Emma (Canada)

I spent four months travelling through South America, followed by four months in Southeast Asia. I'm home for a few weeks until the next leg of the journey. Whether I know what's round the corner, how my career will end up, what future employers will think, one thing is for sure: I don't regret the decision at all. The type of experience you receive is so unique and will shape your ideas and perspectives on how you see yourself and the world. It influences the path you choose to take in a way that cements your happiness.

Bill Passman, 59, caught the travel bug after he got his first passport in 2006, aged 51 - and decided to record his experiences on his own body. In 2010, the former lawyer quit his job and got a map of the world tattooed across his back - and vowed to spend nine months of the year seeing the world. Bill poses for a photo at the Panda research centre in Chengdu, China.[Photo/IC]