About Mike and Margot

Rome, 22 December 2015

This BIO will change continuously just as life does.

When i put my thoughts together about We Like To Get Lost, it described with extreme precision the situation I was living in. I was taking a big step into a new life and new experiences, it was a jump into the unknown, and leaving all my comfort zones was a long and uneasy process. TO go back, question myself, my life, my choices, bring back peace into me, find out my vulnerabilities, and transform them into new strengths. A work in progress that never ends. Sometimes this path brought tremendous joy and a pure feeling of freedom, but at the same time, it would carry sadness, fear, inner struggle, and pain. I would've never thought I was actually starting one of the greatest adventures ever, which led to building all the strength with which I feel empowered now. I did not have great success in my life, I am not earning big money, all the projects I develop are self-funded, and I try to do my best with my own capabilities.

CULTUS EX FERAM

Of one thing I am confident and proud of: I am living the life I was aspiring for, achieving my own long craved dreams. We Like To Get Lost represent this journey, both physical and ethereal. Is the search for wild things in nature and in my own soul. CULTUS EX FERAM means exactly this: the culture of the wild. Getting lost to in the end find myself again, grown, stronger, and realized.

– If you go on your own, you will get lost.
– Well, we like to get lost!

A guy tried to rip me off in Bali while driving me to Keramas for the Oakley Pro Surf contest.
He hijacked my friend and me into a little alley and asked for more money to take me to that beach.
Told me: "If you go on your own, you will get lost".
I hated that moment. It made us feel unsafe, I was not going to give money to that man, so I replied, "Well, we like to get lost", waved goodbye and left.

That trip changed my life forever. It was my first time traveling solo. The island of Bali. That experience was so rewarding and fulfilling that to me now is a must to take time to be by myself and do my own things the way I want them to be.
It is hard for other people to accept this sometimes, and many tend to judge it or make fun of it.
They don't know what they are missing.

Hi, my name is Michele, but you can call me Mike.
I am a freelance web designer/programmer from Rome, Italy, but I've been living on the road with my van and Margot, my beloved dog, for the past 7 years or so.

** edit: Margot passed away in June 2021 **

I love sports and to stay in the wild as much as possible. This 
When I travel, I like to mingle with people, walk around with curiosity, rent a bicycle or a motorbike so that I can get the most out of the local culture at a slow pace. The best thing is not to make plans and to get lost. Let the unexpected happen.
There is so much beauty if I just stop and pay attention. All I needed to do is slow down and breathe.
At times things can get tricky, some others definitely wrong, but sometimes it is from those events that I get the most from the experience of traveling.

With me, there is Margot as I said, my faithful and loving dog. She likes to go jogging with me, lie in bed all day, swim in the sea, sit in the sun, and to chase lizards... but most of all she loves having people around her.
[EDIT] – She is getting older now, and she is not as playful and active as she once was. But we still manage to share great adventures together.
[EDIT OF EDIT] – Margot is resting in peace now... I miss her a lot!

Freedom is not about keeping your options constantly open, but being aware and at peace with the choices you make.