When you plan to not plan anything

"Every start upon an untrodden path is a venture which only in unusual circumstances seems sensible and likely to be successful."

I recently got back from my 45-day vacation to Australia. It was a solid trip. Nothing like I imagined, and expected it to be. For one, I met my wife on this 45-day trip. We weren't expecting that to happen so suddenly now were we!? And then there were other things, which now, don't really matter.

The trip is history. I believe every journey teaches you something new. This one taught me to smile. It taught me to have few friends in life that will stand by you, no matter what you do, or where you go. But have those few friends. It taught me that life, luck, and fate never give up on people, even though people might give up on them. And that there is no greater pleasure in life for me than to travel, without a tomorrow in sight.

It's been just about 20 days since I got back. What do you know... I work so I can earn enough to travel. For me travelling is the sole point of life, marriage or no marriage.

I may have been inspired by The Motorcycle Diaries. But the next trip I'm planning after about six months of saving my ass off, can shake the daylights out of anyone. Doha (Qatar) to Istanbul (Turkey). Sounds fairly simple. But this one's all the way by road.

To add to it, no car, no bike. Just me and the road. I won't walk it, sure. But to be honest, I don't know.

We're talking about going right across Qatar, from Doha diagonally, enter Saudi Arabia, travel right across Saudi, enter Jordan, cross Jordan, enter Syria, through Syria enter Turkey, and then diagonally upwards to Istanbul, where I'll meet up with those few friends, who're very comfortably flying, after a Europe trip.

Lets add a bit more punch to this whole thing. No bookings, not for a hotel, not for a bus, no schedule. Just a map, my backpack and my sleeping bag.

People here ask me, where next. I tell them Istanbul... by road, I add... hitchhiking I further add. Their jaw drops. It takes a lot of balls to do that, they say. Not a lot I say... just two are perfectly enough.

Why would I want to do this, they ask.

It's because flying to a destination is what everyone does, it's easy, it's comfortable... and it's not fun.

How long will I be on the road before I touch down at Istanbul... I have no idea. It's just a rough guess... anywhere between 15 to 30 days, it all depends on who I meet where.

I travel... to travel. I travel... to live.