Spokane, Washington was a great city that I’ve never heard of. Don’t be upset too fast! To be fair, United States of America is a big country, and there are so many great places that I’d never have a chance to visit.
While I was traveling in Spokane, I felt something different inside; missing home. It’s not about me wanting to go back to my country; it’s the feeling that I’m missing having a home base. Having neighbours. Having a garden in my back yard. Having a pet. Having a place to go back. That’s ‘home’. As I often say in my bio, I’m in a quest to looking for a place that I can call ‘home’. There are plenty of definitions with the word ‘home’, and I have my own too. That’s the place I feel belong to, happy, and inspired. My last home was far from the definition. Hence, I left.
Our media group of Spokane said, the people from Spokane are coming back to settle in. I admit, Spokane is a charming place with beautiful nature. But that’s not just it; they are coming back because of the community. The homey feeling is what they are missing.
Not just Spokane, it is happening everywhere in the world. Surprisingly a lot of percentage of friends are going back to where they’re from and settle in with their family; with their spouse, pet and house.
I kind of understand what that feeling is.
The reason why I buy all the souvenirs on the road is because I want to have my own place in a beautiful neighbourhood someday. When I do, I want to have a vegetable garden, blueberry bush and a lemon tree. When I do, I want to have a dog or two. When I do, I want to hangout with good neighbours and participating the town’s activities. When I do, I want to decorate my place with all the souvenirs I got on the road. Just, I don’t have the place yet.
People often misunderstood me.
Me being on the road doesn’t mean that I want to be a nomad for rest of my life. I’m not made to be a nomad; I like to have a place I can call home. I’m a very sensitive and crafty person who likes cooking, crafting, decorating – basically anything that requires creativity. So, I like to have a place where I can cook, relax and have fun. I’m just having a different journey of the life right now. I appreciated what my brother, who’s a father of two sons, said me once; “having a kid and married life brings a joy but it’s different than what I’ll get on the road. So enjoy and live a full life doing what you like. “
The feeling crawled over me while I was housesitting for friends in Denver for a week. They have two most adorable dogs, grow vegetables in the back yard, have a big kitchen and live in a beautiful area. Domesticated life was good. And once again made me realized how great that is.
I can’t have everything at once. I can’t have a home, raise a kid, get involved with a community and traveling the world at the same time. There’s time and place, and there’s a consequences and process. But I will. I will have a house. I will find a part of the world that I want to live.
Going back to hometown is a big no-no or a comfort zone for some people. Hometown is easy and convenient. Being around the family is not as exciting as skydive in Africa but it’s great in some way. Family is a family for a reason. Especially if you grew up in a beautiful place that you love, why not going back?
That was the reason why people were coming back to Spokane.
That was the reason why a lot of people are actually going back to their hometown to settle down. I don’t know if I want to live in Seoul again, but I know that feeling. I was a little envious to people who grew up in Spokane. As a person who likes adventure and wildlife, I didn’t have that many memories related to that. So, I don’t want to repeat that again. But it would be great to live near my family. I know they’d love that.
Have you consider going back to your hometown and settle in?
#Photo credit:ashleyinzer
As a guy that came back to his hometown and got married, I can totally relate. Sure, I got out for a while, but eventually something pulled me back. Which is strange because the town I live in is one of those that everyone swears they are leaving the minute they graduate. I admit, I get a little tired of this place from time to time, but it’s still home…
Great post, Juno. I’ve not considered going back to my hometown specifically, but I have considered going back to the UK and settling down with my partner, and opening a noraebang there. I’m pretty independent in terms of I don’t get homesick much and I love exploring new places but, like you, I’m not built to be a nomad and I know I won’t be travelling forever. I like having a home base, my own sofa, my own bed, my own TV and a local coffee shop and supermarket.
Hey Juno, great post! I’ve been looking the longest time for a place where I would want to live permanently -one that has it all for me, but I think I’m giving up on that idea. I would love to live at different places at the same time -I feel at home at so many places by now, but that one place has never been among them. Until I was eight or nine, my family moved a lot, and before that, my parents had moved & travelled as well, so for me, there’s not really THAT house in THAT town that I can always return to. My parents have moved to Canada (they still spend a lot of time in Germany, though, where my family is from), but when I went to France, my dad said: “Yeah, I always wanted to live in France -that’s the life!”. Just two weeks before, we talked about Africa (where we actually did live for about two years) and he had said: “Yeah, I always wanted to live in Africa -that’s the life!”. And he moved to Canada because “I always wanted to live in Canda -that’s the life!”. So I realized that maybe I just want to live everywhere, too -for a while. And at one point I might settle somewhere -but that might be due to a change within me, not so much due to finding THAT place (although, like you, I have a picture in my head;)). It is definitely nice to have a base, though, right now here in France. And I think house-sitting is a brilliant opportunity to relax and have a home for a little while -so I hope you do enjoy it very much (how could you not -like when you get to be with cute doggies!!)! Best of times to you and always safe travels:D!
