What a phenominal time!

The reality is that I am back from nearly 5 months of travel with a 3-week break in April. It is good to sleep in my own bed, and in the same place for more than two nights I a row.

I am not sure that I can say that I miss my itinerant lifestyle. I am sure that I never got tired or bored with it.

I am hugely grateful to the wonderful friends I have around the world who were such fabulous hosts. Many of them I met through work, and as they moved in to overseas assignments they said “come and visit” and I took them up on the offer. I would not have enjoyed the experiences I did without them, and am profoundly grateful for their incredible hospitality. Thank you one and all from the bottom of my heart.

The most common question has been “where did you enjoy the most?” I can honestly say that each place was so different that I could not come up with a favorite, except maybe New Zealand. I was there almost a month and in reality saw (or scratched the surface of) about half of South Island. It is a truly amazing place in terms of the people, the fabulous and pristine scenery, and the ease of getting around.

Part of me wanted to go to see if I should have gone there 40 years ago, but another part says that I am a very different person now and New Zealand is a very different place. I would love to talk with my friend Roy Vinden who spent a year there in the 70s and would have a much better sense of how life was in those days.

Perhaps my greatest realization was that my son Gavin is in a great position to go and experience some of what I saw. He is, like many other graduates not able to get interviews for a job that matches their education. I met lots of people his age in similar circumstances that were traveling and learning, and generally having fun. Gavin is laid back enough to be able to do this and enjoy the experience and will return with a wealth of experience and a level of confidence you cannot achieve under normal circumstances.

The travel bug is alive and well and the list (call it a bucket list if you will) is no shorter today than it was five months ago. It may be slightly different but no shorter.

Future plans or concepts include learning Spanish in Guatemala, visiting Nepal and flying in and out of Lukla (basically a short runway on the side of a mountain) and visiting Peter’s uncle (from my French visit) who has two lodges one of which is a rebuilt farmhouse. They also do adventure trips like hiking and white water rafting in the Himalayas, and maybe a trip to Darjeeling in India. My brother Steve wants to go there so we may meet or he may like to join me in Nepal.

There is still a huge amount of the USA that I have not seen and the Northwest is of great interest to me. Mountains again and remote less traveled areas.

The thing I really discovered is that each place has it’s own personality and manages their issues in very different ways. Moving people around in Tokyo and Mumbai are similar in ways but how it is done is hugely different. I think I did a post on transportation after my Japan visit. I should go back and read it.

Many thanks to all the readers and followers who have commented (even when it was difficult to do so). The blog has been a true learning experience both in how you do it (like adding video clips) and what it has taught me about writing style and trying not to be just a travelogue..

I need to see if there is a way to print it out and kind of make a book.

Hang in there for the next round when ever that is.