A Young Architect on the Road
Hi, I’m Norbert, a guy from Puerto Rico who’s been professionally trained as an Architect and naturally educated as a traveler. Since I was a kid, I’ve always been infatuated with getting to know the world and experience its different cultures firsthand.
In 2008, I took my first solo backpacking trip to Thailand; a trip I believe intensified my passion to traveling the world even more. After that, I decided to take traveling a step further and start exploring the world more often with my backpack, my big ambitions, and my thirst for adventure.
How this Blog Started
I started GloboTreks in 2010, primarily as a travel blog for my family and friends to read about my random trips and escapades from work. Luckily, the blog grew from just family and friends to an international platform where I could share my experiences with the world.
On October 1st, 2011, after working as an Architect in New York City for five years, I decided to hit pause on my career to travel the world for a year. That original plan got extended a few times, and what was supposed to be a “gap year” somehow morphed into a nomadic lifestyle.
At the moment, this site is my job; what keeps me traveling the world. Over five years have passed since I left my former career and its traditional “firm environment,” yet I still practice architecture now and then as a freelancer. Travel and architecture are two of my biggest passions in life, so I love when I have the opportunity to mix them.
No, I don’t really travel with all that (normally).
The main purpose of this blog is to inspire you to see the world too and to show you how accessible and affordable it is to travel the world.
My travel goal is to visit all UN Recognized Countries. You can see my progress here.
Travel Smart!
Norbert
P.S. Feel free to contact me anytime if you have any question or want to say hi!
Great about me page and I love your goal!!! How many more do you have to go?
Thanks, Kerri!! Well, I’m on 75 countries right now, so I have A LOT more to do! 😉
Hola Norbert, hoy he disfrutado nuevamente tu pagina. Es maravillosa….me gustó el recuento de las cosas q. te han pasado etc. Tambien las notas de como evaluas los países.
Es como un sueño q. siempre quise hacer. Yo acabo de llegar de Sur America y un crucero q. tomamos en Buenos Aires y nos llevó por Uruguay, Tierra de Fuego, Estrcho de Magallanes….. fiordos chilenos y……. lo mas que te recomiendo q no dejes de ver…….la ciudad mas alejada del mundo …USHUAIA…..pertenece a Argentina y es una belleza. Aún en verano q. fue cuando fuimos….. estaba muy friiiiiio. Consuelo , tu mami, fue invitada pero se fueron a Las vegas y a ver el hijo de Carlos en San Diego. Todos viajamos juntos el año pasado y gozamos mucho.
Bueno gracias nuevamente por los comunicados y contarnos esas cosas fantásticas.
cariños de… tu tía de Puerto Rico…….alicia
Hola Carmen!!
Gracias por visitar la pagina!
Wow, tu viaje suena super y es uno que me encantaria hacer, ya que no he estado en esa parte del mundo. He escuchado de Ushuaia, asi que no me la perdere cuando visite Argentina.
Ciao!! 😀
hi
just discovered your website and I was really impressed. I am an architect too, just quit my job and plan to move back to Nepal after 10 years in germany to start a new life there, and Yes, travel is definitely on the agenda 🙂
I will be there on September, let me know if you’re there and need any help or want to hang out.
keep rolling
bikash
Hi Bikash – Thank you so much! Oh, I still haven’t gone to Nepal but I would love to go there soon enough! Great you worked in Germany as an architect. I would love to do that some day too!
Hey Norbert! I just discovered your page and am super excited with everything you are doing. WOW, what a journey… It is truly inspiring 🙂 Love the blogs and following your journey. Be encouraged, stay safe and God bless you. xoxoxo Jenny
Hey Jenny!! Thanks for stopping by! Hope everything is good over there!! xoxoxo 🙂
Good luck to you. In your trip that continues much longer than ours.
Norbert you are doing great things. When you will be in moscow please visit us. We’ll host you with warm russian hospitality.
Long road and no guys and girls ith guns on your way.
2 Russian guys whom you met in belize and do wonderfull trip in a cave.
Hey Vladislav! I do remember of you form the trip to ATM cave in Belize! Yes, it’s been a really long time since we met. How was the rest of your trip?
I almost went to Moscow recently, but I couldn’t reach it because I had a car accident on the way there (it’ was all good, so no worries). I’m sure that in the future I’ll finally go, so I’ll let you know.
Hope everything is good with you!
Cheers!
Why is it always Thailand that changes peoples life and wants them to travel around the world? For me it was also a trip to Thailand! The funny thing is that I quit my job (before studying in London) in September and my first day in freedom was also October 1, just two years later than you quit your job.
