Today’s interview is with Wandering Earl (the name of the man and the site), a traveler who got bitten by the travel bug on Christmas in 1999 and hasn’t stopped moving since! After 10 years of traveling, Earl created his blog to share what he’s learned and connect with other “global citizens.” Plus, he’s been able to share stories about cruise ships, movie acting, mountain climbing, getting kidnapped, and 67 countries on 6 continents (so far).
Where are you today? How much longer will you be there?
At the moment I am in Perth, Australia, just wrapping up a two month visit to this wonderful country. In a few days I will flying out to Chiang Mai, Thailand where I plan to stay for another two months.
Wow – you have spent more than 11 years traveling. What do people say when they meet you and find out about that?
Usually, such conversations begin with an awkward moment as I struggle to explain my lifestyle and the other person struggles to understand it. People tend to ask me questions such as, “Let me get this straight, you are always traveling?” and “How do you earn money?” and after I give my answers, I am often told that I am living the dream lifestyle. Of course, I then try to explain that being a permanent nomad is not exactly one big vacation and that my life is full of more challenges than most would ever imagine. But nobody ever seems to believe me when I say that 
Earl passing through Panama Canal
How have your travels changed since you started your website two years ago?
As soon as I started my website, I realized that constantly moving around from country to country was no longer feasible. In order to dedicate a proper amount of time to my site, I needed to start traveling more slowly. So now, I typically alternate between 3-4 months of non-stop travel and 2-3 months of living in one location where I am able to catch up with work, improve my site and work on new projects that come my way.
What country do you wish people would experience more of?
India. I’ve always felt that India should be visited by every traveler who is interested in gaining a first-hand education through travel. And even though many people might not enjoy their visit to the subcontinent, no matter what the experience, it is impossible to travel to India without your life being affected in some significant way.
When are you planning on traveling to Africa, and what are you looking forward to doing there?
Actually, I am planning to travel to Africa later this year, hopefully starting in August or so. And as always, I won’t have much of an itinerary before I go. I prefer to pick one country, fly there and just begin my adventure, without knowing ahead of time where I’ll end up. With that said, Madagascar, Mozambique, Mali, Rwanda and Sudan are a few of the destinations that I am certain to visit at some point during my time in that part of the world.
Would you ever consider being a sponsored traveler? How would that change your blog?
This is something that I have spent a good deal of time thinking about lately. And if I did decide to participate in sponsored trips every now and then, I would only do so if I was certain that it wouldn’t change the core goal of my blog, which is to prove that a life of extended travel is not some crazy fantasy but a real possibility for many people. So, as a sponsored traveler, I would need to make sure that my posts continue to offer my readers interesting and useful information that comes directly from my personal experiences. If I am able to maintain my voice and writing style as a sponsored traveler, then I would definitely consider it.
How far ahead have you planned for your travels?
Not very far at all. I know I’m flying to Thailand in a few days and apart from that, I have only loose plans for the rest of the year. As I mentioned above, Africa is definitely on the radar, as is Central Asia, but in terms of specific dates, I haven’t worked that out yet. But this is normal for me and usually, I wake up one morning and realize it’s time to move on to the next part of the world and so I just book a flight and leave a few days later
Blogger Maria Walters
Maria Walters is a freelance writer from Portland, Oregon, USA, who has lived abroad for over a year and still hasn't seen enough of the world. While she's not traveling, she enjoys interviewing other travelers and hearing about their adventures!
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