Simon je nomad podrijetlom iz Australije. Svoj san je počeo ostvarivati prošle godine. Ako ste čitali putopis “Madagaskar” znate nekoliko crtica iz mog osobnog susreta sa Simonom. Njegova priča mi je divna i željela bih ju podijeliti sa vama. Napravili smo jedan intervju na daljinu.  Možda će neke inspirirati ili ohrabriti da se otisnu i krenu na put kao što je to učinio i Simon.

Blog:http://thenomadicdiaries.wordpress.com/2014/05/07/moderately-awesome/

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/thenomadicdiaries?ref=ts&fref=ts

1. Otkuda si i što si radio u “prošlom” životu, prije nego što si postao nomad?

Dolazim iz velike zemlje Oz, iako nisam čarobnjak. Odrastao sam u Melbourneu, a živio u malom ljetovalištu Lorne na Surf Coastu, jugozapadnoj obali australske države Victoria, gdje sam dvije godine robovao kao voditelj restorana i surfao u pauzama između smjena.

Postao sam nomad jer sam shvatio da sam još uvijek mlad (i relativno zgođušan) i ne želim čekati da postanem star i sijed, pa se tek tada upustiti u sve te divne pustolovine koje ovaj divan planet nudi. To… i da, nisam u stanju nigdje pustiti korijenje. Bolujem od neizlječivog svrbeža tabana (iskušao sam raznorazne kreme, uzalud), pa sam zato stalno u pokretu. I onaj stari klišej – “Život je prekratak.” Zato što fakat je.

2. Kako su tvoji prijatelji i obitelji reagirali kada si donio odluku da ćeš živjeti kao nomad?

Sretan sam što imam obitelj koja me podržava (premda me mama ponekad spopadne s pitanjem kada ću se skućiti i ona dobiti unuke). Pretpostavljam da su moji prijatelji sretni zbog mene. Puno ih kaže da bi i sami to željeli, što mi daje poticaj da nastavljam dalje i pokažem svima kako ne treba puno da bi se putovalo.

3.Koliko dugo si već na putu?

13.5.2013. sam u svojoj skromnoj krntiji (Hyundai Excel hatchback iz ’96.) krenuo iz Melbournea u bolje sutra, tako da se približavam punoj godini na putu (sitno brojim do urnebesne proslave prve obljetnice).

4. Koja ti je ruta i koje si sve zemlje dosad prošao?

Vozio sam 17 dana od Melbournea do Darwina kroz 5400 kilometra puste i suhe australske unutrašnjosti, zatim sam proveo dva mjeseca u Darwinu pokušavajući se ukrcati na brod za Indoneziju, nakon toga sam se prebacio preko arhipelaga do Singapura, gdje sam završio svirajući gitaru na vjenčanju. Nakon toga je uslijedila Malezija, gdje sam proveo dva tjedna na jugu, pa se dočepao Kuala Lumpura i tamo tjedan dana volontirao u džungli, u utočištu za tigrove pod okriljem organizacije MYCAT (http://malayantiger.net/v4/mycat).

Iz Kuala Lumpura mi je trebalo tri dana do Bangkoka autostopom, tamo sam se zadržao tjedan dana (ne sjećam se bogzna čega iz Bangkoka) i zatim stopirao na jug do Koh Samuia, pa do Koh Phangana na slavlje punog mjeseca, zatim nazad na Koh Samui i nakon toga do Phuketa, gdje sam upoznao kapetana broda koji sam ustopirao za prijevoz do Južne Afrike.

Jedrili smo dva dana otocima zapadne obale Tajlanda (testirali smo rade li motori, jer su pokazivali znakove borbe), a zatim je naša tročlana posada 18. 11. ostavila Tajland iza sebe i krenula prema Sri Lanki (do koje nam je trebalo 16  umjesto predviđenih 8 dana), gdje smo se zadržali 10 dana u gradu Galle na jugozapadu otoka.

Od tamo smo jedrili prema jugu do nenastanjenih otoka arhipelaga Chagos (dio britanskog teritorija indijskog oceana). Još jedno predviđanje od 8 dana pretvorilo se u 15 i počelo nam je nestajati hrane, pa smo ukrcali oko 50 kokosa s jednog otoka prije nego što smo se otisnuli prema Madagascaru.

Zbog istanjenih zaliha napravili smo 24-satnu pauzu u Agelagi na Mauritiusu (nakon još 13 dana na moru), gdje smo se opskrbili prije 6-dnevnog jedrenja do otoka Nosy Be na sjeveru Madagascara.

