Countries Visited

Australia
Austria
Bahamas
Belgium
Belize
Bermuda
Cambodia
Canada
Cayman Islands
Costa Rica
Czech Republic
England
Greece
Guatemala
Italy
Japan
Laos
Malaysia
Mexico
The Netherlands
Norway
Singapore
Spain
Thailand
United States
The Holy See
Vietnam



Travel Goals

1. Climb to Everest Base Camp.
2. Climb Mt Kilimanjaro.
3. Learn to Scuba Dive.
4. Visit every continent.
5. See the Galapagos Islands.
6. Sail down the Amazon River.
7. Climb Ayer's Rock.
8. Travel on the Trans-Siberian Railroad.
9. Go into space.
10. Throw tomatos at La Tomintina in Spain.
11. See the sunrise from Mt. Fuji.
12. Try to figure out the Buddhist messages at Borobudor in Indonesia.
13. Visit the Pyramids
14. Safari in East Africa for 3 months.
15. Go to the World Cup!
16. See Macchu Picchu.
17. Join the Century Club. (100 countries visited)
18. Join the Mile High Club. (Hey why not?)
19. Do development work in a 3rd world country.
20. See Petra Jordan.
21. Backpack the Eastern Block.
22. Go back to Alaska and see the Northern Lights.
23. Vegas Baby! Vegas!
24. Greek Island hop.
25. Cycle Tuscany.
26. Visit India.
27. Lounge forever in the Seychelles.
28. See Morocco.
29. Oktoberfest!
30. Caravan across the Sahara.
31. Visit Tibet.
32. Go to the Cannes Film Festival.
33. Go to the Sundance Film Festival.
34. Eat a sushi meal at NOBU
35. Pacific Island hop.
36. Spend a night in the Ice Hotel in Sweden.
37. Go to Israel.
38. Carnival!!!!
39. and it's slightly less cool cousin, Mardi Gras!
40. See Glacier National Park before the glaciers melt.
41. Fly first class on some long international flight!

I was excited to come home. In Brisbane, I told my friend Scott, that after months on the road, I was ready to call it quits. I love to travel but it had been a long time since I rested and the allure of hostels had worn off. I simply had traveled myself out. It was a chore now more than anything. New cities were boring and I didn’t care to really meet any new people. Scott, having been in my situation before, agreed- you need to mix life up, he said, because, just like work can get boring, travel can too.

I came home to a myriad of phone calls from friends asking when I would come out. I was tepid at first. I wasn’t really keen on going out and seeing them not because I didn’t want to but because I was afraid I wouldn’t know what to say. Being home was a weird feeling. After so long away, it wasn’t really home anymore but just another place. It’s a common problem among long term travellers- a feeling of alienation when returning home. There’s excitement about seeing all your friends and old haunts yet uneasiness because you’re not quite sure if you’ll still belong. It was hard to convey that sense of “weirdness” to my friends and they never really quite got it. Those I traveled with did because they all felt it when they got home too.

Long term travel brings a lot of things but one thing you’re really never ready for is that sense of uneasiness when you step foot home. What will I say? Will my friends and I still get along? Will places still be the same? Will I still like them? A lot goes through your mind and home is a shock but, luckily, one that wore away quickly. After a few weeks, I developed into a routine. I caught up with all my friends, told the same stories over and over again though never really knowing which one to tell. How do you sum up 18 months of adventure in a few sentences? It’s very hard. “How was it?” they would ask. “Awesome.” I’d say and that would be that. There might be a few follow up questions but never anything really in depth. I think sometimes my friends just didn’t know what to say. How do ask someone how life is? In the end, it was like I’d never left. We went back to do the things we did before I left, talking about the same things, and visiting the same places. I reacquainted myself with all my favorite spots, restaurants, bars, and clubs and slowly, “it” dawned upon me.

After two months, I’ve realized I’m now longer home.

Everyone asked “how did you change?” That’s something hard to say. I can’t say for sure all the changes because they are incremental and happen so slowly you don’t seem to notice them. But I know one obvious change: I came home and found out I wasn’t home.

I love my friends and family and Boston is a wonderful place but its not that same for me. I’m not connected here the way I was before. Life here seems predictable and sometimes boring. Days are always seem the same. Overseas, there always seems so much more going on. International places with international people. Even working as much as I did in Bangkok was always more exciting. I guess I got used to the mix of people and the seemingly unending possibilities of everyday. Whereas here, I can plan my next three months out with ease.

So I’m in Boston now but I’m ready to travel again. I’m ready to head out into the unknown…the unpredictable. And maybe, some day, to one place I’ll eventually call home.