Why Can't We Be Friends?

I may be the only travel blogger on Twitter that didn't hear about Mike Barish's piece entitled "On long-term travel, snobbery & judgmental blogging." He was writing in response to Matt Kepnes' article for Huffington Post called "Why I Travel." When I met up with some awesome Atlanta bloggers at Fado for a pint or two, we discussed it and I knew I had to respond.

Before I get into how I feel about the article, I have to share my experiences with other travel bloggers. Overall, everyone is very friendly and sweet and just happy to talk to someone who shares their addiction. I was very nervous about attending Travel Blog Exchange in New York because I was going alone and because my blog is still fairly new and unknown. I was intimidated by bloggers I had long admired, including Nomadic Matt. It's hard to approach fellow bloggers when you feel like yours is so small. As much as I learned about blogging over those two days, I was a little disheartened at the feeling of high school, as the "popular kids" of bigger name travel blogs mostly kept to themselves, while those of us who are just starting out mingled. Am I missing something? Shouldn't we all be on the same team?

While I understand many points of Mike's article, I thought using Matt as the only example was a little harsh. I agree that some of Matt's writing can come off as condescending, but you have to respect the fact that he can make thousands of dollars a month on his blog (although I want to see his bank account to believe it).

Mike summed up his article well here:

People travel for myriad reasons. Be it to take a break from work, introduce their children to Cinderella or learn about new cultures. They also do it to run away. Or to avoid a reality that scares or confuses them. Is eschewing the "real world" to travel permanently as difficult as those long-term travelers suggest? Is it more challenging than raising children, being an active member of a community or pouring yourself into a hobby that becomes a passion?

I don't know if the issue was that Matt came off as stating his travel lifestyle is far superior to those 9-5 shmucks or that he "sold out" in the eyes of some travel bloggers to write for free link juice at the Huffington Post. I think the message got mingled. If the problem is that he makes long term travel sound more important than settling down with jobs and families and houses, that's a personal opinion. We are all entitled to them. At this point in my life, at the relatively young age of 22, I agree with him, but that is not to say I will always feel that way. If the meaning of the post was the second reason, that is a judgment call. Matt obviously doesn't need the money places like Huffington Post could offer writers like myself on a very limited income. He has the flexibility to do so, but I understand that this bothers other writers because who wants to pay someone when you can get someone else to do it for free? This is his right as a blogger. If you're on the opposing side of the argument, check out Spencer Spellman's post on The Traveling Philosopher.

"Why We Travel" should have been titled "Why I Travel" because obviously we all have our own reasons. I think lots of comments on it would be unnecessary if one word was changed. I would love it if I could travel all the time and make thousands of dollars per month on my site, but obviously I can't. I travel to meet people, to see the world, to get out of my comfort zone, but I also like having a place to call home. Somewhere to do my laundry. What we all have to remember is that we all have different travel philosophies. We should share our stories and bask in the camaraderie of our friends and families' lack of understanding. So perk up and remember who your family is: your fellow travelers.

@BrooklynNomad

Amen. Enough bickering. Lets all hug & get drunk. RT @cairinthecity: One thing travel bloggers can agree on: we should all be friends. #tbex