Who is Alex Stratikis? Here's his story in his own words:
"Hi, I’m Alex Stratikis, founder of Autism Adventures Abroad. I’m a 20-something travel blogger/writer (I’m also a Japanese to English translator too!) and I just happen to have an Autism diagnosis too. I was inspired to start my blog and establish this website to encourage other young autistic people who are ambitious about exploring the world to push their boundaries and give traveling a go, even if society may convince them otherwise. I could never have imagined that my life would turn out the way it has!
I was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome at the age of 6 (I now simply identify with the broader Autism Spectrum). I always knew there had to be a bigger, more interesting and exciting world than the small ex-mining community where I grew up in Scotland. I dreamt of living in Japan and from the age of 13 I began to study the language, I eventually studied for an Honours Degree in Japanese at Newcastle University in England and graduated in 2019.
I traveled myself for the first time abroad at the age of 19, to Japan and spent 6 months in Tokyo, studying at a language school. Those were some of the best times of my life. I learned a lot about myself, my limits, my likes and dislikes, I really pushed myself to try new things and explore new places during my stay.
I started to develop connections with others who like me were living in a foreign country and this was a key point I noted. Nobody was there to judge anyone else’s differences, everyone was there to connect with the people present, most of whom were of different cultures to themselves.
I was raised in Scotland (I’m Greek/Scottish) and really struggled socially throughout my childhood, I struggled to make friends because no-one I knew seemed to be interested in the things I wanted to talk about and here I am now at the beginning of an incredible journey that has seen me travelling (mainly solo) to over 30 countries, 6 of which I have lived, worked and studied in. I now have friends in countries all over the world!
I have a real interest in visiting sites and venues of historical and architectural significance (I did think about studying archaeology at university before I settled on Japanese).
I post regularly on Instagram, photos and stories from my travels so please take a look, like my posts, leave me a comment and if you like what you see, follow me and I might just follow you back"!
Alex's blog: https://www.autismadventuresabroad.com
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AutismAdventuresAbroad
Alex's travel Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/autismadventuresabroad/
Alex's tip jar/donation: https://gofund.me/20645a45 or
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/AlexStratikis
Photo: Copyright Wilkinson/2022
Opening and closing music courtesy the very talented Zakhar Valaha via Pixabay.
To contact Wilkinson- email him at BecomingWilkinson@gmail.com