• Joel Balsam grew up in Ottawa, Ontario, and dreamed of traveling the world from a young age.
• As a travel writer, the 34-year-old has spent most of the past decade abroad.
• Balsam realized during the pandemic he didn't want to be based in Canada and found a home in Brazil.

At about this time last year, I found myself on a two-week trek in the Himalayas, burned out. I wanted to scream into the snowy mountains, "Will I ever find a place where I belong?"

I grew up in the suburbs of Ottawa, Ontario, nicknamed "The City That Fun Forgot." I've always wanted to see what was out there beyond my quiet backyard.

After studying political science and journalism at university in Montreal, I spent four months backpacking in South America. The last country I visited on the trip, Brazil, blew my mind. Locals in Rio de Janeiro, where I celebrated Carnaval in 2013, said I was just like a "carioca" — what locals call themselves.

I was amazed by their passion for their music, dancing, and culture — a sense of pride they call "Brasilidade." I'd never experienced anything like that in Canada.

Looking for somewhere else like Rio

Vowing to return, I went back to Canada and worked at a weekly newspaper, but the call to travel came again.

In 2015, I spent a year teaching English in Madrid and traveled across Europe, India, and Southeast Asia. To make extra money and continue my writing career, I wrote trending news articles for a Montreal-based website that allowed me to work remotely.

After basing myself in Medellín, Colombia, and Oaxaca, Mexico, for a few months each, I returned to Rio in 2018, hoping to feel that spark again. But the energy wasn't as I'd remembered. There had just been a divisive presidential election won by Jair Bolsonaro. I continued traveling.

I went on a four-month road trip across the Southern United States with my girlfriend at the time, a photographer. We teamed up to do stories for top international publications like Time, The Guardian, and National Geographic. We traveled to Morocco and Armenia so I could write guidebooks for Lonely Planet. I felt as if I was living my dream life. Then the pandemic hit.

Unsure of when international travel might return, my partner and I decided to buy an apartment in Montreal.

While I love Montreal, I struggled mentally during the pandemic curfews and the long Canadian winters. In 2022, my partner and I broke up, and I felt the urge to find somewhere to call home.

Lit up again in Brazil

Last year, I traveled to 17 countries for work and to search for a place to live. Everywhere I went, I asked people why they chose to live where they did.

By November, I felt burned out from my search, which culminated in that mountain meltdown in Nepal. To see whether I could find belonging with other wandering souls, I took a cruise with digital nomads from Spain to Brazil.

I don't think there's anything wrong with traveling full time, but I found myself butting heads with other passengers who seemed to want to live exactly as they did back home, just more cheaply and in better weather.

When the cruise landed in Salvador, roughly 930 miles north of Rio, most cruisers carried on traveling, but I didn't want to leave.

The palm trees, the way locals told stories, the nuances of the country's culture — everything lit me up about Brazil as it had during my first visit. I felt the energy had relaxed since Lula was reelected president in 2022.

I traveled to the island Parintins in the Amazon for a Brazilian festival, Boi-Bumbá. As thousands sang and danced in performances that told Indigenous and Afro-Brazilian stories, I realized that in the 60 countries I'd been to, there's nothing like Brasilidade.

When I got to Rio, my urge to travel dissipated. I find life here perfectly balances health and fun. People of all ages love to party, and there isn't the pressure to stop after your 20s. I think Rio is the most beautiful natural city I've ever seen. There aren't long periods of social hibernation, as it never gets cold.

Career-wise, I feel there are so many stories to write in Brazil. The city hosts international events like the G20, which was here last week. I know I'll always be a gringo, but I feel welcomed.

The city has its downsides. There are high crime rates in Rio, though I've never been robbed. And I do find the international cuisine options lacking. Other than that, I think Rio has it all.

Logistics of moving to Rio

US and Canadian passport holders can stay in Brazil for 90 days with the option of extending for a total of 180 days in a year. There are various visas to stay longer, including a digital-nomad visa that permits remote working in Brazil for a year.

I am on a one-year student visa as I improve my Portuguese and will look into a journalist visa afterward.

While Rio, especially in the beachy Zona Sul, is more expensive than most of Brazil, I find it very affordable compared with other places I've been.

For instance, I pay $500 a month to rent a one-bedroom apartment in the hilltop neighborhood of Santa Teresa, which I found through a friend of a friend. Other places are much more costly though, especially short-term rentals by the beach. Otherwise, I find Rio to be affordable on my salary. A hardy Brazilian lunch with rice, beans, and meat for under $5 and beers that cost only a couple of bucks fit my budget.

As for whether this choice to stay is permanent, right now it is. I'll still travel, but I'm looking forward to shorter trips and having this incredible city to return to.