When pursuing a dream, it never hurts to start with divine inspiration.
That’s what Anderson’s Colin Mukri credits with helping his family become one of 12 selected from among more than 314,000 applicants for the Live Anywhere on Airbnb program.
It all started with an essay on why Mukri — along with wife, Meg, and daughters Charlotte (5) and Liz (3) — would be the best choice to travel the world for 12 months.
“I wrote the essay of my life,” he says. “That day I had divine inspiration and wrote my heart out.”
In it, Mukri explains how he and Meg wanted a chance to give their daughters the experience of living around the world and being immersed in different cultures. Mukri adds that with both girls being so young they will go into the experience with no expectations and the infectious exuberance an adventure is sure to inspire.
As a native of Malaysia who immigrated to the United State when he was 19, Mukri understands how being exposed to different languages and cultures can enrich life and broaden perspectives. He adds that he and his wife want their daughters to have a firm foundation for becoming good global citizens.
“It’s important for us to show our kids there’s a world out there,” Mukri says.
A remote worker who specializes in video production, Mukri says there are a number of challenges in planning to be abroad for a year. Pandemic concerns will play a large role in deciding which destinations to choose as well as adequate communications access to allow him to continue working.
The family’s travel will begin in September and the program encourages them to stay for at least a month in each location at Airbnb’s expense. The program participants get to experience immersive travel while the company will gather feedback from them on how to better accommodate such prolonged stays in what is becoming the emerging trend of “slow travel.”
Mukri says they hope to begin with a stay in Oregon and from there travel to Europe for stays in Edinburgh, Scotland and Copenhagen, Denmark with a hoped-for sojourn in Germany for Christmas.
Beyond Europe, the family hopes to visit Singapore around the time of the Chinese New Year in February with an aim to visit Mukri’s family, all while keeping their daughters engaged, friends and family updated on their experiences and Mukri himself still productive at work.
“It’s going to be very fun figuring that out,” he says.
