It’s been 11 months since I’ve slept in my own bed. I took the risk of leaving everything behind and shed most of the responsibilities of my life as I knew it in order to explore the world and visit almost 20 countries. I took the risk that I would rely on the kindness of my family and friends….some of whom I had only just met. It has paid off 10 fold. Not just because of free couch or spare room here or there, but because of the new relationships that have been forged, even if it was just for a few days. I have so much to be thankful for. I could not begin to imagine the kindness that has been bestowed upon me in my travels, both at home and abroad. I came back to the country in June and proceeded to drive all over the map….literally. In the past 5 months I have put 28,000 miles on my car and seen places I had never been. While the miles did add up, it allowed me the flexibility of visiting with friends that I would not have otherwise seen. It’s now the end of October and the summer has come and gone. The leaves are turning and I’ve already made a few snowballs. It’s time for the next step….
My original plan was right around now, pick a spot in this country to call home and get an apartment, ship my belongings out and begin a new career, which was also yet to be determined. However that was the old plan. Turns out there was a bit of a glitch….I wasn’t ready. Re-evaluating everything I made the choice that the travels will continue. I get on a plane this evening and I head west….I keep heading west until I get back to where I started. I’m meeting up with friends all over the globe this time around (I’d like to think that I inspired a few friends from the last trip). I’m sitting at my brother’s house in Idaho just watching the clock tick by and the anticipation is looming in the air. I fly to LA, then a few hours later I head to Taipei for a few days. Then Hanoi, Vietnam. While there I will explore Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand. 5 weeks later I head to Japan for 2 weeks, then 5 weeks in New Zealand. A 4 day layover in Sydney and I’m off to South Africa for 2 weeks. 2 days in Qatar and then almost 8 weeks in Spain where I plan to take a Spanish course and learn the language. From there I head to Mexico for 2 weeks then back to LA at the end of April. It’s going to be a long, fun and hopefully rewarding journey that I can not wait to get under way. I will be writing a lot more very soon, so stay tuned and I will have some more to share……and for everyone who’s helped me out over the summer, thank you. Thanks for the couch, the lift, the spare room, the dinner, the ability to allow myself to relax for a bit, and most importantly thank you for opening up your home to me, it will not be soon forgotten.
See you soon!