There and Back Again

Well, this is it, I have completed my travels and made it, not quite around the world but all the way to the date line and back again. The last 5 and a half months or alternatively, 165 days have been some of the absolute best, thrilling, brilliant and most incredible days of my life. I have been extremely lucky and privileged to have done and seen so many beautiful, breathtaking things in this time, more than in the last 23 years it feels! 

I have reunited and reconnected with family and friends across three different countries and have been received with extraordinary kindness from all of them, even if my visit was extremely last minute and completely out of the blue. Additionally, I have met so many amazing, like-minded people who are all willing to talk and get to know you; hopefully I will know the friends I have made on my trip a very long time. In many cases it is the people you meet that make the journey and the adventuring more fun and it is lovely to have them to share the experience and consequently the memories with. Although, it has to be said that saying goodbye to those I've met along the way, family, old friends and new friends alike has been one of the most difficult things to do. I am extremely glad that I have travelled by myself and also with the best travelling companion ever, Louise. 

I have had the pleasure of visiting some of the most insanely, indescribably beautiful natural spots in the world. The raw and powerful beauty of nature will never cease to amaze and astound me, from the mountains to the underwater world and everything in between. I have been lucky enough to see: the Kruger Park in all it's luscious green glory, where wild and exotic animals roam and the Blyde River Canyon, the third largest in the world, in South Africa, as well as the stunning rugged coastline and famous Garden Route; the Blue Mountains, the haze stretching through valleys as far as the eye can see in Australia; and then New Zealand, oh where do I start?! One of my absolute favourite countries because of the incredible natural landscapes which appear continuously, each seemingly more beautiful and picturesque than the last. The rolling hills and mountains, glassy lakes reflecting everything perfectly and the beautiful Franz Josef and Fox glaciers, nestled between the mountains. Not to forget the paradise that is Fiji with its crystal clear waters and long white sandy beaches or the aqua blue waterfalls and pools in Luang Prabang, Laos or the colourful reefs and the multitude of fish they sustain hidden away under the sea around Koh Tao, Thailand. 

I've witnessed many phenomenal and magnificent sunsets and I've star gazed in South Africa and Fiji, marvelling at the night sky in all it's glory and admiring just how many stars are visible. Occasionally, I've made it up for sunrise and have been rewarded accordingly with delightful starts to the day.

Then of course there are the man made sights, the pretty and clean Sydney, full of tall glittering skyscrapers or the sprawling, infinite entity that is Hong Kong. Busy Hanoi full of old crumbling French colonial buildings and narrow, cramped streets full of intriguing shops or Ho Chi Minh City, modernised beyond my expectations where you are at significant risk of being hit by a motorbike or scooter at any given moment - who said the pavement is only for pedestrians?! Cape Town, my favourite city on this trip seemed to have it all with the waterfront, the mountains and beaches. Straying away from the cities, we saw the breathtaking temples of Angkor Wat, the Faces of Bayon and many others in Cambodia and all the other fabulous temples and palaces throughout South East Asia with their intricate designs and decorations. 

I have been fortunate to witness all of the above and this is not even mentioning the activities I have taken part in. Giving into to my reckless and daring side, I sky dived in the gorgeous Queenstown and threw myself off a 216m bridge (attached of course), as well as jumping off a significantly smaller one of 5m into the freezing blue river below. I've: taken an impromptu road trip to Coffee Bay with the Wolfpack; ridden through The Drakensberg in Lesotho; been wine tasting in Cape Town; climbed the Franz Josef glacier; snorkelled with Reef Shark in possibly the world's most beautiful seas; held a snake in The Mekong Delta; spent a whole day in Chiang Mai riding, looking after and playing with elephants as well as a morning spent cuddling and petting tigers; attended a Thai cooking class; spent many evenings wandering night markets honing my bartering skills; and finally learnt to scuba dive, gaining my open water qualification, to name but a few. 

However, most importantly perhaps, is gaining a bigger understanding of the histories of these countries and various atrocities many of them have faced. This includes the apartheid in South Africa and the evacuation and eradication of District Six; the Cu Chi tunnels in Vietnam an example of the conditions of guerrilla warfare and The War Remnants Museum, telling the story of a country that survived a devastating war but is continuously fighting against the affect of Agent Orange and the disabilities it causes; the S21 prison in Cambodia where the Khmer Rouge imprisoned intellectuals and tortured them and anyone who dare spoke out against the regime and the bone chilling Killing Fields where many were bludgeoned to death, thus saving ammunition; the heavy and continuous carpet bombing of Laos which means that it is the most bombed country and consequently has many problems with unexploded ordinance causing severe injuries and death yearly. Learning about these events is a reminder of how barbaric and cruel the human race can be. It is important to understand what has shaped these countries and it enforces the desire for them to never happen again although they are shockingly recent. Despite the dark past and conflicts that many of these communities have had to endure, as well as the abject poverty that is ever present, they are still some of the happiest, generous, kindest and uplifting people I have ever met. It definitely puts problems into perspective and is completely humbling. 

Travelling has the ability to make sure that you never take anything for granted and that you value the world around you as well as everyone and everything in it. Experiencing the diverse cultural and social differences and seeing how other people live is eye-opening and whilst I enjoyed it, it has certainly made me appreciate home and where I am from. 

There are many different reasons I love travelling: the chance to see and do so many different things which I would never have the opportunity to do back home; the ability to go where we please, when we please, for however long we desire; the people you meet; the complete and utter freedom from trivial stresses of everyday life; the ability to go out and about with odd clothes, no make up and often no shoes; realising that actually, I have no requirement for most of my possessions and I'm happy with the changing contents of my rucksack; the feeling of being alive and not wasting each day. Travelling is about going places, seeing different things, smelling different things. Some vile and disgusting, others beguiling, mysterious and even enticing. It's about sights and colours and sounds. Busy and bustling or quiet, broken only by waves or birdsong. It's about being hot, sweaty and lost, throwing the map to one side in annoyance and stumbling on otherwise unknown or unplanned places. It's about seeing the sights and then doing away with the guidebook for a day, venturing out and finding out what happens when you take that left turn instead of a right. It's about marvelling at the ordinary as well as the extraordinary. Travelling is about people. There is a mind boggling 7 billion of us that populate this world, everyone trying to make their own little story and success and it is this that makes me realise just how small a part we are, yet, meeting the right people out there restores your faith in humanity.

I am devastated that my trip has come to an end and I will miss every little thing about it, even the mosquitos, overnight journeys and constantly packing and unpacking - all things I've claimed not to like at all. For now, I am ready to return home and see family and friends that I miss dearly but I can't wait to travel again, to leave home and break away from the mundane, the usual and the routine. When I am home and studying the memories will have to suffice but I believe I will forever be planning the next adventure because there is so much more to discover. There is a whole world to see out there full of rich history and stories, weird and wonderful people and sights so beautiful that no camera will ever do them justice when compared to what the eye can see. According to 'Been' I have only seen 9% of the world which is something that has to change. 

So, because this is not the end of The Road Liss Travelled, I'll be seeing you. 

Until next time. 

A x

TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;        

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -

I took the one less travelled by, 

And that has made all the difference. 

The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost