Number of 'digital nomads' rises after COVID-19 layoff

A select lifestyle

The word most DNA residents use to describe their life is "freedom", followed by "independence", "relaxed" and "happy". Some digital nomads have mentioned loneliness, too, and other issues under the surface.

"I met this 27-year-old girl who used to be a livestreamer. In her WeChat moments, she said that her period only returned to normal three months after she quit and drifted to Bangkok," said Xie Xuelin, who has been a digital nomad since she left Beijing seven years ago.

She has traveled and lived in cities such as Dali, Shanghai, Chengdu in Sichuan province, Hangzhou, Langkawi in Malaysia, and Bangkok and Chiang Mai in Thailand.

She works at shared offices or coffee shops when she gets an assignment. She usually wakes up at about 8:30 am, works and then cooks noodles with vegetables for dinner at about 6 pm. She tries to be in bed by midnight.

"Self-discipline is important because it helps people establish a sense of order, and a disrupted schedule often means losing control," she said. "This kind of life isn't for everyone, and few people can endure being alone for long. Some people eventually quit and start looking for work again. You need to be strong to be a digital nomad."

For example, Zhang Na vowed to be a blogger after quitting his job in Beijing, but ended up staying in bed till noon and living off his parents for months in his Jilin province hometown. He had plans to go to the gym, eat healthily and lose weight, but things seem to have gone the opposite way.

In addition to self-discipline, the ability to deal with loneliness is important.

"We travel a lot, so we meet too many new people. We introduce ourselves, talk about things such as 'how's the weather?' 'where are you from?' and 'what do you do?' but deeper communication is hard," said a digital nomad surnamed Li. "After several months, I feel a strong need to embrace 'more concrete' people. Those nomads who are doing well are mostly in a similar situation — they have skills to make money, can earn a good, steady income and have a steady partner but no children."

Children's education and parents' need for senior care can also be reasons for travelers to return to cities or hometowns.

After living abroad for more than four months, Xie plans to return to her family and friends soon. "Even though I enjoy the freedom, I must admit that love, companionship and living safely in a city I know and love, even for a while, is deeply ingrained in everyone's heart," she said.

Zhang Dandan contributed to this story.

Contact the writer at yandongjie@chinadaily.com.cn