Nakon toga smo plovili uz zapadnu obalu ovog afričkog otoka sljedećih mjesec i pol dana, zastajući na različitim otocima gdje smo hranili lemure i posjećivali gradove i zabačena ribarska sela, prije nego što je jedan član posade iskočio iz broda kako bi stigao do otočja La Reunion. Zamijenio ga je mladi par i u tom je sastavu naša četveročlana posada krenula u obilazak Rta dobre nade prema Cape Townu, Južnoafrička Republika.

5. Imaš li neke planove ili se naprosto prepuštaš?

Napravim neki općenit plan, skicu mjesta gdje bih volio otići na kontinentu koji posjećujem, ali ustvari najčešće nemam pojma kako ću stići tamo, kojim prijevoznim sredstvom, hoću li putovati sam ili u društvu, ili bilo što takvo. I uvijek sam otvoren za promjene. Moram biti, s obzirom na to kako putujem.

6. Imaš li neka pravila kojih se pridržavaš na putu?

1. Nikada ne letim – osim ako je riječ o skakanju padobranom. Ili ako je to jedini način da pobjegnem iz mjesta gdje se ratuje (ili ako me proganja manično posesivna cura…i njezina obitelj).

2. Ostajem u zemlji onoliko koliko mi traje viza (dakle, ako je viza odobrena na tri mjeseca, ostajem 3 mjeseca). Ovo pravilo može se prekršiti ako odjednom izbije rat (ili me proganja manično posesivna cura…i njezina obitelj).

7. Koliki je tvoj budžet, kako plaćaš smještaj, hranu i ostalo? Radiš li tijekom putovanja ili imaš sponzore?

Nemam utvrđeni budžet. Trudim se trošiti do 10 australskih dolara dnevno (oko 50 kn), ali što manje trošim to bolje jer idem u smjeru razmjene rada za hranu, smještaj i prijevoz (ne volim novac). Obično couchsurfam kod lokalaca s obzirom da nisam ljubitelj hotela (kako inače okusiti lokalnu kulturu i način života ako sam zatočen u hotelu?)

Nedavno sam dogovorio dva sponzorstva, jedan je Ticket to the Moon, tvrtka smještena na Baliju a bavi se proizvodnjom hand-made hemoka, dali jedan na korištenje, te North Ridge, tvrtka iz Južnoafričke republike koja se bavi proizvodnjom backpackova, također sam dobio jedan na korištenje (ovaj koji imam je preogroman).

8. Što sve nosiš u ruksaku?

Dvoje kratkih hlača, jedne kupaće, dvoje gaća (uglavnom ne nosim gaće) , 3 majice kratkih rukava, 3 majice s kragnom, jedne trapezice, vunenu kapu, palestinku, šal, majicu s kapuljačom, šuškavac i topli kaput od ovčje kože, 2 ručnika od mikrovlakana, higijenski pribor, toaletni papir (suštinska stvar), krema za sunčanje, Leathermanov džepni nož i još jedan nož za ozbiljnija rezanja, par kondoma (nikad ne znaš), Lumixovu vodootpornu kameru, laptop, iPhone, 2 eksterna hard diska (jedan je back-up drugome), lampu i svoju najvrijedniju imovinu – putnu gitaru (upravo sam stavio nove žice na nju. Silno sam uzbuđen).

9. Jesi li ikad obolio na putu i poželio se vratiti doma?

Samo sam se koji put otrovao hranom (na Madagascaru nemojte jesti piletinu na ulici). Otkad sam postao nomad ne mogu nijedno mjesto nazvati domom. Cijeli planet doživljavam kao svoj dom. Ne sviđa mi se ideja granica, koje znače dijeljenje i ograničavanje. Ljudi su vrsta koja voli tumarati i sposobna je prilagoditi se bilo kojem okružju. Ja sam kao lik iz pjesme Paula Younga – gdjegod da položim šešir (glavu), to je moj dom. Htio bih se nastaviti kretati sve dok mogu – sljedećih 15 ili 20 godina. Puno je toga za vidjeti na našoj predivnoj plavoj kugli.

10. Tko je tvoj Muppet prijatelj i zašto ga furaš sa sobom?

Animal je bubnjar u Muppet bendu. Usvojio me dok sam bio u New Yorku kad je moj brat živio tamo (2002. godine). Išli smo u  zabavni park Six Flags u New Jerseyu i tamo sam ga spasio sa štanda gdje sam trebao sružiti piramidu od limenki gađajući je loptom. Furam ga sa sobom jer on kanalizira moje ludilo. I uz to je izvrstan bubnjar pa zajedno imamo jebene jam sesione.

11. Nedostaje li ti nešto iz “prošlog” života?

Fale mi povremena druženja s frendovima na večerama, tulumima, rođendanima, susreti s njihovom djecom, surferski izleti. Stalno dobijam pozivnice za događaje na Facebooku i srce me zaboli što ne mogu biti tamo ali, s druge strane, često susrećem predivne ljude na putu i doživljavam iskustva koja nikada ne bih ni sanjao da ću doživjeti da sam ostao doma.

