Purpose and Introduction
What began as travel related posts on my personal blog www.chris-hartman.com later turned into this site. My goal is to share my own experiences and the experiences of others to educate, inform and inspire. I hope visitors will take the time to write comments and share their own experiences as well.

- Chris

Why escape the shell?
The title of the site, Escape The Shell is inspired by a Malaysian proverb about a frog who lives under a coconut shell.

A frog who lives under a coconut shell believes everything in the shell is the world, with no conception of what goes on outside. It lives contently within the shell, ignorant of the outside world, yet happy, since it knows nothing of what it is missing.

As such, a person who is like the frog, who refuses to venture out and lives their life with no knowledge of the things, events or places outside of their own shell remains ignorant.

While traveling is a privilege that only few in this world can afford, there is no excuse for ignorance. Getting oneself out from under the shell is the first step to experiencing a greater world, full of differences and infinite possibilities.