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Published: October 29th 2008
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Tenerife
I'm hoping to capture a few more of these around the world Well this is it I have made the decision to walk away from my job of 4 years and am embarking on a journey and a trip of a lifetime.
I have often wondered about my choice to go straight through from A Levels to uni to work. Whilst I have never regreted the path I have taken I have wondered whether I should have taken a year or two out and done more with my love of outward bound activities before settling down. Luckily for the past 8 years I have been able to juggle my holidays around so that I have been able to do a lot of what I enjoy. If you had ever asked me before I would always have shaken my head and said I had no desire to take a year out and go round the world I was always happy to see what I could during my leave from work.
The life changing decision all came about due to a New Year holiday to Soldeu, Andorra with Rachel. In my wisdom on the last day skiing I booked myself on a ski safari. So much of my life changing decision is owed
Passo Tonale
It all came around because of this white stuff. to this ski safari and the English instructor Danny. The night before had been a heavy one, in a fact such a seriously heavy one Rachel has never seen me that bad(sorry Mum). In good old fashioned steal of I'm on holiday and I
will ski I dragged myself to the top of the mountain and waited for the instructor and a friend from ski school to arrive. We set off and had skied down to the next area. We were sat on a chair lift and got talking to Danny and I asked him what had made him give up his business in the UK and become a ski instructor he just sat there looked out and plainly said welcome to my office - my bleary eyes and banging head looked around and from high up on the chair lift all I could see was a blue cloudless sky, beautiful mountains and and lots of perfect snow. It was a defining moment and made me realise that I wanted some of this.
A long flight home and a week of being depressed I decided that it wasn't just a case of new year and holiday blues
Brooklyn Bridge
One of the only sites to be revisited during my 12 month trip..... I really needed to do something. After lots of thinking, reading and talking the decision was made and Mum and Dad and friends told my decision was made it was just what to do.
I move out of my house this weekend having rented it out for 12 months. Officially I'm moving back home much to Mum and Dads delight..... or is it to their distress!? I say distress as it is poor Mum and Dad who are being left behind to run my life back home for me this includes them dealing with any house problems, sorting out all my finances and emergencies.
Unfortunately I don't finish work till the 31st December so as of Friday I am moving in with my friend Rachel and taking over one of her spare rooms - a big test of our friendship if there ever was one.
My travels will start on the 7th Jan 2009 when I fly out of Manchester for Quebec via New York. My first port of call is to be Mont-Sainte-Anne, Quebec, Canada. I am off to train as a ski instructor it will be 13 weeks of snow, snow and a bit more
snow which at the present time seems like a fab idea. I finish in Mont-Sainte-Anne on the 25th March and fly home via New York and am spending four days there with Mum and Dad before heading home. I am then going to be "bumming" around for a month with a weekend break in Newcastle for Tims wedding.
Since my original thoughts of planning this trip I have gone round and round in circles trying to decide what I want to do, where I want to go and when. For one reason and another events occurred in my life and that of others that has guided me to the trip that I am now embarking on. Whilst the round the world flight is yet to be booked and the finer detail determined the the second part of my adventure is looking like :
A flight from Manchester to Rio via London. In London I will pick up my best friend from university Sharon aka Deirdre. We will then fly on to Rio de Janeiro and spend 15 weeks touring South America including a trip to the Galapagos Islands. I have promised Sharon that we will visit Lima to
find the home of Paddington Bear so long as we get to go Sandboarding =;0) It is currently a possibility that rachel may fly out for part of her summer holidays and join us for a few weeks. It is likely that Sharon and Rachel will fly home together around the 9th August from Quito and I will then fly on to New Zealand.
I will then hire a car and drive from Auckland to Christchurch taking 4 weeks and a few diversions along the way. The trip will then take me to Melbourne and a 2 week drive up and around to Sydney. From there it will be a flight to Singapore and I will make my way overland to Bangkok via Kuala Lumpur, Cameron Highlands, Perhentian Islands, Koh Lanta and as many other islands as I can fit in however one of my main aims whilst out there is to go diving and get my PADI certificate.
After the chillout time in Malaysia and Thailand I will head to Hong Kong for a few days and then fly on to Port Elizabeth. I will then head down to Jeffrey's Bay and teach local deprived kids to swim and surf (no I can't surf but they will teach me). After that excitement I will spend two weeks looking around South Africa for myself before heading home. I have no specific return date although I have promised my Mum I will be home for Christmas.
Once Christmas is over I am hoping to have secured a job in Europe so that I can head out once again for the ski season although this time it won't be so much playing as I will be hoping to have gained my qualifications in Canada and so work as an instructor for the season. Only time will tell whether I can pull this all off.
Its going to be a big adventure that currently scares and excites me at the same time. I'm going to miss my friends and of course my family. Some people think I'm mad others think I'm brave I say I'm neither just living life for today as you never know whats going to happen next.
Feel free to join me on the journey either virtually through this blog or even better why not join me in person the more the merrier......
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Tim
non-member comment
trip of a lifetime
Hiya, Great looking blog, glad to see there are a few places on the map I can follow you round the world on. Looking forward to your break back in the UK for Jane and mines wedding - broken bones not allowed hee hee ~;-) I know you will really enjoy your amazing year - will miss you loads but look forward to seeing the amazing phots from around the world, and hopefully will be joining you for a week if you do a ski season in Europe .# loads a love Tim - your big bro