Some thoughts as I complete my six-year backpacking anniversary with the launch of my third book, completing a trilogy.
I had also planned today, to also mark the end of my long-term travels! Yes, I had decided to stop travelling and settle down...more on that below.
2,191 days in other units of time is 72 months, 313 weeks, 52,584 hours or 3,155,040 minutes. I've used this before but find it amusing...Rodney, I guess I'm finally a millionaire, a minute millionaire!
In many countries, those in decent jobs receive a month of holiday per year...with my travels, I have completed 72 years worth. I say this not to brag, but to hopefully inspire readers to think outside the box and the office cubicle they sit in every day.
80 Words Book
My third book is also published today, which as always, is a marker to coincide with another travelling anniversary. It's available on my
Around the World with 80 Words website; as always, for free digital download.
This book, as my previous two, complete a trilogy greatly influenced by the unprecedented times citizens of the world have endured and lived through since the introduction of the Plannedemic and upcoming Plannedemic 2.0 for the winter 2025 season...more on that below!
My previous two books also available for free, can be found at my:
80 Questions and
80 Quotes websites.
Is this the end of my writing, far from it. I'm finding it hard to stop, as it's important to keep the mind active, especially when travelling long term. I will be concentrating on a photography book, which I had time while in India to getting closer to collecting the required photographs.
I have been working on taking/making photographs for over a decade, with my style of black and white street photography being well suited to my time in India...watch this space as I edit and allocate time to its completion.
Other Writing
I previously mentioned, my very long term plan to write a movie script. Having completed one-quarter of a script, I realised I needed to learn the art of this particular style of writing, which is very different to books. It makes sense to only start when I'm in the zone as writers say, which means being fully immersed in reading, watching and learning everything I can about this craft. Only when fully immersed can my writing start again. Back on the subject of writing books, it's strange, once you start, you begin to see other possibilities for other concepts and titles...a possible future trilogy has started taking form...watch this space.
Destinations
I finally managed to get myself to India after postponing my arrival due to covid restrictions. Fortunately, us Brits can avail ourselves to a stay of up to six months with a visa. My previous time In India was over 20 years ago, on a high-end, 21-day Kuoni Golden Triangle Tour, this time I backpacked...you can read a
summary of my time in India.
My choice of other countries I visited, was in the main, going back to familiar places, mixed with a few I hadn't been to for a while including Vietnam and Cambodia. Head over to my
itinerary to see all destinations visited during my six years of travels.
Costs
My costs in India were far below expectations, despite others telling me of higher prices due to inflation and lower tourism levels. Incredibly, I averaged under £483 per month covering absolutely everything. In other countries, my monthly average usually ranges between £600-900.
I hope to show readers, that travelling in a simple fashion, is highly affordable, together with it being a completely different experience especially when meeting other travellers and backpackers.
New Home
Readers may know, that my original plan was for a two year trip, when I got to 18 months, I decided to continue travelling indefinitely. After passing the 5-year mark, my idea was to reach 7 years as this seems to be a significant time frame in my life...I guess, it's the 7-year itch!
However, I found myself getting too comfortable, by returning to countries and areas I liked, rather than exploring new ones. In one sense, I was spending time and money to live instead of expanding my horizons and mind, which to some extent I had been fine with and doing for a while.
How did I know the time to settle down was correct? One indication was me starting to look at beds, furniture and other household items when in shopping malls in larger cities...deep down my body was telling me I needed my own bed!
One afternoon during a long walk on a beach in Goa, I started to explore the idea of curtailing my travels and instead putting the money I would have used, towards renting an apartment and settling down.
As the idea took hold, I started piecing together a possible plan and itinerary leading me back to London and onward to a new country I would call home. Readers may recall a prior article I wrote about
finding a new country.
My first choice was Dubai (UAE) and second, Valencia (Spain). After much deliberation I settled on Valencia. The weather is pretty much perfect all year round, with a mild winter season. It has a beach, perfect for my long daily walks and a great food scene. While not comparable to that of a huge city like London, it seems good enough, with a fair selection of international cuisine.
My initial idea was to simply rent a short-term apartment for 2-3 months while my visa application was processed. The Spanish Digital Nomad Visa is extendable for up to 5 years and also offers tax benefits. After much research, it looked like I would qualify, however, once I contacted solicitors, the fine print became my enemy.