12. Koje zemlje još planiraš posjetiti?

Iz Južnoafričke Republike kanim stopirati do Bliskog Istoka kroz Namibiju, Botswanu, Zambiju, Tanzaniju, Etiopiju i Djibouti. U Djiboutiju imam mjesec dana da pronađem brod s kojim ću preploviti Crveno more budući da je viza za Sudan 155 dolara (i preopasno je), a u Egiptu još nije pala odluka hoće li na vlast doći vojska ili još jedan diktator. Predviđam da će mi trebati dvije godine da stignem do Bliskog istoka.

13. Možeš li poručiti nešto ekipi koja želi putovati i treba im hrabrosti da učini prvi korak?

Bio sam prestravljen onaj dan kada sam napustio Melbourne. Ponavljao sam u sebi – “Kojeg vraga ja to radim?”. Ali strah je dio priče. Prigrli taj strah, duboko udahni i jednostavno učini prvi korak i kreni, jer u trenutku kada zatvoriš vrata za sobom, zatvaraš vrata svojim strahovima i slobodan si.

Ne dopusti da tvoji snovi ostanu samo snovi.

 

_____________________________________________________________

 

Simon is a nomad from Australia. He started to materialize his dream last year.

If you read travelogue “Madagascar” some of you know a few lines from my personal encounter with Simon. His story is awesome and i would like to share it with you. We did a ” long distance” interview. Perhaps some of you will be inspired or encouraged to hit the road as Simon did.

 

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/thenomadicdiaries?ref=ts&fref=ts

Blog:http://thenomadicdiaries.wordpress.com/2014/05/07/moderately-awesome/

 

1. Where are you from, what did you do in your “past” life and why did you become nomad?

I am from the great land of Oz although I’m no wizard. Melbourne-raised I lived on the Victorian surf coast of Australia in the small resort town of Lorne where I slaved away as a restaurant manager for two years, surfing between shifts and on my breaks.

I became a Nomad because I realised I’m still young (and relatively good-looking) and didn’t want to wait until I was old and grey to do all the adventurous things our amazing planet has to offer. That and I can’t really plant roots anywhere. My feet have a constant itch (I’ve tried various creams for) so I’m always on the move. And that ol’ cliche of ‘Life is too short’. Because it really is.

2.  What are the reactions of your friends and family regarding your way of life?

I’m lucky to have a supportive family (although my mother does throw in the occasional question of settling down and providing her with grandchildren). My friends are happy for me, I guess. A lot of them say how they wish they could do it as well which really gives me the drive to keep going and show everyone that you don’t really need much to travel.

3. How long are you on the road?

May 13th, 2013 was when I left Melbourne on my humble steed (a ’96 Hyndai Excel hatchback) for the great beyond so I’m coming up to a year soon (blacked-out celebrations to come).

4. What is your route and what countries did you visit?

I drove from Melbourne to Darwin through 5,400 kms of the Australian Outback over 17 days, I spent two months in Darwin looking for a boat to Indonesia and then made may way across the archipelago to Singapore where I ended up playing guitar at a wedding. Malaysia came next where I spent two weeks in the south and then made my way to Kuala Lumpar and volunteered for a week in the jungle in tiger conservation with MYCAT.

From Kuala Lumpar I hitch hiked for three days to Bangkok, Thailand, spent a week there (don’t remember much from Bangkok) and then hitch hiked south to Koh Samui, Koh Phangan for the full moon party and then back to Koh Samui and then to Phuket where I met the captain of the boat I was hitch hiking on to get to South Africa.

We sailed the islands of western Thailand for two days (to test if the engine was working as it was giving some signs of a struggle) and then on November 18th we departed Thailand with a total crew of 3 to Sri Lanka (which took 16 days instead of the predicted 8) where we stayed for 10 days in Galle in the south-west.

From there we sailed down to the un-inhabited islands of the Chagos Archipelago (part of the British Indian Ocean Territory). Another prediction of 8 days turned to 15 and we started to run low on food so we stocked up on about 50 coconuts from the island before sailing off to Madagascar.

Running low on supplies we made a 24-hour stop in Agelaga, Mauritius (after another 13 days at sea), to stock up before we continued sailing for another 6 days to Nosy Be in the north of Madagascar.

We sailed down the west coast of the African island for a month and a half, stopping in various islands to feed lemurs, visit cities and tiny, remote fishing villages before one crew member hopped off to get to La Renuion Island in exchange for a young couple, making it four crew for the rounding of the Cape of Good Hope to Cape Town, South Africa.