Of course I have plans but I don’t think it will be very soon. Cliche as it may sound, I still want to pursue my dream on my own and be as free as I wanna be with whatever I am doing. What I want is to be full satisfied and contented before going back to my hometown, because I promised to myself, when I go back, I’m not leaving anymore. 🙂 Thanks for always inspiring me, us, your readers. 🙂
Such a great post Juno! This is exactly why I’m not (nor have any desire to be) a full-time traveler – I LOVE my home. I want to travel as much as possible and see the world, but I also want a place to put my souvenirs, have friends and family over for dinner, and to chill with my dog. Whenever I dream of living abroad, I never dream of being a nomad abroad – it’s dreaming of having a new home-base abroad.
That said, I’m totally impressed and in awe of you and other travelers who live a nomadic lifestyle! It’s a lifestyle that I know would be difficult for a homebody like me…so I love living it vicarious through you 😉
Wonderful post! Especially since I’ve noticed that most people I meet end up settling in their hometown. And this doesn’t just apply to Americans. In the US, we have an attitude that everybody wants to live here, but I find that people from Poland or Albania or Romania or Sudan or Ethiopia or Bolivia all would rather settle down in their hometown or nearby. As a lifelong wanderer (at least 21 moves between my husband and I) I don’t understand it at all. Your post is getting me closer to it though. 🙂
To be honest, I usually perceive travelers like you to be full of adventures, always on the go, and stuff like that. I almost forgot that you could get tired too. 🙂 It’s so nice to know these facts about you wanting to settle down someday and live an ordinary life with extraordinary stories to tell your children and grandchildren in the future. 🙂
That is exactly what I did! I came back to Charlotte, which is where I grew up. 🙂
I wonder about this too. I would never move back to my actual hometown but that’s because it’s a tiny suburban town and none of my friends are there. It might be different if my parents were around. It is, however, possible I’ll return to London or to Bristol where Steve is from as we have lots of friends and family there. For the time being though, we are happy on the road. For me though, I think this is a lot to do with being in a relationship. When I was in Buenos Aires for five weeks, and Steve was in America with work, I really missed home and felt quite sure that one day I’d want to move back. Now though, that we’re together, that doesn’t seem like such a definite thing. It’s like the Edward Sharpe song says “Home is wherever I’m with you”. I hope you find a place to call home Juno. The lemon fee and blueberry bush sound idyllic.
Traveling around the world for a year made me appreciate home more… that’s party of the reason we settled back in New York City when we returned, to be closer to family and friends. I think everyone should travel for a year to have a new perspective on life and appreciate the little things (like a vegetable garden, dogs and even your own bed) when they get home 🙂
I love to travel, but I’m not one for being constantly on the move. Months and months on the road would drive me nuts. I like my little apartment in Korea. I’m getting itchy feet though which is why I’m going to France for 7 months (doing some travel in Europe on the side during vacations for a week or two at a time) and then New Zealand for a year. After that I might move back to the US, or I might not, but I’m *never* moving back to Alabama. I don’t mind going for visits, but I could write a book about how much I can’t stand living in that place. I won’t bore you with extreme detail but to sum up: 1) too many overly religious/conservative people (who get in your face about it), 2) no public transportation to speak of, and I hate driving, and 3) I’m sort of the black sheep of my family for not wanting to settle down, go to church, and have babies RIGHT NOW. And most of my good friends don’t live there anymore or are moving away soon too. I am close to my mom but, if I moved back to the states permanently, she would probably move wherever I did, even if it was on the other side of the country.
This is a very timely post for me! We have been in New Mexico and Alaska and everywhere in between for the last two years, and I have not stayed in my hometown longer than 5 months since I was 16 years old, but three weeks from now we are waving good bye to Alaska and heading home. I’m excited, but also nervous. Nervous because I guess I feel like if I go back there, I’ll never leave again. It’s a weird feeling, but for the most part I am really ready to be home and to be with my family again!
Have recently returned home to Auckland, New Zealand. Will be here a while, but whether it’s permanent I’ll just let time tell. Enjoying being back at the moment.
I’ve considered going back home and settling down on numerous occasions. To just simply write during the morning hours, surf in the afternoon & spend the evenings with my family…that would be the life to most people! But there’s just something about my spirit that keeps me going, exploring the world and wondering what else is out there. I’m still so young (only about to be 24) and I still have so much to see, do & learn that I just possibly couldn’t settle down quite yet. Like you said, there’s a time and place for that but at the moment it’s not now. Maybe in the future, but not now. 🙂
good article. I often think about this topic. I think people return home , where they grew up because its in the root of most people. You have a deep foundation of a lot of things, and where you are from has a lot to do with it. Also, another big thing is a lot of people leave their hometown in hopes of something bigger and better. The truth is the world and your environment is what you make it. You can run and hide and try to escape certain things and places, but if you don’t change what is going on inside of your head, you will never be happy. Perhaps people that move back to their hometown realize there or maybe they don’t. But where you grew up when you were born to like 10 years old has a place inside of you, whether you like it or not.