After 116 days, 17 weeks, 4 months; approx. 34,658 miles by plane, bus, train and boat; 9 countries; 45 stops; over 187 new experiences; 10,294 pics and memories; a lifetime of insane stories; and 2 days of covering my tracks to the UK, I’ve made a surprise landing back home to finish the festive season with some of my favourite people. Thanks JN for keeping my secret and picking me up from Gatwick at ridiculous o’clock in the morning!!

It’s bittersweet, I could’ve continued travelling for so much longer, but also, I knew in my heart it was time for me to come home for a bit. I was getting to the stage where I was kind of forcing myself to carry on and lost my momentum a little bit. Going to visit my family in Australia really kept me going and pushed me through the last few weeks of my time travelling and I was so glad to have got there. There were a few things though, I spent Christmas away from family, and my mum had left some Christmas cards for me to open when she came to visit me in Thailand. When I opened them on Christmas Day my heart felt like it was missing home, don’t get me wrong, I had an incredible Christmas in Singapore, but I knew I was glad to be going home the following evening.

I’d booked my flight a few weeks or so before when I was in a lull and I’m glad I did, I ended on a real high going from Australia spending time with family, and back to Singapore for Christmas and did so many incredible things, and knew I’d be going back with an endless list of unreal experiences. I hadn’t seen anyone other than my mum since the end of August, and I just needed a bit of a normal back in my life. I was desperate to see my family and friends, as well as my dogs back home, who I think I’d missed the most. I wanted to do a final post though, just for a little while, about what I’ve learnt whilst travelling for the last four months or so, because it really had been one of the most surreal and incredible experiences of my whole life. So have a read, along with some of the memories along the way.

Find joy in the simple moments;
My life has been nothing but simple whilst travelling (don’t get me wrong it’s been slightly complicated at times) but it’s made me realise so much that it really is the simple things that bring happiness; you will always find the most joy in the simple moments.

We were quad biking in Cambodia and what made me smile most was the kids in the street that were waving and saying hello to us, and just wanted us to do this back. A young girl who came up to me at a temple and gave me a hug and asked what my name was so she could say she met someone from England to her class. In Malaysia, the locals laughing with us on car rides and telling us to remember to wear sunscreen. All over the place, simple moments that were incredible, and really made my heart smile.

Stop searching and you’ll find everything;
Before I made the decision to go travelling, I was feeling so lost, there was lots of stuff happening in my life; a breakup, job changing, unsure about my career, almost everything. I didn’t know what I wanted to do and impulsively booked a flight one evening and realised as soon as I got here, it was what I needed to do all along.

Whilst I was travelling I honestly felt like I found parts of me that I’d never discovered before, I’ve travelled quite a lot but this time felt different. I’d just put my normal life on hold and taken time out to do something completely different and fell in love with life again. I was able to create my own path for what I wanted to do and see and it felt incredible. I know coming back home too even more now, that I am the main character in my story.

Rediscover what it means to be alive;
I explore quite a lot, and always find myself at my happiest when I’m away, and as the trips went on, I found it harder and harder to return to normal. Life’s not about the 9-5, yes that’s what some people strive for, but there is so much more to life than your hometown. I’m so grateful that I have such a burning passion to go out and explore the world, other countries and cultures and ways of life.

This trip to me allowed me to remember what it’s like to feel alive, to just do things spontaneously and not worry about the consequences, take risks, and enjoy the moment rather than thinking about anything before or after, and feeling present at any given time. I was able to rediscover life in a different way.

You cannot add days to your life but you can add life to your days;
I’ve done exactly that for the last four months, we’re all on borrowed time, so making your days the best they possibly can be is what it’s all about. I’ve had so many bucket list moments whilst travelling, and I’m so grateful I can talk about these for the rest of my life.

When I think about my experiences across the world, it still baffles me how I’m talking about me and what I’ve had the chance to do. I’m super grateful for my opportunities that I’ve had to be able to make each day count as much as possible. I’ve had so many bucket list moments and I will never not be grateful for these, as I’m just making my life as incredible as possible every day that I have.

You’re too full of life to be someone’s maybe;
Don’t wait for anyone, you are the main character in your story so live your life the way you want to, people come and go and can choose to come with you or not, but do what makes you happy all the time, have no regrets. I met so many people whilst travelling that also made me realise this, you are so full of life and adventure that you can’t wait for anyone else, you’ve gotta do you all the time.

I genuinely felt like I was begging for people to do things with me sometimes at home, I’d be passionate about all these things and as much as I love doing things solo, I wanted to experience things with others, this trip reinforced that you aren’t anyone’s maybe. Go alone if you gotta, you’ll meet incredible people along the way too.

Enjoy being in the process of becoming;
What a sentence, but really it’s about focussing on the journey and not the destination, don’t get caught up in not being present in the moment, and not enjoying where you are at, at that time. You will never be at this stage of your life again so enjoy every single moment of it.

I’ve become so much more whilst travelling, I’ve planned the future to a certain extent, but no more than a few days at a time. We’ve left places in the morning with no idea where we’re staying that night, and just hopped on a bus and found somewhere to sleep on the way. I’ve learnt even more so that life’s about becoming who you are, and who you want to be. But also, enjoy that process, enjoy everyday and make it count, look for the little things.

Be the most authentic and vulnerable version of yourself;
It’s true, and when you’re travelling, most of the time you have no option but to be the most authentic and vulnerable version of you. You’re going to have bad days and you’re going to lean on the people you meet along the way and form connections with, because home is far away. If you need a shoulder to cry on, it’s likely going to be another traveller whilst you wait for the other side of the world to wake up.

There is absolutely no point in hiding who you are whilst you’re travelling, you will meet people who are just like you, who will come along on your journey for part of the way, and then you’ll say goodbye, and you might meet again somewhere else, you might not, but you know that who you is completely and utterly you in any given situation.

That’s it for a little while now, I’m going to be spending the next week or so recovering from jetlag (I have no idea what time it is anywhere atm) and catching up with my faves. I’m hoping that because I’ve found my rhythm again with blogging more regularly, I won’t be so silent inbetween trips and I’m going to try to post a little more frequently. But I’ll let you know when the next adventure is around the corner too. I already have some plans in my head! See you soon. Mads x