Meet the Nomads: Janet Brent

I stumbled upon Janet’s blog through Twitter and I followed her blog from then on. It was a very unusual migration for a Filipino. Most migration stories that I’ve heard are from the Philippines to the US. Janet is doing the other way around, from US back to the Philippines.

Janet is in the process of building her online business just like most people that I’m following 0n Twitter. She’s a graphic designer and currently focuses on WordPress Designs. I’m actually amazed with her designs and even contacted her to design my logo and my header. Yup, she did all that great graphics on flipnomad.

If you want to know more about Janet check out her blog at

Here’s my short interview with Janet Brent.

How did you discover your passion for travelling?

“I think I’ve always had the travel bug but it didn’t manifest until later in my mid twenties when I had the classic so-called “quarterlife crisis”, broke off a 5 year long-term relationship (oh, and not to mention a house mortgage), and decided that my “inner voice” was telling me to move back to the Philippines, where I was originally born. I had no idea how to get there. I’m constantly to this day overwhelmed by my big ideas, but what worked for me was committing to go to India for some voluntourism. Once I did that, there was no turning back. Filling out the forms and paying in advance was non-refundable. Deciding to do that made it easier to buy the one way plane ticket to the Philippines instead of a roundtrip back to the states. It was pretty genius actually, and I’m still here looking to travel more of SE Asia, so it worked!”

What’s the most horrible experience that you’ve had on the road?

“Well, I was literally on the road, walking Palawan, Philippines from south to north for over 660 km! Try walking 15km uphill in some scorching heat. That’s pretty horrible, wouldn’t you say? And I did it all in broken down flip-flops, the “native” way. Some of the rough roads were pretty unbearable, like walking barefoot.”

What’s the best travel experience that you’ve ever had?

“I’m not sure I have a favorite because there is beauty in all of it! There’s something about India that I really loved. I want to explore more of it. I also loved my experiences living in a Buddhist monastery and falling in love while walking in Palawan was not half bad either.”

What’s the biggest realization that you’ve got out of travelling?

“That this is a legit lifestyle! I’ve done more in country travel in the Philippines than anywhere else. I often feel less traveled than most travelers because I’ve only been to Taiwan and India outside of the US, where I grew up, and Canada. Because of this, I definitely prefer “slow travel”, living in and experiencing different cultures and using travel as a lifestyle; realizing this CAN be a lifestyle and as long as you live minimalist, can actually end up being cheaper than the daily grinds of normal society! I love it, and I’m still slowly trying to build my mobile empire!”

“What keeps me motivated is just following my passions with the faith that it will work out and this is just a phase, a “season”, I have to go through because NOTHING is permanent.”

What keeps you going? What keeps you motivated?

“That’s funny you mention because I’m chatting with my parents on Facebook, and on the phone earlier and they don’t quite “get it”. Their take is to just get a job like normal people, and work for a company because the wage is “permanent”. I’m living in a slum area in Las Pinas right now. It’s a surreal 180 experience but I can afford a “side job” income while I try to build up my design business here. I can’t afford other living situations without looking for roommates, and I like having a place to myself. Sometimes, it gets depressing if I let my ego get in the way (“poor me”), and also the fact that I’m actually not very mobile right now to travel at all, which is what I WANT to be doing. What keeps me motivated is just following my passions with the faith that it will work out and this is just a phase, a “season”, I have to go through because NOTHING is permanent. Not even this. That’s comforting. It’s also motivating to think about what my life was like in the cubicle and realizing I can never go back to it. Once I had an “awakening”, I HAVE to keep moving towards the direction of travel and location independence and working online. It’s the future. And I’m here. With that being said, I’m actually looking to travel again next month due to visa expiring soon. That should be a fun break from my life in the slums!”

This is a silly and hypothetical one. If you would be given a chance to travel with a popular person or a celebrity, who would it be and why?

“Well, it would have to be someone I think I could get along with. I think it would be really fun to travel with Ewan McGregor because I stumbled upon a book he wrote where he was apparently traveling around the US in a motorcycle? I can’t remember the details but I remember being surprised that he was into that type of exploration and I think he would have a lot of fun stories! James Franco of 127 Hours would also be interesting because he’s multi-talented and just seems like a total genius who’s constantly pushing himself with innovation and taking on new projects.”

Where’s your favourite place in this planet and why?

“I love my motherland, the Philippines. I think there’s a lot of beauty here and talented people.”

What’s your best tip for newbie traveller?

“Travel in groups. It’s probably safer and helps your confidence. I would have never survived India alone so I decided to go through a volunteer group. Aside from boarding the plane by myself and navigating through the airport, I was never alone!”

What’s the funniest and silliest thing you’ve ever done while travelling?

“I shaved my head at the monastery even though it wasn’t required and the monks/nuns (they were all female) advised against it. Probably, with my stubborn personality, it convinced me to shave my head even more! So I’m not allowed to do something because I’m female and it wouldn’t look good? OK, I’ll do it anyway! Nevertheless, growing out my hair and looking like a chia pet was pretty funny. I call it my “ugly phase”.”

What do you think about yourself?

“I’m just a regular girl doing something different. It’s not all that amazing or hard. Anyone could do what I do, you just have to commit to do it, or decide that you like the lifestyle. It’s not for everyone and it takes a lot of confidence to do things differently. As I said before, I’m still struggling with my big ideas and feeling overwhelmed by them (starting businesses, not having a clue about business but following my passions anyway, etc). Just because I’m where I am now doesn’t mean I still don’t have fears like people who haven’t “taken the plunge”, or struggle with confidence. I am still finding a lack of confidence and need to pump myself up all the time to get to a tipping point to make my big ideas happen. I have a lot of potential, but need more action.”

The Purple Panda is coming of age. It’s me stumbling through building an online business, entering a world of entrepreneurship, and travel. I like encouraging other people to “march to your own beat” by being an example. I post things like “Lessons from the Ghetto” and interview successful people online and offline who are doing meaningful and creative things. – Janet Brent

Interested to work with Janet? Click on her logo to know more. Janet is a wandering WordPress designer who makes awesome logos and other website designs. Check it out.

Next: Lilliane Cobiao of Wanderlass.Previously: Jaime Davila of Breakaway Backpacker . For more interviews with travel bloggers, check out the archives of Meet the Nomads.