Ultimately, we all reach a certain point in our lives where we’d stop for a bit, ruminate about the future, reflect on the past and then, choose the best route for the present. This year is THAT year, where every decision has to be made with a lot of care and precision, because once made, a new set of possibilities will follow, whether I like it or not, and I’ve to live them all until another fork in the road of life appears again.

I must admit, I have really lived it up. I’ve seen plenty of places, done many things, experienced what it was like to be poor and rich, let wanderlust run its course and have literally covered from the skies to the seas. I don’t regret the experiences, not for even an iota. In fact, I’m grateful for them for they have strengthened my spirit and made me grow up. I’ve learnt to see my own weaknesses and strengths during times of solitude and hardships. I’m always surprised to discover my capacity to endure and go on, despite perpetual blows and rejection. I’ve learnt the value of money, independence and love, and to peel away the layers of ignorance and illusion.

But then, what now?

Many travelers and couchsurfers that I’ve met, upon finishing their life-altering journeys, are often found back in their countries, doing the same things that they’ve always been doing, be it that corporate job that they’ve given up right after they sold properties and reduced their lives to a backpack, or to pursue another qualification, to get married and have kids, etc. Does that mean that other than accumulating perspectives and worldly wisdom, we don’t actually change much? Is long-term traveling over-rated then?