Comments on: Getting Stuck on the Road: How to Avoid It (or Embrace It)

By: Brooke vs. the World

Brooke vs. the World — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 10:01:24 +0000

Stuck is when you decide to take a job in UKRAINE and then regret said decision, but still feel obligated to continue on bc you said you would…. but, I’m not really stuck and I realized that not long ago. I definitely have a tendency to spend more time in places than I thought I would. I was only planning on going to Central Asia for 3 months and ended up staying 5. I spent 5 weeks in the Baltics when I had only planned for half that time. But, I like this route. Fastpacking all the time is just NOT for me

By: Marco Bressan

Marco Bressan — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 02:38:56 +0000

In my opinion being stuck in a place happens after 2 months you’re in that place, and at the moment I’m stuck in Sydney, AU. The world is too big and there are too many things to see to stop in one place for more than a couple months, especially if you’re in a big city, which is the same everyday. The thing is, traveling is expensive, no matter how slow you do it, and sometime it’s ok to get stuck somewhere to cash up and take your time.

By: brian from nodebtworldtravel.com

brian from nodebtworldtravel.com — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 15:39:06 +0000

You’re never ‘STUCK’ if you want to be there. Stuck is being in Thailand during the protests or grounded for days because of snow. You’ve made a carefully considered decision to slow down and enjoy something longer than for a few days. Nothing wrong with that.

By: Nora

Nora — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 00:34:15 +0000

Thank you for the comments, everybody!
I am pleased that fellow travelers concur that slow travel can be beneficial.
Here’s to “getting stuck” once in a while!

By: Ciel

Ciel — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 17:40:49 +0000

Great one Nora!! This is what you do so well. We were “stuck” in Scotland for a year once and seem to continue to be there in our minds, constantly fighting the urge to return before we have checked at least a few more places off our ever growing list. We are, joyfully, somewhat stuck in Mexico at the moment although recently made a commitment to ourselves to move on in September. Now the question is will we next be tempted to get stuck somewhere in Central or South America, Italy, Greece, or New Zealand? Only time and the value of the dollar will tell.

By: soultravelers3

soultravelers3 — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 14:58:32 +0000

I enjoyed this post as only a long term traveler can. We are a family on an open ended tour and love slow travel.

I think we have found the best of both worlds by traveling slowish for 7 months out of the year via land, mostly using an RV combined with lots of mass transit & ferries or freight ships across seas.

Then we return to a tiny 15th century village to immerse deeply which works fantastic as a family.

We have done 4 continents & 29 countries so far on our 3rd year of these travels, but have been focused on Europe primarily, the icons and the hidden places not often traveled.

We plan to do similar style as we hit other continents for long stays.

It is interesting that the more one travels the more one sees how large the world is and how small!

Sadly, in one life time, one can not REALLY see it all, but we are giving it our best shot…slowly but surely.

By: Jody Broyles

Jody Broyles — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 12:24:58 +0000

My husband, Bobby, and I started out from the States on a journey to Tierra del Fuego over 15 years ago. So far,we have gotten only as far south as Ecuador. Our journey has given us the opportunity to live and volunteer in practically every Latin American country along the way. We’ve been in Ecuador now for 4 years, but have lived in two completely different places and intend to stay as long as we are happy and contributing to the community. I guess that’s why we are known as “The World’s Slowest Travelers”!!!!

By: Amanda Kendle

Amanda Kendle — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 09:11:18 +0000

I don’t think you’re “stuck” until you stay somewhere five years or more. And I also have a theory that at a minimum, you need two years to get to know somewhere well (in the second year you finally get to do all the seasonal things you heard about in the first year, but too late to do them). And if you’re “stuck” with the intention of having a base to travel the region from … well, I don’t think that’s stuck at all!

By: Audrey

Audrey — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 02:23:32 +0000

I like the concept of getting stuck while traveling. I often tell people that when we started our round-the-world journey we thought we’d be around the world in 12-18 months…and then we got stuck in Asia for 18 months. People look concerned at first, “Stuck?!” as if we had concocted some strange disease that kept us from leaving. I explain that we were pleasantly stuck, we wanted to explore and dig deeper and had the flexibility to do so.

I love one-way tickets, too.