Post Travel Rollercoaster

Not many people talk about the readjustment into "normal life" that you have to endure after travel. Probably because most travellers come back desperate for a pay cheque and follow the path that leads them to income.

I have a few extra pennies in the bank to give me the opportunity to get the "right job" (sometimes quote marks are required I am sorry!). And in my journey to get this illusive job I am finding that its like a damn roller coaster. I could throw in life in corporate life to make tailored dresses, I could go back to the BlackHole I left a year ago which sucked my will to live and left me heartbroken or I could walk the long lonely road to the career I can see is a good fit with my experience.

Everyday I am troubled with the what next and as my Christmas deadline comes glaringly into sight I learn more about myself. How I want to learn more about Myanmar and the confining state that has captured my heart. How I question if living in London is the right place for me. How much time can be wasted being consumed by the what if? and when? and what is wrong with me? Even looking after my chicken poxed nephew had me feeling helpless...when really he usually puts everything in perspective.

Then I pull myself up and remember the good things I can see in this world. The long walks, the museums, the friends I can surround myself with, the concerts I can enjoy, the beautiful city I live in, autumn leaves to kick (best done with a 2 year old so you don't look like the big kid you are)

I think this is all very normal for returning travellers and job seekers alike. Taking the leap of faith to follow your ambition is hard. I just have to stick to my plan - and if Christmas comes along then the game plan will change.

Comments

Breath Taking Everest

I have always wanted to go to Everest Base Camp to see what the closest to the top of the world must be like. My big sister Fiona made it there some 14 years ago on her way to London. She had run into Ants (her old school friend and now my brother-in-law) in the streets of Kathmandu and later met Simon (her husband) after her trek in Chitwan National Park. She had also bought a painting of the beautiful Ama Dablam (mother mountain for Mum) with Tengboche Monastery in the foreground and it sits pride of place in our family lounge. As a result Nepal and the Everest region screams family adventure to me. After a couple of days in Kathmandu during a strike (the country is in massive flux as it does not have a constitution or a governing majority) I met Dustin and Elan near my hostel telling them I was keen to do the Everest Base Camp trek. I had been recommended the Anapurna circuit time and time again but with recent deaths due to slips and the coming m...

Day 9 -12 Waitangi Forest to Helena Bay

I farewelled Original Sue who had joined me for the last night in Kerikeri and my host Victoria from the backpackers dropped me at the start of the Waitangi Forest to avoid a dangerous road walk. The forest road was a hive of activity with trucks passing regularly in the first 4km. Finally dipping off the active logging route to Te Puke Road the evidence of ancient Bush amongst falled pine felt like a very visual symbolism of Aotearoas botanical history. Right on the backblocks of New Zealands Treaty Grounds seemed all the more poignant. I reached Mt Bledisloe for lunch and the sweeping views across the Bay of Island. I also got to catch Original Jen who had gone off trail to deal with blisters and had a support crew ferrying her as needed. The forestry road swept through Mountain Bike tracks passed the Waitangi Golf Course and finally the Treaty Grounds. Sadly they are all fenced off so my visions of a welcoming home to Waitangi were squashed. I took a brief rest is t...

The capital of Kindness - Lucknow

Arriving in deepest darkest night I saw the otherside of the city where cyclo drivers sleep on their bicycles propped awkwardly across the seat in the heat of the dusty summer night. It seemed like a capital of poverty not the capital city of Utter Pradesh the state the world over knows as the home of the Taj Mahal. Because of this I think Lucknow is a sorely missed tourist spot in India’s north. The architecture and in particular the locals are a true treasure. Enjoying a refreshing Saffron Milk drink with a sea of morning old boys I had two days in Lucknow – one of which was mostly spent at the train station trying to organise a departure. It turns out with a bit of tantrum they do put you a wait list and being a tourist quota (2 seats per class in a sleeper train) I would secure a seat in my preferred 3AC to my next stop Rishikesh. I had flagged a cyclo driver down and with no change had him wait for me as I arranged my ticket. Curiously I would see him the followin...

Jo Herrings Adventures

Search This Blog