Comments on: Places that Fit and Places that Don’t

By: Becca

Becca — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 17:56:11 +0000

Hands-down: Italy. I must have been una principessa italiana (an Italian princess) in another life. It just felt right.

By: Fly Girl

Fly Girl — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 14:27:01 +0000

That’s a really insightful post. I’ve never thought of places fitting me in those terms but it makes sense. I loved the architectural and pastoral beauty of Switzerland and Austria but those places and cultures don’t fit me. Too exact and too neat. Italy however, from the hand-driven speech patterns to the fashion sense, is totally me. I’ve had to tear myself away every time I visit and every time I go, there’s no guarantee that I’ll come home. Florence, Rome, Venice, Naples, it doesn’t matter, it’s all me.

By: Nomadic Matt

Nomadic Matt — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 16:20:57 +0000

It’s amazing how intuitive we are with places sometimes…..you just see it and you know it fits….when i stepped onto the champ elysee, i knew paris and i would get along….i hadn’t seen any of it but i just knew…. i think when you go travel, you’ll get in tune with the vibes of places easier and you’ll begin to have this feeling a lot (amsterdam is like that for me!).

I love sweden too. i especially love how everyone is beautiful there. i’m the ugly duckling when i go but at least people are nice!

maybe after this little RTW, you’ll end up back in sweden…that wouldn’t be so bad, especially if you winter in greece

By: Dahab

Dahab — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:48:52 +0000

Great post. This feeling of finding home away from home is always hard for me to explain to my more homebody friends/family. Many people don’t understand feeling at home in a foreign culture. Maybe it’s because I never felt truly at home in the place where I grew up, but I’ve felt it many times since then. I can usually tell within the first 2 days whether I’ll truly “click” with a place. It’s like a deep-seated nostalgia, a deja vu almost, like my soul belongs there. It always surprises me a bit when I get that familiar feeling. Other places are fantastic, and I might have a wonderful time there, but I just know that they’re not it. I tend to categorize places I’ve been according to where I want to travel back to (pretty much everywhere), where I think would be interesting to live for a brief time (also a very long list), and places that could be a true home (a short list of 5-6 places).

By: Cris

Cris — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 10:56:24 +0000

Wow, finally I could stop for a few minutes and read it all. Travelling makes us busy, and we don’t have internet all the time. I don’t know how you guys can manage it all.
But going to your point, this post is sooo true. I am still beginning my journey and I’ve already realized that will be so many places that I will fall in love and say “I want to LIVE here”.
And there are other places that I was expecting to say this, because so many people talk about it, and it becomes a disappointment.

I guess we tend to fit to countries that reminds us our home country. Even if in only small details. But I think we always need something that feels like home.. to have this sense of belonging.
It’s not easy to live in a place where you feel all the time that you don’t belong there.

By: Sarah

Sarah — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 20:36:51 +0000

WOW I envy these people. I don’t feel like I’ve traveled in any one country (other than the US) long enough to really determine whether or not it was a good fit. I’ve felt really good in Canada and Austria, but I have probably only spent a total of a week in each place so it’s probably not fair to say.

I do love this post, though. There really is a difference when you leave a place–”did you like it, or did you LIKE it like it?” Do you want to visit again sometime when you have a week, or do you want to set up a bank account and unpack your things for a while?

I would unpack in Boulder, New York, Phoenix, Asheville, or San Francisco in a heartbeat. I look forward to exploring Europe soon and being able to answer your question a little more honestly.

By: yeson2

yeson2 — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 18:41:53 +0000

LOVE this post.

Italy and parts of Canada fit like a glove. I’m smitten. Love to spend more time in France.. magical. Love to visit Germany.. met a lot of Germans while traveling and they’ve been so nice.

I always thought New York would be the place for me.. that I’d fall head over heels… but strangely… it just didn’t feel right. DC… never again!

By: Anthony

Anthony — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 15:18:45 +0000

Perfect timing for this post on my departure from Brazil! I spent 30 days there and once I made it to Uruguay, where I`m at right now, I would much rather go back to Brazil. I didn`t understand the language in Brazil, but I left fascinated by its foods, culture, people, music, beaches, girls… I guess I`m all too familiar with the way the rest of latin america is and being in Uruguay for just over a day I realize that I preferred not understanding a language and being forced to learn it than being in a country where I speak the language and somewhat familiar with the culture already, even if slightly different than other latin american countries.

Brazil though, Brazil is something else and if it isn`t on your itinerary, I`d say try to squeeze it in, even if briefly.

By: Audrey

Audrey — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 14:40:27 +0000

When my husband and I decided to move to Europe in 2001, we spent a month on a “research trip” to test whether all the places we liked as tourists would really be the right fit for us as residents. In the end, only three of the seven cities really “felt right.” We took into consideration cost of living, ease of visas, and job opportunities, and chose Prague, Czech Republic. Our original plan was to stay 2-3 years, but ended up leaving after five years.

One of the goals of our RTW journey is to find our next “home;” we’re keeping track of all the places that feel right. Like Sara, China’s not on that list. But, Bangkok, Saigon and Singapore are.

Sweden is wonderful. I remember my first visit to Stockholm in February 1999 blew me away – such friendly people even in the midst of winter!

By: Laura

Laura — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 14:29:24 +0000

As much as I love France it’s one of those places where I feel like I could never fit in. I loved Slovenia and have always felt comfortable in Prague. Of course I feel comfortable in Germany too (so predictable!) and I really enjoyed Sweden for the few days that I was there. I think a lot of it has to do with how friendly the people are in a place