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How Do We Choose Our Next Destination As Digital Nomads?
Digital Nomad

How Do We Choose Our Next Destination As Digital Nomads?

Author Alex Swallow Date July 24, 2017
We are enjoying Budapest so far. I found my favourite wine in the world...
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We’ve had a great time living in Prague. Some of the highlights of our time here have included: - Nisha being on a list of the top 50 people in Britain helping make the country happy! - Nisha also being interviewed in a national magazine! - Enjoying the beauty of the city- the Charles Bridge is my favourite and finding a vineyard in a city park was rather special. - A trip to Pilsen- and the brewery, on my birthday. - Going up a cable car for lunch- in a hotel! We are just about to move to our next destination- Budapest! I have written about it here. I wanted to write about a topic that I was thinking about on the way to the airport in Lisbon- what makes a place home and what does home mean for me? There are many wonderful things about being a digital nomad. One of the ones that can be a little difficult to get used to is constantly saying goodbye to places. I am an outgoing, confident person. I can also be a bit of a homebody. Like most people, my idea of home has changed and expanded over the years. Growing up I had one home, in Brighton with my family. We always lived in the home I grew up in and my parents and sister are still there. Here’s an article by my dad. Now, I feel I have 3 homes: 1- The home I grew up in. 2- My in-laws house, the home my wife grew up in (I’ve actually been lucky enough to live there for a number of months). 3- Wherever I happen to be living- this has so far included Cambridge, Romania, Japan, all over London, Las Palmas, Berlin, Lisbon and Prague- by the time we move to Budapest that will be 10 cities overall- and maybe nearly 20 different places I’ve lived in those cities that I could call home for a little while. Plus of course I’ve been to a lot of other places for holidays that had a sense of home and security for a short amount of time. For me there are two things that now make a place feel home: 1- Home is wherever my wife happens to be- as long as she and I are safe, that place feels like home. 2- Home is where something, however small, feels familiar. If I had to say which city feels most like my home- I would say I feel most like a Brightonian (person from Brighton). It is the place I have lived longest and most identify with so far. Despite that I have loved things about every place I have ever lived. What makes somewhere home to you? Here are some of the things that I’ve found matter to me- and I’ve especially noticed as a digital nomad: Having a place to lay your head that doesn’t change every night? Having a familiar bed, familiar lighting or familiar sounds around you can make a difference. Having some material things that you like around you? While I don’t consider myself a minimalist person or particularly try to live a minimalist lifestyle, living as a digital nomad this happens by necessity. For example, for this trip we left in February. For that, I brought two bags with me. One large rucksack, one laptop bag. I think I have only one ‘luxury’ item that I take with me. Rather randomly, it is a very large plastic ice cube tray- one of the coolest (both figuratively and literally) things I’ve ever been given. The main material thing that I think makes me feel settled is having the means to make coffee where we live. This has ranged from proper coffeemakers in some places to a jar of instant, an electric kettle and a mug right now. Knowing some people locally? By knowing people I don’t mean that they have to be your best mates. It can be as simple as someone in a local pub or restaurant recognizing you as you go in. Just some small feeling that you aren’t entirely a new person to all the locals around you. Feeling like an ‘insider’ in some way? It makes me proud for example when a tourist asks me for directions and I can actually be helpful- especially if they mistake me for a local at first! Knowing a shortcut? I think Lisbon, for example felt a lot more like home when we realised that we could get down the massive hill near us via one lift hidden at the back of the supermarket and another in a hollowed-out building! Knowing your way around? It is always a nice feeling when you have been in a place long enough that you start moving in autopilot. You are walking along thinking about something and you look up and you have got a lot further than you realised without worrying about where you were going. Feeling like you would be missed somewhere? I think that this is one of the most difficult ones to achieve. You would probably only be missed in a place once you have put down some roots and I haven’t put down deep roots in many places I have lived, especially not as a digital nomad. As a digital nomad it isn’t a good idea most of the time as you would miss places that you are leaving too much! What does home mean to you? If you are a digital nomad how has it changed your appreciation of home?
Digital Nomad

How Being A Digital Nomad Helps Me Think About The Idea of ‘Home’

Author Alex Swallow Date July 14, 2017
We’ve had a great time living in Prague. Some of the highlights of our...
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Two Tips on How to Save Money in Lisbon but Still See the Sights
Lisbon

Two Tips on How to Save Money in Lisbon but Still See the Sights

Author Nisha Kotecha Date June 12, 2017
Lisbon isn’t an expensive city compared to London, but it has still been fun...
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Food And Drink You Have To Try In Lisbon
Lisbon

Food And Drink You Have To Try In Lisbon

Author Alex Swallow Date May 10, 2017
In my opinion, this is the food and drink you need to try in...
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Comparing Different Countries When Living Abroad
Lisbon

Comparing Different Countries When Living Abroad

Author Alex Swallow Date April 11, 2017
One thing that I find I often do when I live abroad is to...
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Lisbon- an exciting place to be in 2017
Lisbon

Lisbon- an exciting place to be in 2017

Author Alex Swallow Date March 7, 2017
I am very happy to report that we are now in Lisbon! This is...
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Introducing The Moments Journal – Perfect For Digital Nomads
Uncategorized

Introducing The Moments Journal – Perfect For Digital Nomads

Author Nisha Kotecha Date December 1, 2016
  We are in London at the moment, working hard and deciding what our...
Tagged Digital Nomads, The Moments Journal | Leave a comment |
Charities in Berlin
Berlin

Charities in Berlin

Author Nisha Kotecha Date October 12, 2016
We really like finding out about charities and social enterprises. When we were in...
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Join 1000 Digital Nomads (for free!)
Digital Nomad

Join 1000 Digital Nomads (for free!)

Author Alex Swallow Date October 1, 2016
Are you interested in the biggest group for digital nomads and location independent people...
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Working As A Digital Nomad In Berlin
Berlin

Working As A Digital Nomad In Berlin

Author Alex Swallow Date September 4, 2016
It’s been really interesting learning about a few different places to work in Berlin,...
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