Adult Gap Year 2023

With only a couple of months left of 2023 it’s safe to say it’s been a pretty epic year of travel for me. Well, not just me, 2023 seems to be the year we needed. The world is recovering from pandemic border closures and travellers are feeling fearless again with the knowledge they can book a flight and it won’t be cancelled! 2023 has even seen China open its borders for the first time since March 2020. Things are looking up.

After four years of travelling Australia by van I knew I was etching closer to the time when I would ultimately settle down and hang up my nomadic hiking boots. Don’t you worry though, this isn’t me announcing my retirement from a life of fun filled travel adventures. Whether it will end up being the final digital nomadic hoo-ha or not 2023 has been and is continuing (I’m writing this mid travels) to be a year of worldly adventures. I have already travelled to 20 countries in Asia, the Middle East, Europe and North America. It’s been a crazy whirlwind of destinations that feels somewhat overwhelming when I look back and see where I’ve been already this year.

I have had what I call an “attainable bucket list” for quite some time. I use this list to detail everywhere I want to go and the activities I want to do, but I always ensure its places that I can actually get to at some time in the not-too-distant future. This 2023 trip definitely ticked off some of my bucket list destinations. I visited Japan, specifically Tokyo and Kyoto and these were spots that had been on my list for a long time. There’s something so rewarding about finally visiting a place you’ve been wanting to check out for what feels like an age. The same can be said for Iceland too. After I travelled to Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan, Vietnam and Singapore I started my journey to Europe. I visited places like Montenegro, Malta, Austria, Czechia, France, the UK, and the almighty Iceland. I’ve got a whole other post just about Iceland because it’s that epic it deserves to be showcased alone.

I’ve said it before and I will say it again. One of the best things about remote working and living a digital nomad life is the diversity. Take just a day of living and working in a van in Iceland. Just a single day can feel so different to the next day. My trip to Dubai was a crazy blend of old and new. I stayed in the Al Seef Heritage Hotel which feels authentic and old, yet the extraordinarily modern and imposing Burj Khalifa was just 10 km away. Then scale it up to this year, 2023, it’s been a juxtaposition of experiences that I am so grateful for.

If the past couple of years have taught us anything, it’s to always jump at every oppourtunity that presents itself. Here at Nomad More it’s all about doing things a little differently!