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After the big trip They came, went... and did it! But where are they now? DID that big trip change their lives? What to do with all the travel experience and how to use it? How to get a job afterwards! Was the trip the best - or worst - thing you ever did?
Photo by Marc Gibaud, Clouds on Tres Cerros and Mount Fitzroy, Argentinian Patagonia

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Photo by Marc Gibaud,
Clouds on Tres Cerros and
Mount Fitzroy, Argentinian Patagonia



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  #1  
Old 20 Mar 2011
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I can sympathise

Hi Xander, You are not alone in Perth.

I arrived from the UK on my KTM 640 about 4 months ago and have also set up home here. I was offered a job as an engineer and since I only just graduated before my trip really need the experience to have any future chance of working in engineering, thus i've settled here for a bit.

1 month after I arrived another friend fron Norway on hist 640 turned up.

A month ago another friend from the UK on his 640 turned up.

There are now 3 KTM overlanders here in Perth getting up to the same no good that we always have across 3 continents. Breaking down at every other traffic light, leaking oil and trying to score girls.

We are very good at the first two.

We went for a ride south over the last bank holiday weekend with some other bikers that arrived here. My bike did what it had done during my trip, ran badly and leaked. Another KTM broke down for a change. It was good to be back in the saddle for a bit but we're all in agreement, there are worse places to be and Perth is a relative paradise. We hit the beach every weekend.

We all live pretty close to Fremantle which is a bit of a hippy bohemian place, just like some of those backpacker places in SE Asia and India. If you want to meet some travellers, head down to South Beach and camp in the park there. We are even considering staying in a hostel occasionally to meet some folk.

I'm glad I'm being kept busy at work. I do occasionally have 'flashbacks' of random parts of my trip. A desert road in pakistan I had forgotten about or a long forgotten meal.

It's funny how despite how upset and lonely and generally p*ss*d off riding alone through india I was, I miss the place though.

Maybe I'll travel again in a few years. My life mantra has changed since my trip though. I don't see the point in owning anything I can't get onto the back of a bike.

I've finally had enough of my beast of burden that has carried me halfway around the world and put a deposit down on a shiny new one. It feels like I'm cheating in some way.

Anyway enough rambling. Basically I was gonna post and say give us a call if you fancy meeting up with a bunch of over egoistical Katoom drivers and we will hit the bush.

As someone mentioned though, bacon is a good rememdy for most things....

Duncan
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  #2  
Old 24 Mar 2011
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Feeling funny

been there ,felt that too until I then realised that what we are missing is not the trip itself but the way we felt while travelling and living on the road , we can feel the same no matter where we are and what we do and we just have to look at the feeling and look for it itself and no think that the trip is what make us feel good ( was that clear or ....), I often dream of my futur trip or remember my past ones but I do not let these dreams become my life ,I just live my dream life about every single day ,on the road or not .
.

Hope this help.

PS :it maybe easy for me since I am going away on the road in September and that my house is in Florida just 3 mn from the beach and that I have coffee in my pool almost everyday and...........
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  #3  
Old 24 Apr 2015
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DuncanCarwright View Post

There are now 3 KTM overlanders here in Perth getting up to the same no good that we always have across 3 continents. Breaking down at every other traffic light, leaking oil and trying to score girls.

We are very good at the first two.


Sorry I had to...
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  #4  
Old 20 Jan 2013
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Sounds like you are also suffering from what they call "Culture Shock" I had it bad when I got home after 22 months, Some People, Most Things & Many Situations that I used to relate to no longer had the same relevance they used to, what kept me sane was planning the next big adventure... Remember, You've looked behind the curtain &/or took the Red Pill
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  #5  
Old 25 Apr 2013
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I got back home about 5 weeks ago after a 25month trip through the americas on my old XT and later, when I had to sell what was left of it, a smaller bike that I picked up in Chile.

I can´t possibly explain how incredibly bored I am with being back "home". Im working 40hours a week... learning new stuff... and everyone I meet, that somehow heard about my trip is telling me how awesome that sounds and how much they´d love to do something like that but they probably never will because of whatever reason.

Same with the sharing of my experiences. I think I´m a completely different person.. I took about 18.000 photos in those 2 years+, and I havent looked through any of them, and when people (even close friends) ask me to show them pictures I usually tell them I lost them (partly true) or that I haven´t bothered going through them yet.

Reading other peoples experiences on this seems to show that its gonna get better but right now living here seems so pointless. Just kinda felt like ... making progress or something ... getting somewhere... being able to just hop on the bike and leave... go somewhere else where youve never been.

Ah well... even thinking about deleting this after thinking about "replying" to this thread for a good 5minutes.

On one hand you´d think you´d become a more experienced/better/whatever person so the trip must´ve improved you somehow but then again if I wouldn´t have left I would´ve always kept looking forward to it but guess I woulda never noticed how pointless shit is here.

Worst is, tho, that for several reasons I know that I cannot travel again, for longer than 2 weeks at a time, for AT LEAST the next 4years. Gonna be interesting how I´ll get through that.

Oh, and it´s good to know that "it´s all in your head" but I think I´m somebody that doesn´t get any help from a statement like that. Not just because its so obvious but also because theres never really an explanation on how to get it out of your head, even though Im not entirely sure I even want it out of there....
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  #6  
Old 26 Apr 2013
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Quote:
Originally Posted by m22e View Post
I got back home about 5 weeks ago after a 25month trip through the americas on my old XT and later, when I had to sell what was left of it, a smaller bike that I picked up in Chile.

