“An unknown and different place feels like home.”
Marko Petrekovic, author
I am a Croatian traveler and seasonal ski instructor. I have dedicated my life to exploring the world. Not only because I love it, but also because I suffer from a permanent disease called “traveling addiction”. Since there’s no cure, the only thing I can do is keep feeding it. The initial symptoms of this addiction started to appear when I was 7 years old. It’s been growing ever since…
Visiting every country in the world means 193 independent states recognized by the UN. I’ve also visited non-observer states of Palestine and the Vatican, the territory of Curacao, and partially recognized countries: Taiwan, Kosovo, Northern Cyprus, and Somaliland.
While exploring the world, I have seen both wonders and disasters…
Experienced excitement, such as hiking along the river of lava from a volcano about 100 m away, standing 10 m away from an 180 kg (400 lbs) mountain gorilla, or being approached by a school of sharks while freediving…
Also nightmares such as being in prison in a country nobody’s heard of, surviving the accident which resulted in being 2 weeks in a coma, followed by 3 surgeries, or not being allowed to board a flight after presenting the itinerary, which wasn’t expensive…
However, I’m still alive and traveling with passion:)
My main travel activities are hiking, freediving, getting street food, wandering around, meeting locals, and looking for things I haven’t seen before. For commuting, I mainly rely on regular public transport and hitchhiking.
On my journeys, in addition to exploring the beauty around the world, I’ve been gaining a better understanding of economies, lifestyles, and cultures across different regions. I am particularly passionate about uncovering contradictions to media narratives and common beliefs.
I am not traveling to see the world the way I want to. I’m traveling to see it, just the way it is:)
Nowadays, I travel less and live a bit more “normal” life. Luckily, whenever I get frustrated, I close my eyes and relive some of my nomad stories:)