class most of the time - if I want to change my seat or flights the phone is really a solo option in most cases - what if I leave my phone on the plane?
And finally, off topic. I'm starting to realize the "preppers" aren't as nuts as I once thought they were. I'm preparing a bug out bag in the event technology goes down - crazy as it sounds with all the unrest I'd rather be prepared than left to the demise of a phone that no longer has service due to some foreign invasion or our satellites going dark... at some point when I'm ready to relocate to another part of the world I will be packed for an emergency in the event of no phone or service... and I'm packing a paperback, just in case. Great read as always!
Mar 3, 2023Liked by Brent Hartinger, Michael Jensen
I'm not a nomad, and I can see how tech enhances the experience. But my experience with tech is mostly frustration. It's always: the account is down, the account has new requirements, you have to upgrade everything, there's a security breach, the touch-screen isn't responding or is too sensitive, the click or swipe isn't working, the login isn't working right, the whole website has been reorganized so you can't find anything anymore, and on and on.
We were in Wales several years back. Paper bus schedules were no longer available for many routes, and the international phone we'd gotten wasn't working. While I stood at the bus stop reading the sign for the bus's pickup times, a helpful local stepped up with his phone app. The trouble was, his transit app only showed the *next* bus that would arrive, not all the pickup times for the rest of the day--and what I needed to know was what time the bus would come later in the day, so we could plan our return trip. Luckily there was a printed sign at the bus stop showing that info.
I remember riding with a friend to a weekend retreat where we circled the location we were trying to find with GPS, as her phone connection went in and out, and every time it went out the whole thing would reset. We knew we were only 2 minutes away, but we drove in circles for 10 minutes. Give me a paper map any day.
I gave up on e-books because my e-reader app constantly had to be upgraded, and with every upgrade it would reshuffle my carefully organized library. It's such a relief to just pick up a paper book and open right to the bookmarked page and never have to recharge a battery or upgrade the software or hardware.
Don't even get me started on "smart" appliances that seem designed to make processes that used to be simple ten times more complicated than they ever need to be.
As I write, it occurs to me that tech feels like Looking-Glass Land: running and running just to try to stay in place. I don't have that kind of energy or patience for the constant upgrading, the constant relearning, and so I've fallen behind. So to me the world feels less accessible, not more accessible, than it used to be. I feel like I need to become a tech wizard to go anywhere--and as soon as I do learn anything new, it changes within a year, so I'm back to zero again.
Mar 4, 2023Liked by Brent Hartinger, Michael Jensen
As a student I travelled through Europe, Turkey, and India armed only with a Lonely Planet Guide and it wasn’t bad at all. And in spite of everything, nothing beats knowing a local. But I am grateful to never have to be at the mercy of the “ridiculously corrupt” taxi industry again (KL being an especially egregious example)
Mar 3, 2023Liked by Brent Hartinger, Michael Jensen
I recently purchased a used paperback book to read at the beach when the glare from the sun made it difficult to read the screen on my phone. I have had the book for three months. In that time, I have read only 46 pages; and I have completed 5 books on my phone. I thought I missed the paper books but in reality, the books on my phone are so darned convenient that I now find I prefer the digital books.
"an astounding 87% of the world’s population. This is way more than the number of people who have flush toilets (60%) or running water (74%)" - um, wow. It does seem that everyone has a smart phone, but placed in comparison to the basic need of water....wow.
Yeah, it's complicated. I love my technology, but as with everything else it's never all good or all bad, just as you have described.
BTW, have you tried the app maps.me? It allows us to download the local maps and have full GPS coverage even when we have no cell coverage. Just in case you get stuck again with SIM issues. We decided not to buy any local SIM's and rely on WiFi in the evening at our accommodations. We really enjoy being disconnected during the day. It helps with my Facebook addiction :/
Ha, that's two strikes on me recommending my travel tips to the pro nomads. Seems like y'all are dialed! I'll scope out Flexiroam for my next trip overseas...unless I smash my phone to pieces and go without. Is there a phrase for NON digital nomading? :)
Hope you're having fun in Malaysia. Fond memories there myself from that trip around the world. FWIW, Borneo was one of my favorite destinations, though I'm sure it's changed a lot. But hey, you can climb the highest mountain in SE Asia and scuba dive the next day at Sipadan, how cool is that?!
I enjoyed your article but have a question; how especially with new AirBnb rules were you able to negotiate a rental price agreeable to all? Kindly walk me through your methodology, the process you used?
Great subject! I wouldn’t go back in time to travel the way we used to travel. I remember flying in the US for the first time in 1979. You basically had to have a travel agent and it was all a mystery. Plans that were made for where to meet and god forbid someone was late, got hurt or got lost. There was no way to connect. I lived 3000 miles away from family in NYC in the early 80’s and we had to schedule phone calls because of the cost. I still have the letters my friends and family wrote to me while I lived there.
