In 2016, I worked remotely from Prague for a few months. When my girlfriend came out to visit, we took 3 weeks to travel around Czech Republic, adding Vienna and Budapest, hitting up museums, charming dinner cruises, trendy cocktail bars, you name it.

I kept track of every koruna, euro, and forint along the way and the total bill for this extravagant trip was around $2,000. Back in San Jose, that wouldn't even pay rent for my 1BR. It felt like I was missing out on a huge opportunity.

The next year I left my job and moved to a town in the Japanese countryside to decompress. Luckily, there were a number of locals with English proficiency who looked out for me, and I ended up doing things I never imagined -- hosting a cookout, participating in a crazy fire festival, teaching kids about finite state machines (via translator), learning how to make gyoza from old ladies, presenting to entrepreneurs about makerspaces, helping a craftsman export his product, meditating with Buddhist monks. I also learned to ride a bike, better late than never.

I still think of these experiences as highlights of my life -- being carefree, the thrill of traveling, and most of all becoming an illiterate and mute witness, being led around by generous people who want to share their culture.