Um Inspirationen zu sammeln, verbringe ich gern Zeit auf Instagram. Womit auch die Frage beantwortet wäre, warum sich hier die Wäsche stapelt und es gestern wieder Fertiglasagne gab. Wer kennt das noch – eigentlich war man gerade auf dem Weg zur Waschmaschine, und plötzlich findet man sich mit dem Handy in der Hand auf der Couch wieder, neben sich ein leerer Eisbecher?

Anyway, so stoße ich glücklicherweise auch immer wieder auf tolle inspirierende Menschen, wie zum Beispiel Brandon und seine Familie. Es gibt bei Instagram unzählige Reise-Feeds mit schönen Reisefotos, und es gibt echt viele Familien, die die Welt bereisen und andere daran teilhaben lassen. Das Tolle am Feed von Brandon ist, dass er trotz Kindern beeindruckend viele ferne Länder bereist, davon superschöne Fotos macht a la “Whaaat, da will ich auch hin!”, und sich dann auch noch mit superwitzigen, extrem unterhaltsamen Kommentaren von den vielen anderen Reisefeeds abhebt – gern auf Kosten seiner Frau, was ich (vermutlich aus eigener Erfahrung) sehr sympathisch finde.

Darum habe ich Brandon von wherethekidsroam mal ein paar Fragen gestellt und freue mich, dass er sich Zeit dafür genommen hat!

Dear Brandon, travelling the world is one thing (which is already quite impressive), travelling with children is a different story. Even every day life is often a big challenge with kids, how did you come up with the idea of travelling the world with your children?

Well, we don’t travel full-time. We would if we could. But, it just isn’t feasible. I think getting our children out there in the world is just about the best education I could give them. Especially where we live – the USA – where not too many people leave the country to experiences other cultures. Having said that…traveling with kids is hell and I always ask myself, “What the hell are we doing here?!”

What are your experiences, does it work travelling with children or do you sometimes think “What the hell are we doing here!?”?

Oh wow, this is creepy. How did you know I was going to say what I just said? Crazy. Anyway, to continue, if I didn’t care so much about convincing other parents that I’m better than them by taking my kids everywhere, I probably wouldn’t take my kids anywhere lol.

© wherethekidsroam

Any situation that was dangerous/difficult?

Not with the kids, not yet. But the dangerous stories are the best. One day I can tell you about all the parasites I’ve collected around the world. It’s a pretty impressive collection. I’d love to see all the damage they’ve done in my stomach. Oh, and almost dying in the Himalayas. That was fun too.

Which moments (if you can tell) will you most likely remember when you’ll look back in 20 years?

Not anything having to do with my work, that’s for sure. My wife and I are both attorneys, so we work a ridiculous amount. But I can remember almost everyday on holiday. That’s where we make our real memories.

Which countries did you love to visit with kids, and which not?

We didn’t like Bali at all. Too touristy, too much traffic. Everyone seems to be taking their kids there, but I just don’t get it. Also, we absolutely hated Germany (kidding, my wife and I are both of German ancestry). There are only a few regions in the world I can say I don’t really love – the Middle East being the main one.

What do you think is the biggest profit from travelling for your family/your kids?

We get to teach empathy. Look, we come from a big, rich country. It’s easy to take things for granted. I’m grateful we can travel like we do, but I want my kids to learn something in the process – that they aren’t any better (or worse) than anyone else in this world, and that they shouldn’t live with a sense of entitlement.

What about the 50 days/50 countries??

Hahahaha. So sorry! That was just an illusion for Instagram. I couldn’t see that as being fun or feasible at all. That would just be crazy. But it was fun to fool others 😉

What’s your tip if families want to travel and don’t know how to afford it?

You just have to reprioritize what you want. If you want to travel above all else, you’ll find a way (by driving a lesser car, owning/renting a lesser house, eating more meals at home, etc.).

Your pictures on Instagram are great, but what makes the difference to other good travel feeds is also your hilarious sense of humour. Any tips for funny comments?

I’m weird. Not sure you can teach that. I guess the thing is, just be yourself. I see other, much more successful travel Instagram accounts. And they all follow the same formula, which works (obviously), but it’s boring to me. I can’t (well, won’t) always take a photo of the backside of my family while digitally changing the sky color to cotton candy pink while cutting and pasting some inspirational caption I found off the Internet that day. It’s just not for me. I’d rather make fun of my wife! Hahahah.

Thank you!
Bitte!