Digital Nomad

Some observations but also downsides.

Vincent Warmerdam koaning.io
2013-10-14

In 2013 I travelled from Buenos Aires to Patagonia to Lima to Machu Pichu to the Amazones to Colombia to San Fransisco. The trip lasted six months and I worked for two days a week while I was travelling over whatever wifi I could find. I was an independant contractor and lecturer and I still had some clients from Holland.

There are a few things I learned from this;

For me the trip would have been worse if I didn’t bring work with me. It was a trial to see if coding was going to be my trade or if something else would make more sense. It was less of a vacation and more of a pilgrimage. By the end of the trip, bars seemed less interesting and books started showing it’s appeal. I learned that I should never have studied econometrics and that computer science or physics would’ve made more sense in hindsight.

I can recommend such a trip it to anyone, but I cannot imagine (or recommend) anyone doing this for their entire lives. Having to explain yourself over and over again to people can be quite a drag and I really started to miss having proper friends and family around.