Traveling instead of owning - Why Christopher Many has been on the road since 1997
Christopher Many has been on the road for almost 30 years - without a fixed abode, but with a clear attitude. In this interview, he talks about minimalism, 1,667 car breakdowns, real freedom and the question of why it might be braver to stay settled. An invitation to rethink - and to let go.
We talk to people who live their lives differently - consciously, courageously, sometimes radically. Not to impress. But to inspire, to question and to show: There is another way. And that's okay.
This is not about empty phrases. Not about gloss. It's about real answers - to the questions you ask yourself around the campfire when no one is making small talk anymore. Because when you're on the road, you have a lot to tell. And often more to give than you think.
I sleep when I'm tired, eat when I'm hungry - what could be simpler?
A conversation with Christopher Many - he has been traveling the world since 1997. Not as an influencer, not as a missionary, not as a dropout. But as someone who has decided to be on the road permanently - out of conviction, with attitude, with a fine sense of humor.
In this interview, he talks about the misunderstanding of the "courageous departure", about his very own definition of home - and about why travel is no substitute for saving the world, but can change world views.
About you and your journey:
Briefly tell us about yourself: Who are you? When did you start traveling? What have you already done? Where are you/living right now? And what's next for you?
I've been driving around the world virtually non-stop since 1997 - the last seven years in a bright yellow Mercedes 308D with a parcel box from the German Federal Post Office. Before that, I circumnavigated the globe several times on a motorcycle and in a 1975 Land Rover. Recently, my partner Laura and I returned to Europe from an 18-month overland trip through Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran and Oman. Right now we are in Canada, and I think we will stay in North America until 2028. Well, life can be a lot of fun when you have discovered your passion. It doesn't matter whether it's music, sport, family or work - or, like me, traveling.
Do you remember the moment when you felt it for the first time? I want out. I want more out of life?
I didn't want "more from life", I just wanted something different. I don't want to devalue sedentariness and everything that goes with it. However, even in my youth, I looked at the horizon and asked: "Who lives beyond, and what would I discover there?" So in 1997, I bought a Yamaha XTZ 660 Ténéré, permanently logged out of Germany and set course for India. Although the sedentary life certainly has its advantages, I prefer a nomadic existence without walls. My home has to be mobile. Above all, however, I don't want to be tied down financially and locally by bricks and mortar, but want to retain my freedom to roam.
What does your everyday life on the road look like - or does it no longer exist?
I am a minimalist. I eat when I'm hungry, sleep when I'm tired and shovel sand when my vehicle gets stuck in a dune. Time pressure is unknown to me. I accelerate, I brake, I stay where I'm welcome and drive on when I'm not. Life is more difficult in Germany, where you have to get along with your neighbors if you live somewhere permanent! I only make a living with what the storage space of a car or the top case of a motorcycle can provide. My lifestyle is certainly not everyone's cup of tea, but Laura and I are happy. I have found my little "niche" - a way of life that allows me to determine my own path with few material resources. I don't own a house, but I don't have to pay off any mortgages either. Stress? I don't know any either. My income as an author is enough to buy gas, food and maybe a little more. I'm not starving, I'm free and I have friends - what more could I want?
What's the best place you've stayed in so far - and why?
In general, I like countries with a low population density and lots of nature best. I can be myself there undisturbed and have a lot of freedom due to the sparse population, which is unfortunately hardly possible in Europe. I can't just go for a walk in the Bavarian Forest with an axe and build myself a log cabin - that wouldn't be a problem in northern Canada. Alongside Argentina, Namibia, Mongolia, Iran, Sudan and Bolivia, China is definitely one of my personal favorite countries to travel to. There, on the Tibetan Plateau, you can still find intense nature experiences.
I'm not brave. Quite the opposite - I just have it easier.
Were there moments when you wanted to throw in the towel?
