'For some reason I don't want to go to work tomorrow.'
The South American travel story of Taeo, a traveler who went to work in South America carrying a backpack instead of an employee ID card.

"Your Life Can Be a Little Special, Too" is a travel essay written by the author, who gave up a stable future after seven years at a public corporation to embark on a trip to South America, telling the story of himself and the people he met on his trip.
He has traveled alone to over 250 cities in 50 countries around the world, but he has never focused solely on 'staying' like he did on this trip to South America.
I decided to resign, put everything on hold, and leave to find the answer to the question, "Was I desperate enough to travel?" in the free world of South America.
Since it was a trip with no idea when he would return, he had no reason to rush, so he went wherever he wanted, ate whatever he wanted, and when he found a place he liked, he unpacked and stayed for a few days.
There was no 'must' in his spontaneous travels.


Starting from Ecuador, through Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Brazil and Colombia.
During my trip to South America, which started with the motto, "Leave when you want to leave, go back when you want to go back," I decided to enjoy the thrill of traveling by doing things that weren't planned, things I don't usually do, and things I just wanted to do.
Maybe life will never have another such deviation.
Of course, there were also ordinary times when I had to continue living even during my long trip to South America.
Boring days filled most of the trip.
As his solo journey continued, his discomfort grew and his loneliness deepened, but he says his attitude toward that time changed.
And I came back stronger with the belief that 'today is definitely more special than yesterday.'
"Your Life Can Be a Little Special Too" introduces 33 stories about the traveler Theo's journey around the world, including South America, which he found most fascinating, his daily life there, and his journey to find himself.
Although this trip to South America, which I traded for a solid future and a generous retirement fund, may seem like a somewhat late and hesitant move to others, I believe that "there are many things in this trip that I would not have known if I hadn't gone."
That's why Traveler Theo is always cheerful and happy.

You can feel the excitement of travel in things that are a little imperfect and clumsy rather than things that are 100% perfect.
Of course, there were times when I got lost because I was given the wrong directions, and there were times when I had to take a long detour instead of a short one.
Sometimes I get off the bus just by looking at the map and end up going to the wrong place, and other times the bus goes in a different direction than instructed and I get off in an unfamiliar neighborhood.
Still, I enjoyed this kind of trip.
A trip that is full of vitality, even if it is a little uncomfortable.
A comfortable and easy trip somehow doesn't feel like my own trip.
Even if it's difficult and tiring, I like to travel by going to each place with my own feet and following it with my own eyes.
Because traveling isn't a competition where you measure time.
Therefore, there is no need to reach the destination quickly, nor is there a need to know the shortest route to get to a certain destination.
---From "I somehow prefer uncomfortable travel"

Even if you travel alone, it is not easy to have 'time alone' if you do not make time for yourself.
Because everywhere you go, there are crowds of people, you don't have as much time to be completely alone as you might think.
So, from some point on, if I didn't focus on myself, I would feel like I was on a 'trip without myself' all day.
These times and spaces are precious and special, so I intentionally created my own secret spaces here and there, calling them 'hideouts.'
---From "Save this to my favorites list too!"

I think I first discovered the reason why I quit my job and went on a trip without any plan, here in Huacachina.
It wasn't necessarily started with a purpose, but rather something I followed my heart's lead.
It was as if I had walked up a dark and desolate desert where no one had ever been, with only reckless courage.
Even though it started out recklessly, just as I completely surrendered my body to the sands of the desert, this trip, which began without a plan, was also about throwing myself completely into the world.
And the life I wanted to walk was not a set, stable path, but a path where I could encounter exciting new experiences, even if it was a little unstable.
---From "Our nights are hotter than the desert days"

There are ordinary times in travel that you have to keep living.
Most of the trip is filled with ordinary days that aren't interesting enough to be an episode.
But because there are so many ordinary moments like this, the special moments in between become even more precious.
Like a four-leaf clover found among countless three-leaf clovers.
---From "Our Attitude to Dealing with Meetings and Partings"

Nothing has changed between before and after the trip.
There was nothing that could be changed by the trip itself.
Travel is travel and I am me, still the same.
As you gain experience and wisdom, it seems like everything will become easier, but as time goes by, making choices and decisions becomes more difficult.
It feels like time is passing faster than before, but I feel like I have less and less time to live.
There are still so many things I don't know.
---From "Bolivia? Chile"

Countless travelers are probably embarking on this difficult journey at this very moment.
Every day of travel cannot always be enjoyable and happy.
Rather, there may be more days when we suffer from unexpected accidents and incidents.
But for the travelers who stand on the arduous path they have chosen, those times will surely hold special meaning for each of them.
There's a reason so many people take on such challenges.
Like them, I too am on my own pilgrimage in South America.
There is no set course, but this unusual and arduous path feels like a pilgrimage to me.
You don't have to go to Spain to walk the 'Pilgrim's Way'.
If everything I experience makes me reflect on myself, then anywhere can become a 'pilgrim's path'.
---From "My Own Pilgrimage in South America"

Now that I'm at an age where I should be able to take care of myself, I still live with so much I don't know and worry about where I should go.
I thought that as I grew older, I would gain wisdom and experience, and everything would become easier, but as I got older, making choices and decisions became more difficult.
It feels like time is passing faster than before, but I feel like I have less and less time to live.
Uyuni's dream had become reality, and everything seemed to have come true, but still nothing had changed.
It felt like something great was happening and I would have the world at my fingertips, but everything remained the same.
---From "Meeting a kid from 20 years ago in Uyuni"

If I think about it, money was definitely not that important to me.
If material things had been more important to me, I probably wouldn't have left for South America.
For me, dreams were more important than money.
And my happiness came first, more than any title.
I ran away from India, where my salary was two to three times higher than usual, and I also gave up a state-run company that could have provided me with a stable income for the rest of my life.
Others were surprised and impressed, but actually, writing a letter of resignation wasn't that big of a deal, and it wasn't a huge decision for me.
Just as no one in the world is foolish enough to give up something better, I also made the right choice by my own standards.
In the end, the results of the choices I am making now are more precious to me.
---From "How to Make Ten Million Won Overnight"

Before I started my trip to South America, I decided not to plan anything for this trip.
I didn't make any promises about what I absolutely had to do, see, or eat.
There was no such thing as a 'must' in my travels.
It's something I need to tell someone about after I've had an experience, but it's not something I 'must' do for the journey I'm about to embark on.
So, I decided to just wander around as I pleased, without deciding on a destination or a return date.
But that never meant letting go of the tension of the trip.
When you become introverted to travel, it's time to seriously consider traveling.
It was a moment when, like an old lover whose relationship had grown weary, I had to choose whether to continue or end it.
---From "Happiness is as natural as the wind"

I forget bad things quickly.
That was something I learned from my travels.
As I traveled a lot, accidents always followed me, and it was only my responsibility to deal with the aftermath and the damage.
In the end, I was the only victim and all the damage was my own.
The more negative thoughts you have, the greater the damage becomes.
It's already unfair enough what's happened, but blaming others or worrying about things that can't be undone is frustrating enough.
There was no need to waste time.
---From "Today is just one day on the trip"

But after seven long years, I finally realized that this was not the life I wanted.
The life I wanted was not one where I lived in a way that looked good to others, but one where I had to be happy myself.
It was so obvious that the space of the heart called happiness could never be filled with material things alone.
So I quit my job for the real sake of myself.
It wasn't about finding a better and more comfortable life, but rather about finding a life that suited me, even if it was a little difficult and unstable.

---From "With the courage I had when I quit my job, I decided to leave for South America"