WHAT TRAVELLNG HAS TAUGHT ME

Since returning back to the UK last week it has involved finding a place to live, looking for a new job and overcoming the most horrendous jet lag. With some interviews lined up, flats potentially being sorted this weekend and managing to keep my eyes open past 8pm things are looking up & I ’ve finally had some time to reflect on travelling.

When we left in October I was so focused on learning to relax and without sounding cliché ‘find myself’. But that never actually happened. Only once I stopped focusing on trying to change my mindset and just let go that’s when I really felt like I really got some headspace and realised things aren't so bad.

Below are a few of the things I feel like I really learnt/came to the realisation of while travelling (spoiler: how to drink beer is not on the list).

How to budget

I would call it a revelation but I kind of always knew that I enjoyed the finer things in life and that budget travel wasn’t for me. However we would never of been able to do or see so much if we didn’t do it with a backpack. Some people will say we posh-packed because we stayed in guesthouses majority of the time (possessed sleep talker in our first hostel cut that in the nib pretty sharpish) but don’t get me wrong there were a few prison cells and A LOT of cockroaches.

I’ve spent the past year saving for travelling and having to budget alot which has been brilliant and taught me that I don’t need that Tuesday morning Starbucks or 7th G&T - but I also can’t wait to be earning again and be less of the budget life and more of the treat myself in moderation life. Zara I am coming for you bub.

I am not as crazy as I originally thought

People will think I sound nuts when I said about 3 weeks from the end of the trip I was buzzing to come back to the UK and get a job. I thrive off a routine and before I went away I saw this as a real negative that I couldn’t switch off and that I couldn’t relax but I’ve come to the realisation that why do I see this as a bad thing, just living my best life.

For me my downtime was blogging (I could also tan at the same time win/win). It helped me focus my energy and I still felt like I was achieving something by sharing our experiences and advice with others. We got Josh a book as he’s also like an energetic 3 year old, it just so happened that he bought the 24th book in a series. LOL.

Turns out trying to relax is actually exhausting. Everybody switches off by doing different things and just because I can't take 3pm naps doesn't mean I can't relax.

How strong Josh & I are as a couple

Now from my Instagram feed you may think travelling with Josh was all sunshines, selfies and smiles but this was not the case. Don’t get me wrong we had a blast and shared so many amazing experiences but there were also days where I daydreamed about covering his face with a pillow. Imagine being with your other half in a 2m x 2m room, with nowhere to escape, without anywhere to have some space, with a lack of money, in the heat, and hangry. Sounds like a nightmare right? We met a few couples who also felt the same and one even actually broke up because it all just got too much. It’s completely like a switch has flicked back to normal as soon as we boarded our flight home but just a heads up for anyone travelling together - it is TOUGH.

I don’t need to worry about everything

Before I went travelling I was so panicky about everything. It got worse directly before we went travelling thinking about all the things that could go wrong. I even had a very vivid nightmare about the house being on fire and my £300 worth of ASOS packages burning downstairs. I know, can you imagine.

I was a borderline panic Penelope at first, scared of flying, riding in the death wagons, being in the small boats etc. After about our 8th flight I had a quiet word with myself and said ‘this is out of your control’ and almost instantly I calmed down. Crazy ass drivers seemed to not worry, so why was I?

Don’t get me wrong I still freaked TF out when not once but TWICE we had taxi drivers that fell asleep at the wheel but being scared of everything what do you really achieve? This doesn’t mean I won’t be wearing a seatbelt back in the UK but I think a better mentality from ‘I’M GOING TO DIE’ to ‘It’s K hun’ has been achieved.

This also helped with a lot of limiting beliefs on being able to do something which meant I pushed myself to do some pretty cool stuff.

Exhibit A (full video on @lifeinlycra_)

Exhibit B (18m deep)

That I can eat more plant based

What begun as me trying to avoid food poisoning in Asia and switching to just fish moved to being plant based 90% of the time. With all of our spare time we ended up watching a lot of documentaries on food choices and a plant based diet and decided to try it out. It was super easy in Bali very difficult in the Philippines but I felt so much better for it. I’ve found it’s also really helped with my digestion and actually finding it a lot easier than I thought it would be so for the foreseeable future it seems to be working for me. This doesn't mean I'm against a Nandos now and again but I've realised I don't 'need' meat as much as I thought.

How to have one drink

Without sounding like a borderline alcoholic I personally used to use alcohol on weekends to let off some steam and let loose, never just a casual glass of wine. Which in return meant that a lot of my Sundays would be unproductive and strugg city. As alcohol was so expensive on our travelling budget we really calmed down with drinking after we spent so much of our budget early on which meant that I was just having one drink and enjoying it.

I will still be hitting up a bottomless brunch in the near future but I feel like me being able to sit and enjoy one drink is a skill I’ve mastered.

I don’t need so much stuff

There are two sides to this. Part of me has spent the last 4 months feeling like an absolutley grub and I am rushing to get apts for my nails, hair, skincare and to get some new clothing for work etc.

But on the other hand I’ve also realised you can manage with a lot less. For example I travelled for 4 months with 3 pairs of shoes.

I am very very fortunate

Now this is probably the biggest revelation and the most important. Returning home I am forever grateful for everything I have; my friends, my family, just everything.

We stayed for one night in a jungle tribe, it was traumatic I'm not gunna lie. We slept on a wooden floorboard with a mosquito net on a mouldy pillow. It was FREEZING. There were pigs running about below us, only a squattie to pee in, spiders, scorpians, the lot. These people lives were very different from ours but they were unbelievably happy and welcoming - the type of kindness you wondered if they had an alterior motive. They shared their things, kept checking we were alive/ok and just so happy to see us. This happened a lot all over Asia where happiness was infectious and we saw some people in real poverty and it made me realise how lucky I really am to have the life that I do (sorry for getting deep but it made me appreciate so much).

If anyone is thinking of going travelling (or a 4 month holiday) I couldn’t recommend it enough. I’m hoping I’ll be able to remember all of the above once I’m back in London with a new role; stood fuming on a delayed train or pissed off at Susan in accounts has used the last of the coffee on a Monday morning. I wouldn’t use the term ‘found myself’ but I’m pretty happy with my life RN and all of the good things to come this year (including a 5 star holiday without a backpack).

AbbieJS

xxx

PS I promise my @lifeinlycra_ Instagram account will actually have more lycra in soon.

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