Hey, guess what ... great news ... my travel plans are now complete, as far as I am able.
That's right. Over 30 flights and over 85 hotel / hostel rooms in over 30 countries in a sensible route around the world have all been carefully researched, taken into consideration, arranged and if at all possible also booked and paid for in advance.
Best of all is that by booking in advance I have managed to secure a few fantastic bargains along the way and have managed to set and stick to a fairly modest budget, which most people can't believe when they hear how much I have arranged.
Of course, there will still be a few visa issues at border crossings, airport pickups and drop offs and the like that can only be done while on the road, and I'm not even going to delude myself for a split second into thinking that everything will go off without any hitches along the way, but all the hard work is behind me and now all I have to do is go out, enjoy myself and most important of all .... LIVE.
I have travel insurance in place, my redundancy money comes through in less than three weeks, my works leaving do is all arranged { and on good terms so no hard feelings either way }, my house is in good hands, I am catching up with most of my good friends before I leave the UK, my snooker performance is consistently acceptable and even my hair is behaving itself.
I even have a few months left before I leave to dust off my old Spanish text books and brush up a bit more of the local lingo before I go, not to mention the chance to do a bit of extra temping work just to throw a few extra pounds into my savings pot. I even have time to design and have printed my own "Touring T-Shirt" just like my favourite rock bands do whenever they go on the road.
There are not many moments in life when things are going this great both in the present and for looking into the future.
Yes, at this moment, I am in a very happy place and the only thing missing is a loving, respectful and caring woman by my side to share it all with, then my life would be truly perfect.
I would not swap my life or the year to come for anyones as I feel that I am on the cusp of achieving a memorable and worthy ambition and I am finally becoming the man I so eagerly wanted to be while growing up as a small child.
June 28, 2008
June 22, 2008
Latourex
I picked up a rather intriguing book the other day, but the Lonely Planet people, all about Experimental Travel.
The basic gist is that a few veteran and seasoned travellers have got bored of just visiting places and doing the normal tours offered by their hotels and so have gotten it into their head to try and do things differently.
At first I thought it would be a good way to get over the nervousness of being in a foreign place, but soon after I read a few more I began doubting if it was a real book, or if they were just having a laugh with ideas and making it out to be real.
Things like wearing a pantomime horses head while you go out and about seem just plain silly, just like photographing something over your shoulder did, whereas the whole let a dog or small child be your guide while you close your eyes felt like it was just a waste of time and money.
However when I read a few on and got to a few other games I realised that I myself often have done something very similar, albeit without considering it a game as such and setting out strict rules for doing so, and so suddenly it brought back a real sense of believability to the book.
So, as a yet another added twist to my already confusing and hectic plan I have now decided to try out a few more of their games whilst on my travels, as it cant get me into any more trouble than normal, and if it did I am sure it would make an even funnier story to stick in any post travel book that I will try to write.
Not that I am trying to get into mischief for the sake of the book, more like this has given me more opportunity to have fun with my clothes on, and if I end up making an add of myself and living to tell the tale then so much the better.
September 1st
Fate often has a way of dealing me what it deems I need, rather than what I would honestly prefer, and when it does it also usually does it in an off hand sort of way as if to say "It's either this or nothing mate, and its a lot more than I give most people, so i'd take it if I were in your shoes!"
And for the most part, I sort of just amble by, doing my bit to make others happy and sort of expecting that life is going the way its meant to ... however ... every now and then I just have to rebel at least a little as if to reply, "oh yeah, well in that case I'm gonna do this as well, just to show that its still my life" .
Now realising that trying to get one up on a pseudo-elemental-being is only just slightly crazier than trying to get one up on myself, I do try to not waste too much time rationalising these bouts of self-control, but seing that recently I have felt that I have had little choice but to return my departure date back to its original 1st September, does some what kind of smack of Fate telling me that it is firmly in charge and I am just along for the ride - especially when it reminds me that I will be leaving with exactly the same amount of money either way, so I should just stop fighting for control and go with what comes naturally !
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