I believe when you travel, there’s no better way to connect with people, than through food.
No matter what culture or country you’re from, or wherever you choose to travel, the one thing you and I have in common is that food is a huge part of our lives.
Migrationology.com is where people who travel for food get useful information about authentic local food from around the world (or at least from the destinations I’ve personally visited).
So, what is Migrationology?
I’ve covered the definition of Migrationology much more on the Start Here page
(I’d encourage you to check it out if you haven’t already).
But in short, Migrationology is about doing something you’re passionate about, and learning and growing in that passion.
For myself, and I think for you too, food and travel is that passion (and that’s what this blog is all about).
Along with delicious and authentic food and restaurant recommendations, my goal is also to inspire you to get out of your comfort zone, set goals, and pursue what you’re most passionate about.
Here’s My Personal Story:
The 10 Second Version:
Nice to meet you, my name is Mark Wiens. I’m a full time travel eater, and along with my wife, I’m based in Bangkok, but we travel frequently. Along with eating, I also like to blog, make videos about local food, and I earn a living from ads on videos, and selling eBooks and t-shirts.
You can now either scroll down, or if you’re interested in longer story, keep reading…
I eat, blog, and make videos.
And that about sums it all up.
Well… ok, there’s a little more to it than that…
First off, I’m a Christian and give God the glory in everything I do.
My parents, both of whom also really enjoy food, are the ones responsible for my love for food.
I was born in Phoenix, Arizona, attended my first year of school in the tiny town of Albertville, France, was home-schooled for 3 years in the jungle of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and attended a Christian international school (Rosslyn Academy) in Nairobi, Kenya for 8 years.
After high school, I returned to the US, attended Arizona State University, and graduated in 2008 with a bachelors degree in Global Studies.
During university my hunger to learn more about the world and eat more delicious food grew.
In 2008, right after graduating, I set off to travel through South America on a solo trip with few plans. I ended up taking a TESOL certificate course to teach English, and hiking through the mountains of Patagonia.
A few months later I returned to the US to attend my sisters wedding.
It was during that time, back in early 2009 when I decided to start a blog. With the help of about 10 cups of coffee per day, Migrationology.com was born.
I still wasn’t ready to get a job and stay put, so I caught a one way ticket to Bangkok, with no plans other than to eat as much as I could.
After traveling around Southeast Asia for about 6 months, I managed to spend nearly all my money.
I was in the Philippines at that time, and I caught a flight from Manila to Bangkok. At this point, I decided to get a job teaching English, and it didn’t take long before I signed a contract to teach English for a year.
However, English teaching was not for me (it was a great experience, but teaching English is just not my passion).
But during that year, I set a personal goal that I would never teach again, and that I would find a way to make a living on the internet, so I could travel (and eat) and earn money at the same time.
It wasn’t easy.
Every spare moment I would blog and sit glued in front of my laptop until my eyes went crazy.
At the beginning, when I made the decision to earn a living online, I’ll admit that I had to live on the cheap (really cheap).
One of the biggest turning points for me was when I published my first eBook, the Eating Thai Food Guide. I finally had my very first product to sell on my website.
It took about 3 years of online work and experimenting before I really started making enough to live fully and support anyone other than myself.
But when you have a goal you’re working towards, you’ll do what it takes to get there.
In Thailand I met Ying, the most amazing girl in the world. We got married in July 2013, and we’ve been traveling and eating together ever since.
Since I started blogging, I’ve loved taking photos (here’s the camera I use). But it was sometime randomly in 2012 when I said to myself, “photographs of food are great, but how can I share more of the atmosphere and the emotion of eating?”
At first I started making extremely simple street food videos and I really had no idea what I was doing. Years down the road, making food videos on YouTube is one of the main things I do.
That brings us to where we are currently right now:
My wife Ying and I are full-time travel eaters.
We strive to provide authentic food and travel information, through blogs and videos, and to also connect with people through the food we eat. That’s how I met you!
I’m extremely grateful that I’m able to make a living and support my family doing what I’m passionate about.
Thank you for reading my personal story, and I’m really happy to meet you,
– Mark Wiens
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Mark Wiens - Eater, Author, Video Producer