I am currently planning to live in Thailand for a while after finishing my Master in London. If everything works out the way I want it I don’t even need the three years of working in a corporate job till I start my nomadic lifestyle. I hope for the best.
That’s a good question… why Thailand? I guess is the fact that Thailand offers so many possibilities in a country so foreign from what we are used to. For me, Thailand is an adventure in itself.
Funny you want to possibly live in Thailand. I literally just moved here (temporarily in Chiang Mai).
Cheers to freedom since October 1st! Good day to start, eh?!
Hope the best for you too, and let me know if we cross paths!
Hey….
I am gonna follow your blog….. I just went to Bangkok for 1 day while i was travelling to other places in SE Asia…. yes i did feel Bangkok can change many things!!!!
Though i get so jealous when i read travel blogs by people who are like you!!! so i hate you for that!!! 🙂
None the less keep travelling..and keep letting us know about awesome places!!!!
And it will be the day when i will quit everything and hit the roads!!!!
Hi Sachin –
Sorry for the late reply. Surely I’ll keep sharing my experiences and the beautiful places around the world. I get happy when they inspire people to do the same. I want you to travel too and experience them!
Hi nobert
Great travel around the world, please give some tips on how you get the money to travel so long. Also how you spend your money during travel. Thanks. We can learn some tips on money tips during travel.
Hi Lawrence –
Thanks for the input. I’ll definitely write a post on that. Should get it up in the next month or so! 😉
Hi Norbert,
I just wanted to say hello and give a huge thanks for starting this blog! I rarely follow blogging sites about travel but I have to say clicking on yours is truly phenomenal! I felt very connected to the spirit of your adventures and the way you’ve structured this website to be clear and informative is highly impressive.
I’m planning to enroll into journalism but I’ve always wanted to be a traveling kind, just didn’t know how. For me, I think I want to cover the basics of my field before expanding to a career field but that of course depends on how well I use my resources. Through your site, I definitely feel much more comfortable with the idea of pursuing this career path. I know for me, I have to start small and not be putting myself into a daydream frenzy (although it’s quite hard haha). You’ve giving us a great platform to use and made the access very educational.
The amazing success of being a global traveler couldn’t have happened to a better person and I hope to follow into your footsteps one day!
Continue your journey forward!
Hi Linda –
My sincere apologies on the delayed response. I’m glad and honored that you found my site useful and an inspiration to pursue the journalism/traveling path. As I always say, if you have enough drive and really want to do something, even if you don’t know how to do it, give it a go! You’ll see that you’ll make it through trials and errors along the way, and you’ll be so happy you took the leap of faith and gambled on yourself.
Take your time and move forward with this dream. I’m sure you can do it if you’re persistent. And like you said, start smart and build momentum as you go. 😉
Please, if you have any question, feel free to let me know. (I promise not to take this long to reply.)
Wish you the best!!
Norbert
Hi again Norbert!
I don’t mind the delayed response, but thank you for reply! It was very thoughtful of you for taking the time to write back. As mentioned, I am still aspiring to pursue a career as a travel writer. I’m half-way there though! I am officially enrolled into Journalism, at my local college starting this Fall.
Thanks again for your advice. Ever since I stumbled upon it, I have definitely felt like I’ve gained a new perspective of traveling and incorporating writing into it.
You will definitely hear from me again as a loyal subscriber of reading your travels and advices.
Thanks, Linda! That’s so good that you are currently taking Journalism! No, when you finish, you’ll have a good set of tools that will allow you to make this dream of traveling more of a reality. As you might know already, I believe that beyond knowledge, you need to have the passion and drive to go for this, and I believe you have it. That’s why you enrolled in the first place!
Please, feel free to ask me anything, anytime. I’m always glad to help!
Hi Norbert . Thanks for the advices. I truly appreciate what you have said.
I’m heading to Europe for the first time in August. I’ll be there for 3 weeks. I’m really excited and a little scared at the same. I’ll be covering London for 4 days, Amsterdam in 2, Prague in 1, Venice in 1.5, Florence in 2, Rome in 4 and Paris in 4 as my trip.
My two friends and I want to cover as much as possible within the those days. Do you have any recommendations for seeing “tourist traps” and hidden gems nearby those cities? What would you recommend to explore in London, Rome and Paris? I will have quite a bit of time and there’s so much to do it seems overwhelming.
Anyways, thanks again. Continue your journey!
Linda
Hi Linda –
You’re welcome! Well, that’s a very complex question to answer in a comment since it depends on so many variables… primarily on, what are you looking for as a traveler? There are so many things you can do in all those cities you mentioned, way more than what you can fit in those days, so in my opinion you’ll probably stick to the “typical tourist sights” since that’s what you’ll have time for.