These things happen to all visa applicants, where technicalities scupper even the best plans. Fortunately, I have a plan B which involves long term renting in other countries with me heading back to my favourite part of the world, South East Asia. I am actively looking to settle down but will wait until property prices continue their global downward trend in the face of the global depression unfolding before our eyes.
The best...
I often get asked what's the best country, city, beach, sunrise, sunset, people, food, budda, temple? The more you travel, the more you realise there is no best, there is no answer to this popular question...there is only different. Off course I do have favourites, but these are highly subjective.
Summarise...
Following on from what's the best, how do I summarise my 6 years of travelling? Only one word comes to mind......life-changing. I challenge anyone to travel for one whole year and not come to that conclusion.
It's quite difficult, not to be affected by people, cultures, customs and countries on this beautiful amazing planet. Long term travellers, often make life-changing decisions after a spell of travels as they realise there is so much more to this world than working as an employee in a cubicle.
Yes, we have to earn money in order to be able to travel, simply look outside the box to others and their innovative ways of earning an income or creating an online business which can be operated from anywhere in the world to enable indefinite travels. You can simply benchmark what others have done, or create your own solutions to solving the money equation, this information is out there and at your fingertips for you to find what works best for you...my path is unlikely to suit you...create your own.
Throughout my six years, I would estimate that I have managed to live on less than £800 per month on average...this includes everything. Flights, accommodation, food, drinks, excursions, buses, trains and internal flights. In the more affordable countries, this figure usually drops to £600 per month.
If you are fortunate to own a property in a popular city or even simply renting a room in a shared home, you can simply rent or sub-rent it out. This should provide enough funds for your travels...this is what I did for 18 months which covered my first two years of travels...think outside the box!
Other travellers I have met, usually save up some money while working, go backpacking and when their funds begin to run dry, head to countries such as Australia for a spell of casual work. Once their coffers are topped up, they hit the road again.
Future
I am often asked, if I am retired? I guess that's because I have grey hair, not working and travel full-time. My answer has veered toward saying yes, simply because I can't be bothered to explain my situation.
To classify oneself as retired, seems to me, to place a placard upon one's head, one which I don't see applying to myself. I now prefer to say, that I work for myself. Whether it's writing a book or putting effort into other fields within the arts takes time and effort. Whether or not a financial reward is made, I see as irrelevant, as it's what I chose to concentrate on.
The truth is, although I am not earning an income from employment, instead I manage my investments which provide sufficient funds to live the life I have created.
While I have truly been amazed and marvelled at my travels, I am equally looking forward to the next few decades...my future life. I have personal projects that I have placed on hold, simply because I need to have a fixed abode. By settling down, I can concentrate on them and give these my full attention and time.
While I have no way of knowing exactly how it will unfold, what I have got roughly planned, could well be one hell of a ride!
Covid-19
As always, I have left this subject until the end as everyone is tired of covid talk, feel free to tune out. However, I urge readers to read the latest information I detail below and its importance, however uncomfortable it may be to read.
I continue to meet brainwashed people, that refuse to even discuss the subject of covid. I suspect this is because they still truly believe to their core all the propaganda, or refuse to acknowledge the fact that there were conned.
One particular young couple from the Netherlands, I met on a day trip were both involved in the medical industry, one as a doctor, the other a lab technician. I was laughed at and ridiculed upon introducing a different version of events.
As I have written many times, I implore readers to carry out their own research as the truth is out there...Vaccine Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (VAIDS), Sudden Adult Death Syndrome (SADS) and Vaccine Associated Enhanced Disease (VAED) to name but a few.
Below is a summary of the very latest data from various studies carried out around the world.
In the UK, a whistleblower from the NHS, a former director for end-of-life care at one of the largest hospital trusts. Confirmed that hospitals made up Covid death numbers by adding together at least four different natural causes of death and calling these Covid-19 deaths. Also in the UK, official government statistics, show that those with disablities has doubled to 3.9 million cases since the introduction of the jabs in 2020.