I can´t possibly explain how incredibly bored I am with being back "home". Im working 40hours a week... learning new stuff... and everyone I meet, that somehow heard about my trip is telling me how awesome that sounds and how much they´d love to do something like that but they probably never will because of whatever reason.

Same with the sharing of my experiences. I think I´m a completely different person.. I took about 18.000 photos in those 2 years+, and I havent looked through any of them, and when people (even close friends) ask me to show them pictures I usually tell them I lost them (partly true) or that I haven´t bothered going through them yet.

Reading other peoples experiences on this seems to show that its gonna get better but right now living here seems so pointless. Just kinda felt like ... making progress or something ... getting somewhere... being able to just hop on the bike and leave... go somewhere else where youve never been.

Ah well... even thinking about deleting this after thinking about "replying" to this thread for a good 5minutes.

On one hand you´d think you´d become a more experienced/better/whatever person so the trip must´ve improved you somehow but then again if I wouldn´t have left I would´ve always kept looking forward to it but guess I woulda never noticed how pointless shit is here.

Worst is, tho, that for several reasons I know that I cannot travel again, for longer than 2 weeks at a time, for AT LEAST the next 4years. Gonna be interesting how I´ll get through that.

Oh, and it´s good to know that "it´s all in your head" but I think I´m somebody that doesn´t get any help from a statement like that. Not just because its so obvious but also because theres never really an explanation on how to get it out of your head, even though Im not entirely sure I even want it out of there....
It gets easier after the first year or so

You will find a way to make those two week holidays turn into two month holidays... If you REALLY want to !
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  #7  
Old 23 Jun 2013
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still trying to get back to normal whatever that is

Its been 5 months since I got back after 4 and a half months on the road. Some things have changed, my expectations now are way beyond that of a week here or a week there.

It took me 6 weeks to get into it in the first place, I still had my head in work and other responsibilities. The shedding of worries about stupid work things and small stuff at home was the most liberating. The day then consists of finding food petrol and somewhere to stay, in the meantime having a simple purpose of heading in a general south east direction.

Now I have all those small stupid things to deal with again. This time, though, I know what to expect in future but I still feel rather down with normal life.

Another thing, after living this way for only a few months you'd expect to be able to share it with many people, this is sometimes not the case as not many are really interested in the adventure. As my mate said, "they ask you about your holiday so they can tell you about theirs"! Not many go on 4 month holidays. Despite this I occassionally get to relive some of it working on the video. Yes still working on it after 5 months. Next time I'm not taking a bloody video camera.

I have a picture of my bike in the desert in Pakistan on my screen at work. Not sure if this is a distraction to make me happy or getting me down.

Still counting down the days to the next one 677 days till Alaska to Argentina
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  #8  
Old 7 Nov 2013
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for those that took the red pill

My name is Peter and I am a recovering travel-holic...

Last trip, 9 months, 21 countries. I haven't added up the financial costs, but whatever the total, it was worth it. Adjusting to the post adventure life is difficult. Been back 4 months now, having spent large portions of that time looking for work. The energy and excitement to be back was slowly pushed down with struggling to find work. Started a consulting contract a few weeks ago, which could lead to a full-time position. I am very grateful to be back to work, but to be honest, I would rather be on the road again. Adventure travel will happen again, but its depressing to think it will be several years in the future before I can ride off into the sunset towards a new horizon. I guess its buck it up time.

Make a new goal and work towards it. I think that will help with my post adventure blues. I appreciate all the posts to this thread.
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  #9  
Old 9 Jun 2015
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Is there a reason you're not going?

Aside, Adventure doesn't have to be in a far away country suffering heat/cold and eating weird stuff. You can find new and fun stuff not far from home usually. Maybe not the same but is will sooth the adventure lacking heart

Take care!

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  #10  
Old 31 Aug 2015
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I was sad enough that I kept traveling. I have been on the road for 7 years so far. I have been about 150,000 miles in 60+ countries in Latin America (4 times), Europe, and Africa where I had to leave my wrecked DR650 after a head-on collision in Ghana. The only good news to my (latest) crash in Ghana was that the idiot driver was arrested and my DR destroyed his car as my head trashed the windshield.
As a retiree on a Social Security pension (at least until the Republicans take it away) I stay with friends, Couchsurf, and stay in cheap hostels. I save enough to usually fly back annually to see family.
What's next? I have some interest in riding around OZ, and maybe seeing a few parts of SE Asia that I have missed (Bhutan, Myanmar, Vietnam, & Laos again). Since I am older now, at 69, I will probably stick to Latin America.

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  #11  
Old 14 Sep 2015
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Inspiring .... come to India
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  #12  
Old 14 Sep 2015
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You can get a bike on hire for peanuts n travel cheaply in this most amazing beautiful country side.
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  #13  
Old 2 Oct 2015
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I've not did a big tour as such yet but I've been through depression, I had about three months of it can't say why it started and I can't say why for sure it went, but I can say what helped me was I gave up my time for free to coach a bunch of young kids football team that were getting beat by cricket scores every week to winning team, it gave me that well being knowing that I was Helping people in this case u10's.
As you say you have that spare time then that's something to think about.
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  #14  
Old 3 Oct 2015
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A good suggestion Lowrider
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  #15  
Old 5 Feb 2017
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Xander View Post
Is the chronic travel addiction that strong and is the only way to “be happy” now to travel constantly (i have always had a bit of the itchy feet but now....)? If so the next hub t-shirt should be…

Warning: Overlanding is highly addictive and there is no known cure…..



Yours lost in the known world
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According to ancient beliefs of Tuareg people, the only way to be free is to move from place to place all the time, according to them staying at one place for more than 40days can bring misfortune.

More about this you can find in Ibrahim al Koni books.
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