The End of a Chapter

I’m writing this while sitting at the airport in Hong Kong, waiting for the flight that will take me back to Canada after almost 6 months in Asia. There are no more routes to plan, hotels to find, or new currencies wrap my head around. Instead there is only time to sit back, relax, and reflect on the journey, and what a journey it’s been!

Almost a year ago I made the decision to quit my job, pack my life up, and embark on this trip. During that time I’ve seen some incredible places (being the only one around for miles on the Dempster Highway and seeing the arctic circle) and things (Sunrise at Angkor Wat and Adam’s Peak) and met some wonderful people.

It’s not always been positive, as a traveller in some places you’re often seen as a walking bank and harassed to check out my shop (who knew I had so many friends) , that you can’t walk anywhere and need a tuk tuk (despite my rebuffs of the other 12 tuktuks right beside you), or the blatant scams (it’s why I F*@king hated Colombo). I also missed my family and friends and being around for the good and bad. But all and all was it worth it? Absolutely!!!! Would I do it again? In a heartbeat! Am I a better person for taking this trip? I think so.

I feel that this trip thrust me out of my comfort zone, and by doing so it honed a lot of the characteristics I like about myself and that my time in Edmonton had dulled. I embraced my sense of adventure and learned to scuba dive, I ate bugs (more than once), or I got up at god awful times of day to hike. I realized I’m more sociable and better at making friends than I thought (otherwise this would have been a lonely trip) and that I’m much more resourceful and resilient than I thought. I think this trip gave me the time to get perspective on my life and it made me aware of who I am and what I want out of life. It let me grow again and in doing so made me feel like I can be more than what I was.

And so I’m coming back to Canada but I’m not going back to the life I had. I’ve got a new job lined up in a new city. I’m excited to have a routine and to be doing meaningful and important work. I’m also looking forward to being in one place for more than a few days, and all the depth of experiences that can only come with being in one place. But I’m also looking forward to exploring a new city and keeping this sense of adventure alive!

Does this mean I’ll quit travelling? Never! My backpack will probably beacon me to hit the open road every time I see it ( I may need to hide it) but for now I’m excited for this next chapter.

Thanks for coming along on this journey, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!

One last sunset

P.S. I promise I’ll get around to posting about the rest of my trip at somepoint!