Carsten Schmidt – an emigrant from Vetschau – has been living in Myanmar for two decades

Carsten Schmidt grew up in Vetschau and graduated from the former grammar school, now the Bürgerhaus, in 1999. Suddenly his school days, which he had somehow longed for, were over, but there was still no plan for the time afterwards. Serving in the Bundeswehr was an ideal way to reflect on life goals and aspirations during this discovery phase. During this time, Carsten realized that he was fascinated by foreign and distant things. But for the time being, there was no “time” to travel the world due to a lack of funds. This inclination was tested with an apprenticeship as a hotel specialist in the Hochsauerland region – a little further away from home. Carsten Schmidt attended further training courses for managers, which also took him to Myanmar. “Looking back, it was a time full of coincidences and lucky coincidences that led me to the country where I live today – now in my 21st year. I found my dream job,” he looks back during a stopover with his parents in Vetschau.

At the recent International Tourism Fair (ITB) in Berlin, he, the Travel Group Director for Operations & Products (ICS), wanted to meet with colleagues from all over the world. Carsten Schmidt: “This year’s ITB was somewhat overshadowed by the war against Iran. Some business partners, for example from Jordan, didn’t even make it to Berlin. Two colleagues from our offices in Bangkok and Saigon were also affected. Some appointments had to be taken over, but that was fine and the three days of the trade fair were successful. I’m also looking forward to next year.” He hopes for a calmer world situation. Until then, other paths must be taken and other travel agencies must be won as partners. For him, the Pacific region is a field that needs to be cultivated even more, as guests from Canada and the USA traveling to Japan, South Korea or Southeast Asia, for example, are less affected by the events in the Gulf region.

His travel agency is increasingly focusing on sustainability and animal welfare. “There is a growing awareness that we only have one world and that we have to treat it with care. We plan our tours through Asia and ultimately the world with this in mind. It’s about optimizing flights as well as protecting nature – for example, we don’t ride elephants or do anything else that is stressful for animals,” says Carsten Schmidt, who has learned to love and appreciate nature through his home in the Spreewald. Waiting for him in Yangon is Great Dane “Humboldt”. Carsten Schmidt’s dog care provider sends him photos of the sad-looking dog almost every day, which makes the travel manager long for home. But first he will travel on via Canada to Taipei, Bangkok and Nepal before returning home to Yangon in mid-April. The flight was supposed to depart earlier, but there was a strike at BER.

Carsten Schmidt came to the Raddusch Spreewald for a short walk before his departure to find some peace and reflection before his big trip. He summarizes his view in the following interview as follows: “Home for me will always be Vetschau and the Spreewald, this is where I have my roots and my family. It’s practical that I can come to Germany regularly thanks to my job and the ITB. But I don’t understand why there are so many people who are dissatisfied and disgruntled, even though things are actually going well in Germany compared to many other countries: There is a healthcare system, a democratically elected government, freedom of the press and freedom of opinion, and everyone has a roof over their head who wants one. This cannot be taken for granted. Through my travel programs, I want to make a small contribution to showing how beautiful the world is, how much it needs to be protected – and that there are people in this world who are not so well off, who cannot travel, but who always show kindness to everyone and take a positive approach to life.”

Peter Becker, 11.04.2026

Information:

Myanmar, formerly Burma, is a Southeast Asian country with borders to India, Bangladesh, China, Laos and Thailand, in which more than 100 ethnic groups live. The sights in the largest city Yangon (formerly Rangoon) include lively markets, numerous parks and lakes as well as the large gilded Shwedagon Pagoda from the 6th century, which houses Buddhist relics. Yangon was the capital of Myanmar until 2005, when the seat of government was moved to Naypyidaw. (Wikipedia)