Around the World...and Back!

On my day of departure- looking young, fit, and ready to go!
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11p.m. on the eve of my departure to Berlin. I guess this means that my around the world trip is really over. Actually, when I arrived back in Italy after 11 months away I felt that perhaps nothing had changed.  It was just like coming for another summer in Italy. Except that instead of working and racing during my time away I was in 15 different countries, on 5 continents, well 6 if you include North America. I actually did it, I traveled around the world. When I set out I had so many doubts, I was pretty sure I wouldn’t make it for some reason or another. But really leaving was the hardest part. On the entire trip I never felt as scared as I did leaving my home in Santa Cruz.

And 11 months later- yes, it took its toll
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Sure there were difficult times- I think I probably cried each time I entered a new country, things felt so overwhelming. But usually those feelings came from lack of sleep or food and they would pass pretty quickly. There were really lonely times too, a lot of really lonely times, but those too would come and go.

Recently someone asked me what I would do when I was feeling really down, how I would pull myself up and most recently I have been pulling myself up by reminding myself that my feelings will pass. I am human, I am not going to feel good all of the time and that is just a fact of life. Better to accept that than to get down on myself for feeling crappy. On the flip side, I feel like I have learned to appreciate the times when I am feeling especially good and to recognize that those will pass too. So now when I’m feeling down I just try to accept that I’m feeling down, and that is OK. Again, a lot of the time sleeping or eating or talking to a friend changes my whole outlook on life.

Back in Europe- with even more stuff!!
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I guess those simple little things are really what I learned on my travels around the world. I am sure there are a few other things I learned during my time away but I think those things are the most important. I set out looking for a change of my whole being and it really took a long time of being away to get any sort of change but I think something good has happened.

Would I do this again? Well, no. I love to travel but a year of it, even with a small break after seven months, was exhausting. I got to a point where I wasn’t excited about all of the new things I was seeing, it was a new country or city, another place where I had to figure out where to sleep, how to eat, and how to pay for those things.. I think that the ideal travel time is about six weeks- it gives you enough time to get to know a place and just enough time to start missing home a bit. I look at photos of myself before I left and right when I got back and I think I aged about 5 years just last year- it took a toll on me!

But it was worth it. definitely.  While I probably wouldn’t try to travel like that again I certainly am glad that I did what I did and to anyone who is even slightly considering something of the sort- a whole life change, giving up all that you have for something new I say…DO IT!!!