I recommend you to download the app Sygic Travel (free) and create a trip in the app for each city you’re visiting. There you’ll see the main sights in each city, their location, some essential info, and in it you can even create your own schedule to fit as much as you can within your time in the city. I think this is the best tip I can give you right now without actually telling you what to do, since your interests might be completely different from mine and you might have other things in mind.
Alternatively, or in combination with the app, go to trip advisor and do a search of the top things to do in X city. Try to narrow down your list based on the tops from other traveler reviews, then set them up in the app to help you organize your trip.
Hope this helps!
Hi Norbert!
I love your blog! I stumbled upon your blog as I was searching for European Travel Tours…strange right! I don’t know how I feel about traveling alone so I figured I would try a tour. Any suggestions??
I’ve been also blogging about my travels. If you have some time take a look at my website: Trav-Elle.com I would love to know your opinion 🙂
Happy Travels!
Laerta
Hi Laerta –
Apologies on the late reply. Well, it all depends on what you’re looking for or what experiences you want to have while traveling. Think about them and debate whether they would be best done or experience on your own/solo, or with a group of people or the help of a tour.
Happy travels to you too!
PS. The site is looking good! Clean design!
Hi! Norbert.
This is amazing sites & yr travel story
With regards,
Nirgaman
Thanks, Nirgaman!
Hello Norbert !
I found your page on travel as supper excited.Rarely i follow the blogs but when i was just surfing for my job purpose i found your page interesting and inspirational to travel the different countries,learn the new things for betterment.keep share your adventurous story.
Thank you so much, Suveeksha! Hope to see you around and feel free to ask me if you have any question.
Yes! For sure 🙂
Hi Norbert,
Your journey is very inspiring! While I don’t think I can leave my job and head out, I would like to travel in small doses. Which tour company is good for a solo female traveller? I am having tough time getting friends to travel with me!
Hi KW –
I can highly recommend traveling with G Adventures and Intrepid Travel. Both of them are really good tour companies that do trips all around the world, and they tend to have very good group tours that are perfect for solo travelers. I’ve traveled with both companies (as a solo traveler) to Belize, Tanzania, Thailand, and Peru. So far I’m really happy with my experience with them and I’ve met lots of nice people on every tour group. I believe the same would apply for a solo female traveler.
Hope this helps!
Comenzare diciendo que me encanta tu blog y tu iniciativa de inspirar a las personas a viajar el mundo. Descubrí este blog gracias a un profesor de la Escuela de Arquitectura(UPRRP) con el cual viaje este verano y con lo poco que he leído realmente me ha motivado a comenzar(o continuar) mi sueño de viajar el mundo, encontré el preciso empujonsito y la motivación que necesitaba para decirme “TIENES QUE VIAJAR EL MUNDO!”.
Gracias, y sigue asombrándonos con tus historias. Exito!
Hola Fernando –
Gracias un millón por tu mensaje y me da gusto que el blog te haya dado un mayor deseo de viajar el mundo! Te digo, sigue haciendo esos viajes de verano porque son una gran base de inspiración para próximos viajes luego de la escuela.
Si tienes alguna duda o cualquier pregunta, aquí estoy a la orden. Exito a ti también!
Really enjoyed reading your posts. I am 28 years old and also love to travel and see the world, experience different cultures etc. Its so thrilling and exhilarating! Sometimes I wish I could also just drop evertything and travel, but life circumstances don’t always allow that type of flexibility. Reading posts like yours are an inspiration to people like me to never give up on our dreams of travel and to work hard at making it come true despite the odds that life may throw at us! Best of luck on your adventures!
Hi norbert! Your blog is so inspiring.I am pursuing my engineering in electronics and going to complete within couple of months eventually.I was insisted by parents and friends to go with this degree, but i am interested in a career that involves lots of travelling. I want to pursue mba in tourism and hospitality so that i can finally end up making a career in travelling.I know my parents are totally against with my choice but I want to fulfill my dreams.I am not exposed to any adventurous environment till now and travelling is something that happened only in my dreams.can you please help me out to solve this issue and make a better career choice?
Hi Norbert,
I like your journey around the world as you post and sheared the experience to other people.
sup i just landed here can you share around how much all in all you spend on your visa for the whole rally? do the adventurist will give invitation? i am planing to it on 2018
cheers ariva puertorico
Hi Jer –
I spent about $700 on visas because I used the Visa Machine to sort them out and had to pay for some rush services too. YOu can find more about my spending during the rally in this post. https://www.globotreks.com/mongol-rally/22-essential-tips-mongol-rally/