My flight landed in Hong Kong at 12:30am on Monday, May 14th 2018. I had spent the previous 9 days in Bali, Indonesia and decided to do a solo trip to Hong Kong before returning to the United States. My body hadn’t yet become acclimated to the climate in Southeast Asia or the food at this point. I was covered in a thin layer of sweat, still feeling the side effects of food poisoning from the fish ball soup the night before, and quite honestly was the most nervous I had ever been in my life.

I was alone. In Hong Kong.

I had zero expectations on the front end of what I was about to experience, completely unaware that my life would never be the same.

Clueless but confident I hopped on a double-decker bus to travel from the airport to Causeway Bay, a neighborhood of Hong Kong close to the center of the city. Unfortunately, I doubted Google Maps and got off the bus one stop shy of my Hostel. Here I am - a big, anxious, white American man - hustling through the streets of Hong Kong at 1:15AM with my roller luggage, large travel-sized backpack, and without cell service. Somehow I managed to find the street and make it to the front entrance of my hostel, The Yesinn at Causeway Bay.

I hiked up two flights of stairs and made my way to the check-in desk. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a man approach me and swiftly stick out his hand to greet me in a thick spanish accent.

“Hello, my name is Elias!” “Would you like to come out with us tonight my good sir?”

I glanced over his shoulder to see another three guys walking up to greet me. A Chinese guy who introduced himself as “Eazy”, a 6-foot-3 German guy named Heiko, and an Austrian guy named Christoph. Come to find out all four of them had just met a couple of hours before my arrival. I was still flustered from my Hong Kong street experience and now the most culturally diverse group I’d ever been exposed to invites me to go out with them. Only one response seemed appropriate:

“Might as well!”

They handed a beer as I made my way to finish the check-in to my room. A Spanish, a Chinese, a German, an Austrian, and now an American hitting the town in Hong Kong; what a thrill it was.

**Eazy on our Hike up to Victoria’s Peak in HK.**

We proceeded to spend the next few days enjoying HK cuisine, site seeing, and really just getting to know each other. It was such a cool experience to learn about how different each one of our cultures is. About two days into our HK experience we come to find out that Elias, Heiko, and Christoph all individually had separate plans to go to Hanoi, Vietnam in the upcoming weekend. We had all clicked at this point and I started to get an itch that I wanted to join them in Vietnam. To be honest I was unsure and nervous. Being from Kentucky I had never met someone who had visited Vietnam. I had this uneasy feeling that I wouldn't be welcomed or looked down upon as an American because of the Vietnam War. I had never known that it was such a beautiful country with amazing things to offer. I was definitely nervous to commit to going. Christoph told me his plan of going to Hanoi and buying a motorcycle to take it from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh. It sounded absolutely crazy at first but come to find out it is common for Europeans to buy a motorcycle or motorbike and travel the country. I was convinced. Nervous but confident in my ability to go on an adventure of a lifetime. I had never driven a motorcycle and my most recent experience of driving something with two wheels was a moped in Bali, which I had wrecked into a table outside of a little cafe. But here I am, about to redeem myself by stepping out of fear and see a side of Vietnam not many people see.

I arrived to Hanoi, Vietnam on Saturday early evening. After spending time in Hong Kong it was nice to get out and be in a more relaxed city. I loved everything about the first couple days in Vietnam. It was fun to hangout with fellow travelers and hear everyone’s story. Each person coming from a different place but seeking something, whether that be in themselves or within the country itself. Every person I met was passionate about something. A group of us went and took a 2-day trip to Halong Bay, one of the most beautiful sceneries I’ve ever seen. After returning is when the search for motorcycles began. I bought mine off a traveler who had finished her trip. I paid $150 for it and was excited for the trip ahead. I had never driven a motorcycle before and the traffic in Vietnam is intimidating to say the least. I spent the next day and a half trying to practice on side streets and alleyways. I could see the locals watching me struggle from their doorways, I didn’t mind. It was motivation to conquer the bike. If you are unfamiliar, the Vietnamese streets are filled with thousands of moped riders, buses that don’t pay any attention to you, and street lights that nobody seems to follow. Here I am a first time rider throwing myself into a traffic system that is chaos, I loved every minute of it.

**Christoph and I on the road through Vietnam.**

On May 27th a Sunday afternoon Christoph and I began our road trip of Vietnam. It was a start to a new journey. After meeting Christoph that night at the Yesinn at Causeway Bay, we proceeded to spend every hour together for the next 90 days. We didn’t plan for it to be just us two on the motorcycle trip, but it just ended up that way. I didn’t know it then but I know it now that he was placed in my life for a purpose. Before my trip to Asia I was really wondering what was going to happen as I was traveling alone. I prayed and prayed to meet someone that I could connect with. Those prayers were answered to say the least. I am honored to get to know this man. His love to travel and try new things has inspired me to challenge myself and take a leap of faith. I decided to put societal norms for a “vacation” aside to do something that my heart was telling me to do. This decision didn’t come easy and I didn’t make it by myself. I thought and I reflected on what I should do as well as listened to the people around me. As an experienced motorcyclist Christoph was a catalyst of me overcoming my fear. He instilled nothing but confidence for me and my ability. It was beyond refreshing. We should all be the person to uplift and encourage other people to not only take risks but to follow their passions. You never know what your confidence in someone else can empower them to do. I am grateful to have some amazing people in my life that do so.

