2019: The Year That Was

Perhaps a little later than I should have done, I wanted to sit down and take a break from chronicling my adventures to reflect upon the past year, where I’m at now, and what I am hoping for in 2020.

I left my job in June 2018, so 2019 was my first full-year on the road. So what did life on the road look like for me? It was a busy year. I was on five continents: North America, South America, Antarctica, Asia, and Australia, including two I had never been to before 2019 (Oz and the Great White One).

In Antarctica

In South America

In North America

In Asia

In Australia

I trekked my way through 15 countries, 11 of them new to me in 2019 as well: USA, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia, South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Australia, and New Zealand. And if you count countries where I did not spend the night or Antarctic bases (which I don’t), you can add in Myanmar, China, and the UK.

In a new country: Thailand

And in a beloved country I had been to before: Chile

To get to all these places, I took a total of 27 flights (that’s counting legs, not individual flights – so a flight leg with a stop over counts as one). Staggeringly, that added up to 298 nights away from my beloved homeland of Virginia.

Where I’m at right now: Queenstown, New Zealand. Where I’m at emotionally right now: tired. Traveling all the time sounds like the dream to many, but honestly the life of a nomad is a tough one. I am tired of living out of a suitcase and wearing the same shirts all the time. I am tired of having the same conversations with people I meet in hostels. I am tired. I am tired of constantly being on the move, figuring out what I am going to do, where I am going to sleep, and how I am going to get there every day.

Although I’m tired, it’s hard not to see the beauty here

I honestly did not think I would get to this point. I thought for sure the money would run out before the energy did (and let me tell you, it’s close)! But this is quite a common sentiment among travelers, and I thought it was worth mentioning here. It isn’t all wonderful experiences and glamour. Homesickness is real and there are pros to comfort and stability. Every day is a struggle to get out of my head and live in the moment. But I’m doing it (the abundant natural beauty of New Zealand certainly does help).

While I may be starting to feel like settling back down, that doesn’t mean I don’t have a wanderlust bucket list that is constantly in development. Returning to Chile, Argentina, Peru, Colombia, and Australia are definitely in the running, and I am overdue for a Eurotrip for sure. But here are my top 3 travel bucket list items as of right now:

1. Go on safari in Africa. As my last remaining continent, getting to some place in Africa tops the list – and what better way to do it than to go on a classic game drive hunting the perfect pic of the big five.
2. Cross the Arctic Circle: Well, I’ve been down across the Antarctic Circle, so it just seems natural to want to get to the northern side. The wildlife will be totally different (polar bears!), but big ice is usually what thrills me most.
3. Go on a SCUBA focused trip: Now that I am a certified PADI diver, I’d like to put those skills to use. While Indonesia and Malaysia were spoken very highly of by divers I met in Asia, I’d be fine with going somewhere in the Americas.

Here’s to hoping I can check off at least one (or more!) in 2020. Happy travels.

Have PADI cert, will travel

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