Despair? No; I never felt it. Just as an example: on my eight-year Land Rover world tour, I had exactly 1,667 car breakdowns. So a few after all. But my vehicle was already 35 years old at the time and cost - for good reason - less than 1,000 euros. I bled the brakes 52 times, replaced 59 spring bushes, 40 spark plugs and 18 condensers. Then there are the mechanical problems: 20 leaf springs, eight universal joints and two drive shafts are broken. The steering locked on a steep mountain pass in Chile, my gearbox fell apart on the "road of death" in Bolivia and I tipped over several times in Africa. But such experiences are part and parcel of an overland trip and you get used to them. You can be annoyed by the sand shoveling and repairs - or you can enjoy the physical activity in the fresh air instead of having to work in an office. Traveling teaches you that things always go on somehow - even if not always in the way you expected.
What important tip could you give to other adventurers?
An unknown poet once wrote: "Just living is not enough. Life must have quality if it is to be worth living. And for quality, we must be prepared to take some risks and endure some hardships." I could subscribe to that - but with a side note: traveling doesn't involve that many risks, as long as you travel around the world sensibly. Dangers - apart from those in some hot spots - are often greatly exaggerated by our media. Shouldn't we know that everywhere in the world, the main concern of the population is to feed their families and live in peace - and not to hunt down overlanders? And aren't there also shootings, theft, kidnapping, disease and violence in Europe? The truth is that unpleasant incidents can happen anywhere. So: take courage! We have the freedom to determine our own destiny, to search the world for values that we find inspiring, to write down the rules we want to live by and to discover what is best for us and our loved ones.
The question everyone is asking:
How do you finance this life? And how do you deal with the uncertainty that may come with it?
I earned the money I needed for my very first trip around the world by working as a boat builder. But it was clear to me from the start: I wanted to go out into the world and not climb the career ladder. My "professional career" ended on my 27th birthday. Since then, I have been a writer and have financed my travels and my nomadic life exclusively through my books Beyond the Horizon Left, Beyond the Horizon Right and Somewhere Beyond the Horizon. For every copy I sell, I can fill up a few liters of gas and keep moving forward. I'm not sponsored by companies, and I don't have to finance my travels with film presentations or readings. Instead, I can concentrate fully on what I like to do best: traveling the world and reporting on my experiences - without being distracted by other things.
I don't feel insecure. My average expenditure is very low and rarely exceeds 7,000 euros per year. However, how much long-term travelers spend varies greatly, and my expenses are not directly transferable. All overlanders have different wishes and needs.
Being on the road as a life principle
What does traveling mean to you - beyond postcard motifs and bucket lists?
Every nomad has to know that for themselves. For me, the greatest gain is physical and mental freedom. It is no longer the media that shapes my opinions about nations, cultures and events in the world. I myself am now an independent eyewitness. Thanks to the daily influx of stimuli, you soon find yourself thinking in new ways you never thought possible, asking questions you never imagined before and seeing everything from a completely different perspective.
Has being on the road changed your view of the world?
You always meet people on the road who make you feel welcome and turn an unfamiliar city into a temporary home. I wouldn't have lasted three decades on a long journey without all these lovely people. Of course, there are also many people who are less tolerant and hardly have as much empathy as a malaria mosquito. As travelers, however, we always hope not to encounter them too often.
I have learned one important thing from these encounters in foreign countries: there are no universal anthropological constants. There are no unanimous decisions between right and wrong, no universally binding moral and ethical standards and no religion common to all. Recognizing this has consequences: The visitor to any corner of the world must free himself from the absolute claim to truth and accept that all thoughts are personal and of equal value wherever they are encountered. You don't have to adopt the beliefs of others in your own life, but the least you can do is listen and allow others the right to their own opinion.
If more people acted accordingly and tried to resolve their conflicts diplomatically, things would be much more peaceful on this earth. I believe that humanity will desperately need a little humility in the coming centuries if it wants to survive.
Are there any encounters that have particularly shaped or changed you? One that you will never forget?
Yes, namely my partner Laura! We met in Malawi in 2008. I fell in love with her back then and we have been inseparable ever since.
What role does "home" play for you?
