What countries have you lived in and visited?

[LoneSage]

Lived in America and China (5th year last month).

Traveled to in order
Bahamas
Canada (motorcycle trip from Virginia to Quebec)
China
South Korea
North Korea
Japan
Thailand (twice)
Vietnam
Mongolia
Philippines (twice)
Cambodia
Laos
Indonesia/Bali
Kazakhstan
Kyrgyzstan
Qatar
Myanmar (formerly known as Burma)

Traveling has definitely become my favorite hobby. Trains in China are super convenient, for a few years I'd take a train Friday night arrive early Saturday morning and just do everything in a day and get back on the train home that night. Just tons of amazing places to see, some of which very few foreign tourists have visited which makes me feel like a faggot Marco Polo.

I feel where smoke is coming from. If I settle down I would definitely have to stop traveling and just focus on raising a kid. I've encountered very few Americans in southeast Asia while the majority seem to be Europeans (French, mainly). I remember when I was in America getting shit from co-workers when I wanted to take time off for my motorcycle trip. Now I'm lucky to get four months off a year though so I always make good use of it.

 

[Heinz]

I remember when I was in America getting shit from co-workers when I wanted to take time off for my motorcycle trip.

What sort of miserable cunts did you work with!?

 

[NeoSneth]

Lived:
USA
UK

Visited:
Almost all of USA. Hawaii included.
Mexico
Canada
Germany
and more Mexico. but mostly Mexico.

 

[terry.330]

Traveling fucking sucks now.

Been to:

All of the US
Mexico
Haiti
Jamaica
Bahamas
Canada
China
Japan
Taiwan
Hong Kong

 

[StevenK]

I feel where smoke is coming from. If I settle down I would definitely have to stop traveling and just focus on raising a kid. I've encountered very few Americans in southeast Asia while the majority seem to be Europeans (French, mainly). I remember when I was in America getting shit from co-workers when I wanted to take time off for my motorcycle trip. Now I'm lucky to get four months off a year though so I always make good use of it.

Don't teachers in the US get the same holidays as the kids?

You could settle in Europe.

 

[StevenK]

My issue is...well, money.

Travel = $$, and I currently work 2 freaking jobs with 1 week paid vacation per month.

I'd love to see the world but the cold hard fact is, I won't.

We need a ng.com house swap programme. It won't do much for flight costs, but it would be great for accommodation for a week or two away.

I would genuinely do this.

 

[heihachi]

Lived in USA and China

Been to Japan and Italy, have caught connecting flights in the Netherlands and Germany

 

[Dr Shroom]

Sadly, this. I don't even have a passport.

smh fam

 

[NGT]

Lived....northern California

Traveled....

Mexico
France
Germany
Italy
Columbia
Jamaica
Panama

 

[LoneSage]

We need a ng.com house swap programme. It won't do much for flight costs, but it would be great for accommodation for a week or two away.

I would genuinely do this.

Couchsurfing is free. Never wanted to try it though.

 

[daithidownunder]

Lived:
Ireland
England
Scotland
Australia

Visited:
Most of mainland Europe

Islands of Europe:

Lanzarote
Fuerteventura
Gran Canaria
Tenerife
Cyprus
Greece - Rhodes

Dubai
Singapore
Thailand
Bali
Australia - WA, NT, SA, VIC
USA - Nevada, NY, Illinois, Georgia.
Dominican Republic

 

[StevenK]

Couchsurfing is free. Never wanted to try it though.

I was thinking more a full house swap for people in a similar situation - family home for a family home, flat for a flat, swap at the same time and see each others city/country rather than live with each other.

I have a few friends who have couchsurfed quite a bit, they speak quite highly of it but it's not for me. Apparently if it's a woman putting you up sex is pretty much guaranteed, it's why they've set it up in the first place.

 

[LoneSage]

Lanzarote
Fuerteventura
Gran Canaria
Tenerife

These are all part of the Canary Islands, which is a province of Spain, so why did you list them separately as if they were different countries?

edit: it's a shame so many people visit Bali without also going to the main Indonesian island of Java. Went there during Ramadan which was interesting to say the least, cool experience to try all the little snacks that sell behind curtains that you can only eat after sundown.

 

[Dr Shroom]

look at professor lonesage here

 

[StevenK]

Technically England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are all the same country too as far as anyone outside of those countries is concerned.

 

[LoneSage]

Technically England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are all the same country too as far as anyone outside of those countries is concerned.

I taught about the UK last semester and learned that for the first (second, musta forgot before) time. UK is all those four while Great Britain is the island that makes up England, Scotland and Wales!

shroom I'm about four Asahi Super Dry tallboys deep and boy howdy it feels good

 

[Dr Shroom]

livin' on the top when you're down in the dumps.

 

[aha2940]

Born and live in Colombia, have visited:

Chile
Mexico
US (SanFran, LA, NY, Miami, Vegas)
El Salvador
Panama
Brazil

 

[K_K]

I feel where smoke is coming from. If I settle down I would definitely have to stop traveling and just focus on raising a kid. I've encountered very few Americans in southeast Asia while the majority seem to be Europeans (French, mainly). I remember when I was in America getting shit from co-workers when I wanted to take time off for my motorcycle trip. Now I'm lucky to get four months off a year though so I always make good use of it.