Another report from the UK, by the Bennet Institute for Applied Data Science at the University of Oxford. Showed that amoung 1.7 million children in England, aged between 5-15, that had received a particular brand of covid injections, had suffered from myocarditis and pericarditis. Not a single unvaccinated child of the 1.7 million had these heart conditions.
The long-term consequences of the Covid jabs continue showing up in the data. The more jabs taken, the greater the risk of damage to one's health.
This set of data, relates to the example of a 30 year old man. Taking 1 jab steals 13 years of life, 2 jabs = 18 years, 3 jabs = 20 years, 4 jabs = 23 years and 5 jabs robs a 30 year old man of 24 years of future life.
Researchers in Japan, analysing 3,071 scientific papers on Covid-19 vaccine side effects, discovered 201 diseases more likely among the vaccinated. The data and evidence is overwhelming, as governments the world over, continue the cover up to what will eventually be known as, the biggest crime against humanity.
The Australian Government, after a Freedom of Information (FOI) request, released a 78 page report on Covid Vaccine batch tests. Every single word in the report was blacked out.
Meanwhile in Germany, leaked documents from its health agency revealed that top government officials knew the experimental mRNA jabs were dangerous but pushed for vaccine mandates anyway. Furthermore, a German peer-reviewed study revealed, the jabs caused the immune systems of children to be demolished.
In another recently published study, the jabs caused irreparable damage to the heart, brain, blood, immune and reproductive systems of recipients. Furthermore, a Forsa Institute report indicates that over one in six Germans have experienced side effects from the jab.
In Slovakia, Peter Kotlar, a government commissioner investigating the pandemic, come to the conclusion that mRNA injections are dangerous and should be banned, while also pointing out the pandemic to be an "act of bioterrorism" and a "fabricated operation".
The Dutch couple mentioned, together with billions, will one day wake up to have their world view shattered to the horrors committed, as they sleep walk into a new dystopian and tyrannical world, that their children will have to live in, either due to their stupidity, or compliance.
A recent report from the US showed that 1 in 4 Americans, know someone that had died suddenly (Sudden Adult Death Syndrome - SADS), directly attributable to a covid jab. Another huge report, over 500 pages in length covering 125 countries, concluded that the deaths attributed to "Covid" were in fact due to lockdowns and the jabs themselves...let that sink in.
In another worldwide study, it found there were no excess deaths due to covid, however there were 16.9 million vaccine-associated deaths up to the end of 2022.
At some of the largest insurance companies in the US, they have seen a surge in sudden deaths among jabbed adults. The amounts paid out have been the highest since 1918.
Meanwhile in Argentina, researchers have identifed 55 undeclared toxic chemicals, including arsenic, in the vaccines. These carcinogenic toxins induce organ damage, even at low exposure levels.
I urge readers to search online, for detailed documentaries split into three parts: Vaxxed I, II and III to further advance their knowledge.
I take no joy in reporting these statistics, these are the facts, not conjecture, not speculation and not some sort of conspiracy theory.This is where we are due to letting those in power do this to us through our acquiescence and not wanting to rock the boat by asking simple questions.
I refer readers to Quote number 5 from my
80 Quotes website & book.
"For we are all fools, for we have all been fooled, the ones too proud to see, the greatest fools of all".
Those in power are actively putting the pieces of the puzzle together for Plannedemic 2.0. The next pre-planned pandemic is on the way...this time monkey pox, known by the narrative mpox. Are you ready to obey your masters once again...testing, house arrests, distancing and forced vaccinations.
Yes you read that right, in some countries (Australia, New Zealand and Northern Ireland), they have/are putting in legislation forcing mandatory jabs using the police/army to forcibly jab people against their free will. They will have the power to detain, isolate and put into prison and use force to make you take the jab. They will then bring in the mandatory carrying of vaccination cards without which you cannot function as a human being...welcome to 1984.
I am not a clairvoyant or someone with supernatural abilities that can see the future. I read and research alternative media, to know the truth, rather than beLIEve what I am told...I hope some of my readers may be interested enough to do the same. The first Plannedemic was a trial run to see what citizens would put up with. Plannedemic 2.0 will be the real deal, to change societies forever with tyrannical controls.
The way I live my life today is by facing the truth, however ugly, only then can I stand a chance of navigating a path through the murky waters. I wish all my readers well and hope to see many of you in the years to follow...signing out for now.