Even when I started traveling internationally in 1999, it was difficult. I could book a flight online, but who knew if it was a reasonable fare or the best timing. And I remember printing off reams of MapQuest maps so I would know where I was going, both internationally and at home.
Traveling alone in foreign countries was much harder for me back then with only English and school-girl French. Especially since English was not being widely taught or had just started to be taught in foreign schools. I had to look for 10 year olds to try to help me be understood. I would be lost in a foreign city with no one to ask for help and only my trusty guidebook and paper map to help me find my way back to my hotel.
Was it stimulating and exciting? Yes. Was it absolutely exhausting? Definitely! So I would not go back. Technology we have today is the only reason I feel I am able to live and travel as a nomad as I do today.
Have a question about a visa? The answer can be found or someone has good info on our FB groups. There are fewer countries requiring visas for US citizens than in the past. And if it is required, it can usually be done online. No more applying for your visa in your home country, which nomads are never in!
I’m grateful for the technology we have today, but can see that with the convenience comes change that is not necessarily for the better.
Travel pre/post tech... it's a conversation that fascinates me! I wrote a piece for Conde Nast Traveller two or so years ago, which focussed on four (or was it five?) women who'd travelled Before The Internet. My big take-away? Yes, it's so much easier now (of course) but when we're so screen-bound we really do miss out on so many rich experiences and real-life connections.
(Also, I remember – back in about 2008 – registering the URL "Travels With My iPhone". My idea? To travel the world, using only my phone to make bookings, navigate, plan, take photographs. Oh, the changing times!)
I'm with you, Brent! First off, speaking of tech, DUDE, ditch the physical SIM cards! Check out Airalo.com, it might just save you hours dealing with SIM cards. It's the best.
That said, for my first big overseas trip right after college in 2005, a year wandering the world, all I had was an old iPod. No Kindle books, social media, laptop, phone. I was totally disconnected from home most of the time except in internet cafes and I think that solitude gave me a new sense of autonomy and independence that has led to many other successes in my life.
My oh my was there a lot of introspection on that trip, hours on SE Asian night buses and the Trans-Siberian railroad looking out the window. It did help me decide WTF to do with my newly minted engineering degree (ditch it and start my own unrelated biz!).
Would I do it now? Hell no! Love having my phone trips. But I'm glad I had the opportunity to travel large sans-tech and think there's a middle ground for travelers to check out of their home lives and focus on what's in front of them without the comforts and connections to home. But bring a phone that can do Spotify, I got SO sick of the songs on my iPod!
As I'm aging traveling is getting more difficult keeping up with technology. Much of it is easy peasy and a portion is a pain in the derriere. For example, I rent a car and get lost because the GPS isn't hooked up and my phone service is sketchy. Or, I'm exploring a new city and get lost because the GPS has me circling the same block over and over unable to recognize a street (or an entire block) is under repair. Recently I attended a concert in Detroit and needed a parking app to get into the parking garage. It didn't punch out passes or tickets - I had to use my phone to get in, pay, AND get out.
Airline travel is easier, or is it? I don't like being cramped like a sardine and it's too expensive to buy business class most of the time - if I want to change my seat or flights the phone is really a solo option in most cases - what if I leave my phone on the plane?
And finally, off topic. I'm starting to realize the "preppers" aren't as nuts as I once thought they were. I'm preparing a bug out bag in the event technology goes down - crazy as it sounds with all the unrest I'd rather be prepared than left to the demise of a phone that no longer has service due to some foreign invasion or our satellites going dark... at some point when I'm ready to relocate to another part of the world I will be packed for an emergency in the event of no phone or service... and I'm packing a paperback, just in case. Great read as always!
I'm not a nomad, and I can see how tech enhances the experience. But my experience with tech is mostly frustration. It's always: the account is down, the account has new requirements, you have to upgrade everything, there's a security breach, the touch-screen isn't responding or is too sensitive, the click or swipe isn't working, the login isn't working right, the whole website has been reorganized so you can't find anything anymore, and on and on.
We were in Wales several years back. Paper bus schedules were no longer available for many routes, and the international phone we'd gotten wasn't working. While I stood at the bus stop reading the sign for the bus's pickup times, a helpful local stepped up with his phone app. The trouble was, his transit app only showed the *next* bus that would arrive, not all the pickup times for the rest of the day--and what I needed to know was what time the bus would come later in the day, so we could plan our return trip. Luckily there was a printed sign at the bus stop showing that info.
I remember riding with a friend to a weekend retreat where we circled the location we were trying to find with GPS, as her phone connection went in and out, and every time it went out the whole thing would reset. We knew we were only 2 minutes away, but we drove in circles for 10 minutes. Give me a paper map any day.
