Yang Hao, a PhD student at a British university, left his home in Taiyuan, capital of Shanxi province, in November and traveled around China until April. He reportedly visited 24 provinces and regions. Yang did not carry a mobile phone or computer on his expedition, and only two cameras failed to connect to the Internet. Yang studies contemporary art at a British institution, and one of his research topics is how digitalization affects people’s lives.

“I feel that the mobile phone is like a digital organ for us. Without one, we cannot do many things. So I wanted to find out what happens when we have no internet access at all. What is the experience, say, over a period of several months? Based on doubts and reflections on digitalization, I wanted to conduct an experiment in China to carry out an exodus without the dependence on the internet,” Yang told the South China Morning Post.

He said the problems caused by the lack of a mobile phone were common during his trip. For example, he could not book a hotel in advance or consult a map app immediately, nor could he order a taxi through a ride-hailing service. Yang found that most stores had no way to swipe his bank cards. If he did not have enough cash to pay, he had to travel considerable distances to find ATMs and withdraw money. (Read also: The truth behind the viral ‘pregnant’ car videos in China: What’s really going on?)

“Almost everyone who heard that I didn’t use a cell phone was shocked. Some asked if I was doing something bad, others wondered if I had a special purpose, and still others found it interesting to live without a cell phone,” Yang told the South China Morning Post.

He explained that a cell phone is often a distraction, so he can concentrate on reading books or writing while traveling without a cell phone.

“I’m like an old man who has traveled through time to the present day. All these worries and joys excited me. It was definitely a great life experience,” Yang said.

He plans to publish the articles he wrote about the trip in a book and create a documentary based on the films he shot along the way.