It's funny. But I've noticed too that a lot of Americans have a piss poor attitude about travel. Not just ones who have lampooned themselves with families and kids. But ones who are a bit more untethered in that respect have this mindset of "work work work." Be off on the weekends, avoid being sick, and take your paid leave in a fat check at the end of the year. It's a work first live second lifestyle. I've found Europeans have a mindset of live first work is an afterthought. And I find this is truly a better way to spend time. I get 5 weeks of paid leave every year. And I use every last bit of it to go places, see things, and get around. We are going back to Italy in May, I always go and visit my mother at some point during the year. But we've also got plans to see Austria, or maybe Switzerland this year. As soon as I get back to work when one holiday has ended I book a flight somewhere else in a few months. I don't want to be known when I retire as a good employee, who never took a day off. I want to be that guy who was always planning his next adventure on company time.

 

[Heinz]

It's funny. But I've noticed too that a lot of Americans have a piss poor attitude about travel. Not just ones who have lampooned themselves with families and kids. But ones who are a bit more untethered in that respect have this mindset of "work work work." Be off on the weekends, avoid being sick, and take your paid leave in a fat check at the end of the year. It's a work first live second lifestyle. I've found Europeans have a mindset of live first work is an afterthought. And I find this is truly a better way to spend time. I get 5 weeks of paid leave every year. And I use every last bit of it to go places, see things, and get around. We are going back to Italy in May, I always go and visit my mother at some point during the year. But we've also got plans to see Austria, or maybe Switzerland this year. As soon as I get back to work when one holiday has ended I book a flight somewhere else in a few months. I don't want to be known when I retire as a good employee, who never took a day off. I want to be that guy who was always planning his next adventure on company time.

It's not just an American thing, this kind of attitude is everywhere. I get having a family and not having the time/money to travel but those who put work first or simply aren't interested... those people I really don't understand. No one fucking gives a shit if you work your life away except you on your death bed at 85 as you wonder what the fuck you did with your life.

 

[Takumaji]

Born and raised in Germany, spent some more time than usual in Italy (some months for training purposes).

Other than that, Ive been to many European countries, including the UK, excluding Norway, Ukraine, Russia, Bulgaria, most of the isles and a few others (for no special reasons, just hasn't happened yet).

 

[Ralfakick]

Born and raised in Philly, Pa USA

Visited
United States
Canada
Mexico
Japan
England
France extensively
Monaco I know it's a principality been to the Vatican as well
Italy
Luxembourg
Switzerland
Belgium

So I think not bad for a 'Murican

 

[StevenK]

It's funny. But I've noticed too that a lot of Americans have a piss poor attitude about travel. Not just ones who have lampooned themselves with families and kids. But ones who are a bit more untethered in that respect have this mindset of "work work work." Be off on the weekends, avoid being sick, and take your paid leave in a fat check at the end of the year. It's a work first live second lifestyle. I've found Europeans have a mindset of live first work is an afterthought. And I find this is truly a better way to spend time. I get 5 weeks of paid leave every year. And I use every last bit of it to go places, see things, and get around. We are going back to Italy in May, I always go and visit my mother at some point during the year. But we've also got plans to see Austria, or maybe Switzerland this year. As soon as I get back to work when one holiday has ended I book a flight somewhere else in a few months. I don't want to be known when I retire as a good employee, who never took a day off. I want to be that guy who was always planning his next adventure on company time.

It's the standard race to the bottom. It starts with a few people doing it, and they end up with the spending power that everyone else wants so they join in. All that means is prices go up and it becomes a necessity to live a normal life rather than something to live an exceptional lifestyle.

Same thing happened with the revolution of women going to work. Now most women work, all families have greater spending power so family homes went up in price to swallow this spending power, thus making it all a big fucking waste of time. Everyone packs their kids off each morning for someone else to raise them while they sit in an office looking at spreadsheets, and for what?

 

[NGT]

It's funny. But I've noticed too that a lot of Americans have a piss poor attitude about travel. Not just ones who have lampooned themselves with families and kids. But ones who are a bit more untethered in that respect have this mindset of "work work work." Be off on the weekends, avoid being sick, and take your paid leave in a fat check at the end of the year. It's a work first live second lifestyle. I've found Europeans have a mindset of live first work is an afterthought. And I find this is truly a better way to spend time. I get 5 weeks of paid leave every year. And I use every last bit of it to go places, see things, and get around. We are going back to Italy in May, I always go and visit my mother at some point during the year. But we've also got plans to see Austria, or maybe Switzerland this year. As soon as I get back to work when one holiday has ended I book a flight somewhere else in a few months. I don't want to be known when I retire as a good employee, who never took a day off. I want to be that guy who was always planning his next adventure on company time.

well, i get 3 months off, with the same money as a work month, but that doesn't mean i have extra money for a family of 4 to go very far. Shit, i just want to drive 4 hours to the snow and that's a pain because i have to buy chains. When you're a parent, priorities change. Or at least they should. I want my son to get a dirt bike, learn to ice skate for hockey, and go to a good school. That stuff isn't cheap. Stability. We're a single income family and if work came second, we'd be homeless or at least less well off. It's not about me enjoying my life, although i do, but rather my kids having chances to do things and experience things here, while they're still kids and choosing a life path.

 

[wyo]

It's the standard race to the bottom. It starts with a few people doing it, and they end up with the spending power that everyone else wants so they join in. All that means is prices go up and it becomes a necessity to live a normal life rather than something to live an exceptional lifestyle.

Same thing happened with the revolution of women going to work. Now most women work, all families have greater spending power so family homes went up in price to swallow this spending power, thus making it all a big fucking waste of time. Everyone packs their kids off each morning for someone else to raise them while they sit in an office looking at spreadsheets, and for what?

Good points but don't overlook the effect of low interest rates on housing. Rates have been extraordinarily low for well over a decade. Combine that with relaxed down-payment minimums and other than for a year or two after the 2008 crash there has been continual upwards pressure on house prices. Most people buy homes based on the monthly payment they can afford, not the price of the house.