I gave up on e-books because my e-reader app constantly had to be upgraded, and with every upgrade it would reshuffle my carefully organized library. It's such a relief to just pick up a paper book and open right to the bookmarked page and never have to recharge a battery or upgrade the software or hardware.
Don't even get me started on "smart" appliances that seem designed to make processes that used to be simple ten times more complicated than they ever need to be.
As I write, it occurs to me that tech feels like Looking-Glass Land: running and running just to try to stay in place. I don't have that kind of energy or patience for the constant upgrading, the constant relearning, and so I've fallen behind. So to me the world feels less accessible, not more accessible, than it used to be. I feel like I need to become a tech wizard to go anywhere--and as soon as I do learn anything new, it changes within a year, so I'm back to zero again.
When I feel like travelling 90s-style I just leave the phone at the hotel, which is to say I don’t do it often. I do miss it tho!
As a student I travelled through Europe, Turkey, and India armed only with a Lonely Planet Guide and it wasn’t bad at all. And in spite of everything, nothing beats knowing a local. But I am grateful to never have to be at the mercy of the “ridiculously corrupt” taxi industry again (KL being an especially egregious example)
I recently purchased a used paperback book to read at the beach when the glare from the sun made it difficult to read the screen on my phone. I have had the book for three months. In that time, I have read only 46 pages; and I have completed 5 books on my phone. I thought I missed the paper books but in reality, the books on my phone are so darned convenient that I now find I prefer the digital books.
"an astounding 87% of the world’s population. This is way more than the number of people who have flush toilets (60%) or running water (74%)" - um, wow. It does seem that everyone has a smart phone, but placed in comparison to the basic need of water....wow.
Yeah, it's complicated. I love my technology, but as with everything else it's never all good or all bad, just as you have described.
BTW, have you tried the app maps.me? It allows us to download the local maps and have full GPS coverage even when we have no cell coverage. Just in case you get stuck again with SIM issues. We decided not to buy any local SIM's and rely on WiFi in the evening at our accommodations. We really enjoy being disconnected during the day. It helps with my Facebook addiction :/
Ha, that's two strikes on me recommending my travel tips to the pro nomads. Seems like y'all are dialed! I'll scope out Flexiroam for my next trip overseas...unless I smash my phone to pieces and go without. Is there a phrase for NON digital nomading? :)
Hope you're having fun in Malaysia. Fond memories there myself from that trip around the world. FWIW, Borneo was one of my favorite destinations, though I'm sure it's changed a lot. But hey, you can climb the highest mountain in SE Asia and scuba dive the next day at Sipadan, how cool is that?!
I enjoyed your article but have a question; how especially with new AirBnb rules were you able to negotiate a rental price agreeable to all? Kindly walk me through your methodology, the process you used?
Great subject! I wouldn’t go back in time to travel the way we used to travel. I remember flying in the US for the first time in 1979. You basically had to have a travel agent and it was all a mystery. Plans that were made for where to meet and god forbid someone was late, got hurt or got lost. There was no way to connect. I lived 3000 miles away from family in NYC in the early 80’s and we had to schedule phone calls because of the cost. I still have the letters my friends and family wrote to me while I lived there.
Even when I started traveling internationally in 1999, it was difficult. I could book a flight online, but who knew if it was a reasonable fare or the best timing. And I remember printing off reams of MapQuest maps so I would know where I was going, both internationally and at home.
Traveling alone in foreign countries was much harder for me back then with only English and school-girl French. Especially since English was not being widely taught or had just started to be taught in foreign schools. I had to look for 10 year olds to try to help me be understood. I would be lost in a foreign city with no one to ask for help and only my trusty guidebook and paper map to help me find my way back to my hotel.
Was it stimulating and exciting? Yes. Was it absolutely exhausting? Definitely! So I would not go back. Technology we have today is the only reason I feel I am able to live and travel as a nomad as I do today.
Have a question about a visa? The answer can be found or someone has good info on our FB groups. There are fewer countries requiring visas for US citizens than in the past. And if it is required, it can usually be done online. No more applying for your visa in your home country, which nomads are never in!
I’m grateful for the technology we have today, but can see that with the convenience comes change that is not necessarily for the better.
Travel pre/post tech... it's a conversation that fascinates me! I wrote a piece for Conde Nast Traveller two or so years ago, which focussed on four (or was it five?) women who'd travelled Before The Internet. My big take-away? Yes, it's so much easier now (of course) but when we're so screen-bound we really do miss out on so many rich experiences and real-life connections.
(Also, I remember – back in about 2008 – registering the URL "Travels With My iPhone". My idea? To travel the world, using only my phone to make bookings, navigate, plan, take photographs. Oh, the changing times!)
Luddites never win...