For questions, inquiries, or photo rights email: jonathangot@cmail.carleton.ca
Born in Canada, raised in Hong Kong and Shanghai, and studied in Berlin and Ottawa, my passion for travel and adventure has never waned.
If philosophy is the love of wisdom, then languages are the love of anthropology. I love to learn from people around the world to live the lives of locals by learning their languages and histories. I have a strong belief in the power of the written word having advocated for expatriate Canadian voting rights. Our voting rights have been restored though a landmark case in the Supreme Court of Canada in January 2019.
I share my unique experiences by writing about them. Among them, my favourite experiences include meeting the Queen of Denmark, exploring the Arctic Circle, and driving 13,000km across America.
Between 2016 and 2018, I served over 700 service hours in and out of university.
Why do I travel?
I’m an avid adventurer, my idea of a holiday isn’t congruous with what most people have in mind; e.g. cross international borders on a 50cc scooter in winter, speed across a frozen lake in the Arctic Circle, and sleeping on a train for three consecutive nights so I can visit eight cities in three days.
Sitting on live tracks in Arctic Sweden for a photo, probably not very wise in hindsight
Why do I write?
Apart from being able to share my stories with others, writing helps me internalise information in a meaningful way allowing me to appreciate my experiences with a deeper understanding.
What do I look for when I’m out and about?
A genuine experience, things like being able to travel on a commuter train in Maryland or experience the restfulness and serenity of the midwestern US. I seek to understand different lifestyles and attitudes from their native point of view and maybe change the way I live if I find something I really like.
Who do you travel with?
Sometimes strangers, sometimes friends or to meet friends, but usually alone. There are a few friends who ask if they could come with me on one of my adventures, but I usually turn them down because they misunderstand what I do. Some people think I’m just reckless or just another tourist that treats native people like animals in a safari zoo. But what I do is very different, I learn to cook their foods, speak their language, appreciate their culture, and understand how their histories shape the way they are today – through reckless adventures.
What do you like about traveling alone?
Traveling alone means I can only depend on myself and the kindness of strangers when being a guest in a foreign land. Depending on myself allows me to assess my own capabilities of taking care of myself and grow. The level of help you get from others often says a lot about a country’s people, but I’m fortunate to have met mostly nice people.
How do you choose where you go?
I think it depends on proximity or convenience. If I’m stationed in, say, Vancouver, I’d have trips up and down the west coast. If I’m going to visit France, I might add in Belgium and the UK to minimise my average costs.
My bike on a train to Rostock with delicious homemade tortellinis for lunch
Why do you like trains?
Trains give travellers more dignity on long-distance trips than airplanes. I just think its unnatural to have to pay an exorbitant amount of money to be stuffed into an aluminium tube with 300 other strangers and have to wait around in a state-sponsored duty-free shopping mall in the middle of nowhere for hours between journeys. I’d much rather pay more or less the same amount of money to arrive and depart in the middle of town and have a range of dining services along with power sockets, high-speed WiFi, and mobile reception.
My mother visited me in Berlin and asked: “Son, our train leaves at 2:30 pm, when’s the latest time we should get to the train station?”
I told her: “2:29 pm on the platform at the latest, no baggage checks or check-in counters, we can buy the ticket onboard at a surcharge if you’re not bothered to go to the ticket booth.”
Then she gave me a look. I knew that’s not what she meant.