Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel

This is a book of inspiring travel quotes for the middle-class white male. Not a lot of practical advice, and women travelers get "othered" pretty hard (a page of travel safety tips for women contradicts the carefree tone of the rest of the book, while Potts condescendingly expresses jealousy that female travelers can interact with women in the Middle East; his coverage of historical women travelers consists of a list of names and a single quote, while he profiles plenty of historical male travelers). I read it all, but for me it was really over when he referred to local attire in other countries as "charmingly ethnic." Potts is the kind of traveler I prefer to leave behind.

In addition to the other things frequently mentioned (the mile wide margins, the bloggy format), I have a couple other gripes with the format as well as the content of this book.

First, only about 1/2 of each chapter is actually Potts' writing. About half at the end of each chapter is a series of links to likely outdated/defunct websites and books that are surely better than this one. Some is also quotes from people who wrote to him in response to some of his travel articles previously written elsewhere about traveling.

For some reason, each chapter has large block quotes of out-of-context passages from books vaguely related to traveling, vague Asian philosophy quotes, or, about half the time a quote from Walt Whitman or Thoreau's show more Walden. Despite having inch wide margins (or two inch wide margins on the first page of a chapter), these quotes are not marginalia which would flow much better, but oddly placed block quotes in the middle of paragraphs, rarely related to what is being talked about, in a large sans serif font that clashes with the font used for the body text. These quotes rarely add much to the text.

On to the text of the book itself. Despite mentioning seeing the explosion of self-help books and how formulaic they were and trying to avoid being like them, this book could have been written by an AI trained on every self help book out there and applying things to travel. All the generic platitudes are there, all the promises of what you'll learn without any actionable advice, all the vague recommendations that apply to almost any problem in life: "Be Creative," "Have an Open Mind" etc.

The rare advice that is there is contradictory, unbelievably dated now, or unbelievably bad always. He talks at some points about how anyone can vagabond, not just students and retirees, before later talking about how it's easiest to vagabond if you're a student or retiree because you're less tied down. The book promises it will teach you the essentials to "financing your travel time." His advice is "don't be in debt, and you don't need money, just stay in hostels for $5 a month! I'm not sure if the hostel rates were ever possible but one can't simply will themselves out of debt, and many of the countries he mentions as being cheap have industrialized and cost of living has gone up significantly since this book's publication. In addition, he mentions simply "asking your boss for 6-18 months off and putting your vagabonding on your resume, people will love it not wonder why there's a gap there!" This advice is poor for any sort of conservative field. As an author this may be appealing to people in his field, but if you work a desk job your boss will wonder when you're just going to bail to travel the world for half a year or more.

Finally, much of this advice seems horribly out of touch given the modern economic situation. He suggests paying off your debt and saving about $5k to travel. This is laughable in a time when most people are working multiple jobs just to pay rent, and have tens of thousands of dollars in student loan debt. Saving up the amount of money he recommends, taking time off, etc. seem very unattainable in 2020.

The book may have only been 240 pages but it dragged on worse than an Ayn Rand novel. Reading literally any other book would likely be more applicable to traveling than this one. show less

This is the book I would carry with me if I had to sustain myself through misfortune. Frederick the Great carried the works of the Stoics in his saddlebags for the same purpose. I have read bits of this book for more than a decade and the words of Ralph Potts have inspired my blogging and my travel writing since I first left old Girty's shores in 2006. There are so many quotes in this work, and so many pointers to other books to read, it is like a crystallisation of everything Potts ever read or learnt all jam-packed in a relatively quick read. For me, this book is nothing short of inspiring. Always has been, always will:

As Salvador Dali quipped, 'I never took drugs because I am drugs.' With this in mind, strive to be drugs as you

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travel, to patiently embrace the raw, personal sensation of unmediated reality - an experience far more affecting than any intoxicant can promise" (pp. 169-70).

Potts has something special. He is the me I only hope I can be. I don't mean that I want to quit my job and become a vagabond. Far from it. Potts is a philosopher. Vagabonding is a 21st century philosophy book in the tradition of [b:Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values|629|Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance An Inquiry Into Values|Robert M. Pirsig|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1410136019s/629.jpg|175720], only better. Potts has what I want, and ever since reading bits of his work all those years ago, I have been inspired by his philosophy. For me, education and travel make us free. Not politicians or political systems. If I had the option of returning to my youth (which I do not want!), I might consider becoming a vagabond. But I am the sum of my experience and rather blessed for it. So for me, the philosophy is key. But a practical philosophy. Think of tending your own garden, like [b:Candide|19380|Candide|Voltaire|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1345060082s/19380.jpg|2833018]. Then read this book. show less

Books like this (and there are many) get on my nerves. More often than not, it's some over-privileged kid using the book to brag about all the fantastic things he has done in all the different cultures of the world with all the different people of the world. These books always have the spin of "you can do this too!" Well yeah, I guess you could, but you probably cannot, unless you 1) have some money saved; 2) have a job that allows you a long break, and 3) are able to stay health-insured while traveling the world. While this book attempts to tell you how you can do all these things, it's unrealistic for most everyone. But maybe I'm just bitter. Cheers to Rolf.

An enjoyable travel advice book I read during the lock down. The book does well at advocating for a travel perspective and ways to keep an open mind. I also liked the interludes that highlight famous travel writers and "vagabonds" (including Islamic travelers and notable women travelers from history) through history as well. If you're looking for travel inspiration, particularly for independent travel, this is a good resource.

There are two downsides to the book.

First, some of the specific suggestions are dated because the book is about 20 years old in terms of references to technology and publications mentioned.

Second, the author didn't really address the impact of long term travel would have on a person's life (e.g. giving up one's show more home?, disruption to a career, impact on other life goals, or the financial requirements needed to carry out months of travel). It was notable that a significant number of the "vagabond travelers" quoted in the book are teachers who often have more schedule flexibility when school is not in session. show less

I love how Potts digs into the philosophy of vagabonding- there are lessons about living simply and with awareness than can be applied to all aspects of life, not just traveling. Some of the tips and resources are now outdated, since this book was written in 2002, but it's a great jumping off place, and it definitely instilled wanderlust in me.

I am in love with Rolf Potts. I want to travel the world with him for no other reasons than his love of travel, his (seemingly) easy going nature, and the crazy situations he finds himself in. In Vagabonding, Potts outlines all the whats, whys, and hows of traveling, with TONS of resources for every step of the way. This guy is obviously well-traveled and well-read, with quotes from everybody and every religion under the sun. I have yet to travel, other than a few short-term missions trips, but when I do finally venture out, this book will be on my "must have" list! Great read, inspiring, and sure to awaken the wanderlust in you!