Today is a very sad day for me – it’s the day I’ve been dreading since May. Today is the first day of my big China trip, my first solo holiday, and my first experience of real travelling – and I’m not there. I should be meeting my fellow travellers in Hong Kong and hearing about the fabulous things I’m going to be doing over the next two weeks, until I end up in a panda sanctuary in Chengdu. But instead I’m sat on my bed in Wiltshire feeling more than a little sorry for myself.
I’ll be honest, I’ve even written this post in advance of today so I didn’t have to talk about it. Anything even remotely China-related – yes, I’m looking at you, Setting Sail in my Spotify playlist – is being avoided today, and possibly for the two weeks after that. It’s very sad, and I can’t even think about it that much because I have no idea what it would have even been like.
But, life goes on, and we carry on dreaming of our big holidays. I am gutted that I’m not in China today, but I am glad that it’s woken up the travel bug in me. If nothing else I’m coming out of 2020 with a dream of travelling, and a deposit to use on a future holiday.
“Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s OK. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind” – Anthony Bourdain
xx
