From Argentina to the Arctic Circle: living life to the fullest
Sebastian is a young traveller from Argentina. He studied for 7 years, then worked as a mechanical engineer for one and a half years. Four years ago he decided to travel limitlessly. Learn how to travel without limits by reading his fascinating experience.
1) When did you decide to leave home for a long term journey?
Before this, I had a “normal life”: going to work Monday to Friday 9 to 17, then going to university till 21–22, after, 1-hour bus ride home, hopefully not standing up like in the mornings.
To be honest, I liked my job and study. I didn’t have a bad life! Sure, it was stressful, like in all big cities, but it was also interesting.
Then I went on holiday. By some recommendations of people close to me, I decided to go alone and more in a backpacker style, going to hostels and taking the cheapest transport. I went to the beautiful north-west mountains in the north of Argentina and something changed. Two weeks turned into three weeks.
Sometimes in the fast life of the city and in the excess of distractions, you don’t have enough time to see if you are going in the direction you want in your life. On this journey I finally had the time to connect my mind a bit more with my heart. And I understood what I wanted.
2) How are you travelling around the world in a cheap way?
I would say that I travel in a “rich” way.
Because, thanks to travelling, I get whatever work I find, I hitchhike, I look for a place to sleep by asking locals. This makes me feel like I am rich in experiences, in learnings and emotions. I also feel more human, as I am closer to the people, and get a lot of friends. It is really awesome arriving at a place not knowing anyone and leaving with the feeling of having a lot of new friends.
3) What is your nicest memory?
It is impossible to choose one. Anyway the best memories for me are always associated with people. As it is said, “the best place in the world is inside the hug of the one you love”.
4) Any negative experience?
Even bad or uncomfortable experiences we can transform into something good. We just have to stay focused, not let them pull us down. And also, because of their contrast, they make the nice moments of the future more enjoyable.
For example, one of the most difficult moments for me is saying goodbye. But the feeling of missing is just a fair price for having lived unforgettable moments.
5) What is “Slow Travel” for you?
To name something “slow” or “fast” in an absolute way, we would have to define a pattern to compare. Every person needs and looks for different things in their life. I think we should not tag and travel at the speed our heart tells us. Everyone has their own way and has to look for their own style, the one that makes them feel better.
6) “The world is my home” – what does this expression mean to you?
It means we are all roommates. And what is better than getting on well with the people we cohabit with? And what is better than taking care of our home altogether?
7) Do you think everyone could do what you’re doing?
Yes, for sure. We create what we believe. It is a cliché phrase, but it is true. The universe helps us when we are seeking a dream, it gives us a way that our heart dictates. What I do is perfectly possible for anyone who decides to give it a try, and I recommend it. But everyone has their own way and their own style.
8) What message would you like to send to our readers?
Find your passions, do what you love in life. And adapt it to travelling if you want to travel. Don’t conform to a situation if it doesn’t make you happy, or if you feel it is not for you. Time is the most precious thing we have, and there is a wonderful universe out there, everywhere.
Trust.
In people, we all seek happiness and we empathise, so your happiness is also shared.
In life.
And in yourself, you can do it.
Sebastian’s adventures in a nutshell
Initial point: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Now in Tallinn, Estonia
- Time of travel until today: 540 days
- Kilometres travelled: 55,300 (7,000 by sea, 4,000 nautical miles)
- Countries/Regions: Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Brazil, Venezuela, Curaçao, Saint Martin, Sint Maarten, Caribbean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, Açores Islands, Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Andorra, France, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Finland, Norway, Estonia
- Furthest point south: penguin colony, Beagle Channel (a bit south of Ushuaia, Argentina)
- Furthest point north: North Cape, Norway
Ways of travelling
- Hitchhiking (boleia, carona, dedo)
- Boat-stop, working as crew on sailboats
Transport highlights
Police vehicle (Chile, Russia), crane (Curaçao), ambulance (Bolivia), sailboat (Caribbean), mobile home (Chile, France, Spain), train (Portugal, Ukraine).
Hitchhiking
Maximum waiting time: 1 day (routes where 2–3 vehicles passed per day).
Normal waiting time: 20 minutes.
Remarkable roads and routes
- Ruta Nacional 40, Argentina (all), Carretera Austral, Chile (90%).
- BR-319 Transamazonica, Brazil (all).
- The Caribbean Sea.
- The North Atlantic Ocean.
Traversed the world from south to north (Ushuaia, Argentina – North Cape, Norway).
- Total initial budget: 50 USD.
- Times I felt limited to reach somewhere or do something because of money: 0.
Occasional jobs
Poetry reciter, algae fishing assistant, cleaner, receptionist, dishwasher, photographer, enumerator, cook, translator, vendor, sailor/skipper (sailboats), painter, English teacher, snow and ice remover, art studio reconditioning, writer of travel articles, vendor in a dolls shop and museum, farming.
Accommodation
Couchsurfing, houses of friends, free camping, firemen station, police, hospitals, a tanks factory, houses of people I met, exchange of work for lodging.
Objective
Learn. Share. Enjoy the way to the goal. Spread the word about hospitality (a personal project in which I go to schools, media and communities).
Nature beauties
- Eclipse of the sun (in Ushuaia), eclipse of the red moon (Atlantic Ocean), lots of shooting stars.
- More nature: penguins of three species, giant crabs, guanacos, llamas, a snake of more than 5 metres, families of dolphins, whales, turtles.
Something magic
- Throwing myself into the water in the middle of the ocean.
- Spending the night in a little house lost in the middle of the puna.
- The Amazon.
- Patagonia.
- Swimming with turtles in the Caribbean.
- Living my first cold winter with a lot of snow and –30 °C.
- Going to Russian bania.
- Swimming in a river at –8 °C.
- Spending a great Easter night in a Russian oil station.
- The affection of people of all kinds, everywhere.
- Theft, kidnappings, aggressions in Venezuela: 0.
- Theft, kidnappings, total aggressions: 0.
- Friends I made along the way: many.
- Nights I was cold travelling without a sleeping bag: 2 (avoidable).
- Sandals I had to change on the journey: 2 (one pair left in Chile, the other on a Caribbean island).
- UFOs, abductions: I think 0 (there are drones in the Caribbean Sea?).
From Buenos Aires to the Arctic Circle, Sebastian has crossed oceans, deserts and snowy roads with almost no budget, relying on hospitality, hitchhiking and occasional jobs. His journey shows that slow travel, curiosity and trust in people can open many doors.
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