Crossing the Mozambique Channel was expected to take 4 days but heavy seas (12-14-foot waves) had us sailing for 12 days to Richard’s Bay, South Africa where we waited for 3 days for a huge storm to pass, then we sailed another 3 days and stopped in St Francis to hide from another storm for 3 days (why are storms always a 3-day event?) and then finally made a dash for Cape Town over 4 days to beat the next big storm (which would probably last for 3 days).

5. Do you make some kind of plans or do you just go with the flow?

I make a general plan, an outline of where I want to go to in the continent I visit but I don’t really know how I’ll get there or by what means or if I’ll be travelling alone or with company or anything. And I’m always open to change. You have to be the way I travel.

6. Do you have some rules while traveling?

I have two unbreakable rules which I can only break in case of an emergency;

1. No flying at all – unless it’s skydiving. Or the only means of escaping some war-torn place (or if I’m being chased by an overly possessive girl… and her family).

2. I must remain in the country I visit for the duration of the visa I’m granted (i.e: a 3-month visa means I’m in the country for 3 months). This rule can be broken if war suddenly breaks out (or if I’m being chased by an overly possessive girl… and her family).

I have a third rule\challenge which is to volunteer with wildlife\marine conservation where I can but the majority of these organisations rely heavily on funding which takes away from the actual meaning of volunteering. But sometimes I get lucky.

7. What is your budget, how do you pay your accommodation, food etc.? Do you work during your trip or have sponsors?

I don’t have a set budget. I aim for $10 AUD a day but the less I spend, the better as my main objective is to barter my way, exchanging work for food, shelter and passage (I don’t like money). I usually couch surf with locals as I’m not a fan of hotels (how else can I experience local culture and way of life if I’m catered to in a hotel?).

I’ve recently managed to get two sponsors, one is Ticket to the Moon, a Bali-based company that makes hand-made travel hammocks and are supplying me with one and North Ridge, a South African company that makes backpacks and are also supplying me with one (the one I have is way to big).

8. What do you carry in your backpack?

2 pairs of shorts, 1 bathers, 2 underwear (I usually go commando), 3 T-shirts, 3 collared shirts, 1 pair of jeans (bell bottoms), 1 beanie, a kaffiah, a neck warmer, a hoodie, a waterproof jacket and a warm sheepskin coat, 2 micro-fibre towels, toiletries, toilet paper (essential), sunscreen, a Leatherman utility knife and another knife for more serious cutting, some condoms (you never know), a Lumix waterproof camera, a laptop, iPhone, 2 external hard drives (one backs the other), a torch and my most valuable possession – my travel guitar (I’ve just put new strings on her. Very excited).

9. While on the road, did you get traveling diseases and do you ever wanna go back home?

I’ve only had the occasional food poisoning (don’t eat street chicken in Madagascar). Since going nomadic I can’t really define one place as my home. I see the whole planet as my home. I don’t like the idea of borders which means boundaries which equals limitations. Humans are a roaming species that are capable to adapt to any environment. I’m like the Paul Young song, wherever I lay my hat (head), that’s my home. I want to keep going for as long as I can – 15-20 years. There’s a lot to see on our amazing blue ball.

10. Who is your Muppet friend and why do you bring him with you?

Animal is the drummer for the Muppet band. He adopted me when I was visiting New York at the time when my brother was living there (back in 2002). We went to Six Flags (an amusement park) in New Jersey and I rescued him from a game stall where I had to throw a baseball and knock over a stack of cans. I take him with me because he channels my craziness.  And he is an amazing drummer so we have some epic jam sessions.

11. Do you miss anything from past life or home?

I miss the occasional get-together with friends, for dinners, parties, birthdays, meeting their kids, surf trips. I’m always getting event invites on facebook and it pinches the heart that I can’t be there but then again, I’m always meeting amazing people on my travels and experiencing things that I would never have dreamed of doing back where home used to be.

12. What are next countries that you are going to?

From South Africa I’ll be hitch hiking my way to the Middle East via Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti. In Djibouti I’ll have a month to find a boat sailing up the Red Sea as the visa to Sudan is $155 USD (and too dangerous) and Egypt still hasn’t decided whether there going for a military leadership or another dictatorship. I predict that it’ll take me two years to reach the Middle East.

13. Can you tell something to the people who want to travel and need encouragement for the first step?

I was terrified on the day I left Melbourne. I kept thinking to myself, ‘What the hell am I doing?’ But fear is part of it. Embrace that fear, take a deep breath and just take that first step out of your front door because the moment you shut that door behind you, you close it on your fears and are free to roam.

Don’t let your dreams be dreams.

 

Dunja Jurič

Prevela Jelena Dragojević