**Vietnamese High Schoolers wanting pictures!**

The experiences Christoph and I had throughout our next month in Southeast Asia were almost movie like. On the second day we accidentally stumbled up on a place called the Citadel of Ho Dynasty. There was a great view and we decided to stop and take some pictures. The next thing we know is we are being swarmed with what we think were 50 Vietnamese high school students. They spent a solid hour just taking pictures and selfies with us. It was one of the cooler experiences of my life. I don’t believe they saw westerners too often. I was having just as much fun as they were.

Back on the road the next day my bike came to a rumbling halt in the middle of a bridge. Reluctant to start I had no idea what to do. Surrounded by nothing but the heat of the sun and few construction workers up in the distance. After about ten minutes of me trying to get my bike to start one of them got on his moped and rode to me. I tried to explain to him but he didn’t speak a lick of English. He could tell my bike was in need of a mechanic so he motioned me to sit on it and balance. This man proceeded to put his foot on my exhaust pipe and push me with the power of his moped all the way to the nearest mechanic. It was the most unbelievable thing. For 30 minutes this man went out of his way to help someone he couldn’t even speak to. Arriving at the mechanic I showed my gratitude towards him and he proceeded to ride off.

I would have never been a witness to any of this if I had never had the confidence to overcome my fears and go on this adventure of a lifetime. After 13 long days on a motorcycle trip throughout Vietnam we made it to Ho Chi Minh. I am so thankful to have met someone to do it with in Christoph. Our friendship grew quickly. Whether it was getting swarmed by Vietnamese high schoolers, having to pay bribes to the Vietnamese police, or sharing a twin bed on a night bus throughout Cambodia there seemed to always be something new happening. The month and a half we spent every hour together turned into something much greater than just a travel buddy. We have a great connection that has led to inspiring things.

Since Vietnam Christoph and I keep in touch with often FaceTime and texting. If something happens in my life, he seems to know about it and vice-versa. It is so much more than just a friendship. Its an exchange of culture and purpose I never thought I would have. I was able to share this exchange with some of my best friends in Josh, Patrick, and Landon. Instead of hitting the beach for spring break we all went to Vienna, Austria to visit with Christoph. None of them had been to Europe before and only Landon had ever been out of the country. I was excited for them to meet Christoph as well experience a different culture. The first night there Landon, Josh, and I (Patrick bought wrong flight so had to wait an extra day) just hung out with Christoph and his two brothers Michael and Philipp. It was incredible to be able to dive into conversation and be able to really understand how each of us grew up and learn about cultural norms. It was fun to explain things like the difference between life in Kentucky versus life in other parts of America. We even got onto the topic of politics and Christoph and his brothers thought it was so interesting how we all had different viewpoints on certain matters. I was just happy to be able to expose my friends as well as be exposed to a totally different perspective.

**Attempting to Ski in Heiligenblut, Austria.**

After spending the first days hanging out in Vienna, all 5 of us crammed into Christoph’s hatchback and drove to his family's house in Heiligenblut, Austria. We arrived in the dark so we had no idea what the scenery was until the next morning. Waking up surrounded by snow capped Austrian Alps and a quaint little city tucked into a valley was one of the many great memories I had of Austria. The view seemed to be incredible at every angle of his house in the mountains. Nothing compared to when Christoph took us to a nearby ski resort where the views were immaculate. However, my skiing skills were not so much. I had been skiing one time before and thought I would be able to pick it up no problem. This was not the case. After doing a full blown somersault down the Austrian Alps I decided to throw in the towel and just enjoy the scenery instead. Nonetheless I loved how much the other guys enjoyed the slopes.

After a great time in Heiligenblut we crammed back into the car and headed back to the city. We introduced Christoph to country music, he specifically loved the song “Wagon Wheel” by Old Crow Medicine Show. While singing along to Wagon Wheel driving through small towns encapsulated by the Austrian Alps. Landon looks at me at says, “Why don’t you try to find some wood and make some pens out of it?” This was made as somewhat of a joke but I was hooked to the idea. I was looking around for lumberyards or anywhere I thought may have a source of wood. As we continued our ride I felt as if I was running out of time to locate something. We made a pit stop at a gas station. As the other guys went in for snacks and drinks I was scrambling around the outside looking for some wood. I located a small piece laying about 20 feet off the side of the gas station. I was honestly doubtful if I was going to be able to make anything from it. The wood seemed to be split throughout and unusable. But I took the risk and stuffed it into my luggage. After an amazing rest of the trip in Vienna then Budapest we returned back to America.

In light of returning I took the wood up to the wood shop to see what I could make of it. I showed it to my grandpa who is much more experienced in woodcraft than I am. As soon as he saw it he had no doubt I would be able to make some pens out of it. At this moment I knew I had made the right decision. From that very first decision of taking a leap of faith to go to Hong Kong alone to my very last in picking up this piece of wood. I decided to take step out of my comfort zone more than I ever would have imagined. If you would have told me at this exact time last year that I would have motorcycled through Vietnam, have one of my best friends living in Austria, and would have started a business with my grandfather. I would have called you crazy.

I’ve been inspired to be confident in myself, get rid of all judgments, and to trust in what God has aligned for me by stepping out into faith. It's not crazy anymore. It’s just my story. Yours is out there too, a lot closer than you might think.

JONES+DAY-36.jpg — The Austrian Masterpiece!

From a Hong Kong Hostel to an Austrian Masterpiece…