Kingsley is a Senior Software Developer who balances his work between coding and mentoring junior developers. Kingsley quickly found, as many of us have, that the lack of interaction when working remotely can become isolating. With access to Wi-Fi as his only main requirement, Kingsley soon realised he could work from almost anywhere! So, he began a life-changing adventure, spending more time abroad than in the UK over the past few years.
Kingsley was kind enough to share with us some interesting insights about his experience, as well as some tips for anyone considering the ‘digital nomad’ lifestyle.
The Essentials…
Beginning a new travel adventure can be exciting, but it is really important to remember the basics when planning. Some of Kingsley’s top tips included:
- Learning some basic sentences in the language of the country.
- Investing in more portable chargers than you think you will ever need!
- Making sure you have a sensible way to carry around all of your tech.
Immediately you arrive in a different country, Kingsley recommends buying a SIM card, contacting the hotel you’ll be staying at, and withdrawing some local currency. Don’t just assume a credit or debit card will be enough in each country – cash is often useful!
New Countries, New Cultures, New Opportunities
“The opportunity to learn about different cultures first-hand is incredible, and offers new perspectives that books or travel guides never could” Kingsley told us.
He recommended that anyone travelling should try and immerse themselves in the local community as much as possible. When working remotely, he would look online to find a suitable local cafe, co-working space, or even local tech firms to work from. Kingsley really advocated for this, as in his experience people are happy to chat and share what they were working on, giving him the chance to learn something which he never would have if he were just working from home or his hotel room.
Building Connections in Different Locations
Depending on the country which he was in, Kingsley has found that sometimes a suitable workspace location could be tricky to find. Luckily, the ‘digital nomad’ lifestyle has been growing in popularity since 2020, which has resulted in more co-working spaces across the world. In particular, Kingsley spoke fondly about a space in Nicaragua, where he worked amongst some breathtaking views.
If you want to find new ways to connect with people in the area, Kingsley found that joining running or bike groups was a great way to meet new people and explore a new area through largely accessible routes. In Medellín, Columbia, Kingsley travelled with MATT Movilidad, a company who offers accessible tours of the city using a Matt e-bike front power attachment.
Travelling for Personal Growth
Kingsley found that although travelling the world is a huge learning curve. Whilst you learn so much about different people, cultures and lifestyles, it can also be a great opportunity to learn about yourself.
There are plenty of opportunities to connect with new people when you travel alone. However, it is inevitable that you will spend a lot of time with your own company. This is something to be prepared for! Kingsley told us that this was a positive, rather than a negative, as travelling really gave him the opportunity to slow down, and appreciate everything around him.
Not only did it personally benefit Kingsley, but travelling also really benefitted his work. Learning to navigate new locations and discovering different ways of doing things gave Kingsley the motivation and creativity to approach problems from new angles, and develop new solutions which he hadn’t considered before.
What if You Don’t Go it Alone?
Kingsley spent some of his time travelling with his wife, with whom he shares a passion for exploration – their goal is to one day have visited 100 countries!
Seeing the world with friends or family can be an amazing experience, and also a great way to ensure that you do have a support system away from home. However, staying in the same room and experiencing the same things everyday can mean you end up with nothing to talk about on some days. It can also be easy to argue about which route to take or where to go next!
Kingsley’s piece of advice for this scenario: “You can always take different paths and meet up at the next location! This way you still get individual experiences and will have so much to talk about once you meet again!”
The Challenges…
Depending on where you decide to travel to, you can be met with some difficult paths to cross. In particular, Kingsley found that in Laos, there were no accessibility options when arranging travel. On one occasion, he booked to travel on a bus but a small vehicle arrived instead, which made it difficult to fit his wheelchair as well as himself and his luggage on board. Kingsley’s Top Tip: If you are able, try and book an extra seat for your chair!
He also found that travelling by boat was quite a challenge as there would be steps to get on and off. Kingsley is an ambulatory wheelchair user, and so he was able to navigate these situations, however he acknowledged it would have been much more difficult if he was not able to use his legs at all.
Fortunately, his experience of Laos was still nothing but positive, as he told us: ‘the people make it accessible’ as they stopped at nothing to make sure that he had a good experience, and that he could get to wherever he needed to go.
Making Sure You Have the Right Kit
From poor handling in airports to insecure storage on public transport, Kingsley’s wheels have not always been treated well. Take a look at his Loopwheels Urban after travelling to over 45 different countries!
Kingsley travelled to countries in South America and South East Asia, where his exploration often led him down uneven paths. Having a pair of Loopwheels Urban made his travels much smoother, and more comfortable.
When visiting the office, Kingsley picked up a brand new pair of Loopwheels Extreme with Mountain Bike Tyres for his next adventures, as he was planning to use a power attachment more often, and knew he would be tackling more off-road terrain.
To hear more Kingsley’s of advice, check out his article all about how to have a great experience when travelling:
Kingsley is not our only intrepid traveller. Karen Darke (https://www.karendarke.com/my-story/) is another wheelchair adventurer who has travelled far and wide. Like Kingsley, she’s a Paralympian – we guess that the grit of an athlete also serves you well when travelling the world!
Karen is an explorer who has shown that nowhere is beyond reach if you have support and enough determination. This includes even the most inhospitable geography (Fancy the Himalayas or Antartica, anybody?!) If you’re looking for this kind of inspiration, check out Karen’s blog.
Karen is currently fundraising to publish ‘The Pole of Possibility’ book, which is a story of her experience sit-skiing over 300km of Antarctic wilderness. This project is raising funds in support of The Polar Academy, a Scottish charity transforming young lives through polar exploration.
If you have a story you’d like to share with us of adventures with your Loopwheels, please get in touch.