And so it begins...

I couldn’t tell you exactly when I was bitten by the wanderlust bug. It seems to be something many Aussies are born with – perhaps remnant genes from our ancestors who travelled across the world in search of a better life. I remember going to my parents when I was 16 and telling them that one day I would travel the world even though I knew of no one else who had done it and didn’t even know if it was possible. I remember working out how much it would cost me to travel for a year and reading and dreaming about the sights I would see and the things I would do. Then real life took over and it’s taken 12 years to get to the point where I could live out my dream to hit the road for an extended period of time and I’m glad I’m doing it now – older, possibly more able to appreciate what I am seeing, travelling with my husband so we can share the experience and already with significant travelling experience under my belt.

Already we have been lucky enough to travel extensively – admittedly limited to Europe (and Australia I guess, but that doesn’t count to me!). The experiences we’ve had over the past 4 years that we’ve lived in England and travelled so much in Europe have, I hope, prepared us for this ‘trip of a lifetime’. Sometimes I wonder how we can beat the experiences we have had – even just in the past year! Cruising down the Almalfi coast in a black convertible, top down, hair blowing in the wind; partying poolside to Ministry of Sound djs under the stars in Mykonos; eating kebabs and oogling mosques in Istanbul, the Call to Prayer ringing in our ears; waking at dawn to the last post in Gallipoli on Anzac Day; watching fireworks burst from Disney’s fairytale castle in Paris on New Years Eve…and that’s just in the past 9 months!

As Matt says we are fitting a LOT of intensive travel into 7 months. We are so excited about seeing and experiencing places we have only ever dreamt about, hanging out with old friends all over the world, meeting new friends, eating and (particularly) drinking new flavours…and so it begins…!

Check in regularly and keep in touch – we’ll be missing our friends and family!

I’ll leave you with my favourite quote - the one I live by:

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." (Unknown)