As I don't have a geographically fixed home, home is defined by the places where people I love are. Laura is my "fixed base". Wherever she is - in Argentina or Mongolia - that's where I feel at home.
Is there anything you've let go of along the way - and don't miss?
Well, there are certainly many things that you definitely shouldn't take with you on a trip abroad. For example:
- Preconceived ideas and prejudices about the places and people you want to get to know;
- A meticulously planned itinerary - spontaneity is important;
- Pessimism;
- National pride and patriotism;
- Excessively high expectations. It is better to be pleasantly surprised by a country than to be deeply disappointed;
- Stress should definitely be left at home;
- Dependence on possessions. Despite all caution, it can happen that you lose your belongings or fall victim to theft. Believe me, life and the journey go on afterwards. Your health, the friendships you have made and the memories you have collected are much more important than a stolen rucksack. That can be replaced - the aforementioned cannot.
Meaning & traces:
What do you want to leave behind - not in the sand, but with the people you meet?
For some, it may be right to sell all their possessions and travel the world carefree with material goods, but for most others it is not recommended. Society would fall apart if all the inhabitants of the earth suddenly decided to head for the horizon in a vehicle and write books about it. The world would become a giant library under a bell jar of carbon dioxide.
But there are also positive effects. Every Overland journey is also a diplomatic mission, and every Overlander an ambassador for their tribe - nomads dreaming the dream of a more united planet with fewer dividing borders. Many new friendships are made along the way, so that some travelers even end up seeing themselves as citizens of the world and no longer identify with their country of birth, but with the international community.
Being able to communicate and exchange ideas across cultural borders promotes tolerance, understanding and peace. That's a beautiful thing, isn't it?
What else do you dream of - personally, honestly?
My travel dreams are so numerous that I couldn't even realize a fraction of them. There is still so much to discover! If we still feel like it, I estimate that we could be on the road for another 25 years. But who can predict the future? I wouldn't want to - where would the excitement be? At the moment, we're just concentrating on the next stage: an overland trip through Canada, the USA and Mexico. After that, we'll see what happens.
I'm 55 now, and it's true: my wants and needs have changed over time. I have spent my life realizing my dreams - in order of difficulty. I started with hard physical work on solo expeditions, and at some point I'll be satisfied with walking dogs or swinging in a hammock. In any case, that's smarter than doing it the other way round and trying to complete the Amazon trip at 95. It would be annoying to be stuck all the time because vines have wound themselves around the wheelchair spokes.
When more happens along the way:
Have you come across a project, an initiative or a person who is getting things moving? Or have you started something yourself that is more than your own adventure?
Can I be completely honest? Combining overland travel with a humanitarian project is always a knife-edge ride. Applied anthropology and evolutionary psychology are highly complex disciplines, and well-intentioned aid projects - clumsily executed - can cause human tragedies abroad that are worse than the ills they were intended to remedy. The idea that you can solve the world's problems by driving a car is wrong. If you want to set great things in motion, you should not travel, but settle in the target area for the long term and acquire in-depth knowledge of the culture, the language, the local needs and the resources available on the ground.
But (!), we can all make small changes in our personal lives - whether we are traveling or living in one place. And yes, I know many individuals who are working for the environment, animals, justice, women's rights, Gaza, etc. My contribution is my Beyond the Horizon travel trilogy, in which I shine a spotlight on many controversial issues around the world.
About the person: Christopher Many
Author, overlander, minimalist. Born in New York in 1970 to a German mother and an American father, Christopher Many has consistently avoided stagnation for over 25 years. After an apprenticeship as a boat builder in Bavaria and his first trips by sailboat, motorcycle and Land Rover, he is now one of Europe's best-known long-term travelers.
Since 1997, he has lived permanently on the road - first with his Yamaha Puck, later with the legendary Land Rover Matilda and today in a bright yellow Mercedes Postbus. Together with his partner Laura, he has traveled to over 130 countries. He published his experiences in the successful trilogy Beyond the Horizon - books that do not glorify stories, but question them. Even after decades on the road, he still believes: "There is still so much to discover - and no reason to settle down anywhere."
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