To do the overall trip justice I thought I should make a list of the Top 50 things that will stay wiith me most strongly:
1. The overwhelming natural beauty of Central America, both in terms of its jungle terrain and all the wonderful wildlife hidden within, and its crystal clear beaches.
2. Hiking 15km to the Blue Lake Waterfall in the hottest desert sun with rationed food and water, and likening myself to Frodo Baggins on a mission.
3. How beautiful Lake Atitlan in Guatemala was, with its shimmering silvery surface and misty cloud-topped volcanoes.
4. Waking up at 3am to hike the Indian Nose volcano and watch the sunrise on Michael's birthday, during which he was badly and painfully bitten; not the happiest birthday boy.
5. The horrific birthday breakfast and dreadful journey to Mexico City on Michael's birthday, which I felt so bad about that I cried and we rolled over his birthday celebrations to the following day.
6. How incredibly ill both Michael and I were in Mexico.
7. Swimming with sea turtles in Playa del Carmen; one of my favourite days of the entire trip.
8. Someone (Thomas) that I don't spend a lot of time with on a regular basis can just about put up with me being in their face for 5 weeks solid.
9. I must learn the art of patience and tolerance.
10. The drive along the Californian coastline on Highway 1 is one of the most stunning things I have ever seen; I still cannot get over how long a stretch of pure natural beauty it is.
11. The driving in America is outrageous. My mind was blown by how retarded they are on the roads.
12. I had my first (very successful) encounter with a policeman, after making my own spectacular contribution to America's bad driving by driving down the wrong side of a 4-lane highway. And forgetting to go at a green light.
13. fell in love with New Orleans and think it would be an amazingly fun holiday destination.
14. There aren't as many fat people in America as previously believed.
15. I love Whole Foods (too much).
16. I could very happily live in LA, Chicago and New York.
17. Texas is super fun and cool; the opposite to what I had imagined.
18. Orlando is a dump.
19. I love American food.
20. I was defeated by the world's most delicious and huge brownie. This is something I will never forgive myself for. I will return and defeat you.
21. Halloween is an awesome holiday and I wish it was celebrated properly at home.
22. I didn't get to do a weekend boozy brunch in the States. I am still crying about this.
23. The rooftop bars in New York are incredible.
24. I want to live in Hong Kong.
25. I cannot believe we didn't eat Peking duck in Hong Kong.
26. I will not miss the bum gun, and have grown a strong appreciation for toilet paper and European toilets.
27. I can travel the world on my own.
28. I can make friends with strangers. This was a pretty big fear overcome, a skill learned and something I am very proud of.
29. I rode a motorbike for 9 hours straight along one of the most dangerous highways in Vietnam. This was one of the best experiences of my entire life and will always, always stay with me.
30. You are highly likely to have a huge amount in common with people you meet travelling. For one, you both value seeing the world very highly.
31. I am an Asian food worshipper for life.
32. I am obsessed with elephants. Nelly's 4 lyf.
33. I need to look into this Bhuddism thing.
34. Strangers can be full of kindness and not to be such a sceptic of the human race.
35. Westerners are greedy and we should remind ourselves to take a step back and look at the bigger picture more often. It is a pretty great picture.
36. I am grateful to have been born into the life that I was, with amazing opportunities and a supportive, loving family by my side. Not everyone is so lucky.
37. You can build incredibly strong friendships in no time at all.
38. Seeing and immersing yourself in the daily life of different cultures is the fastest and most important lesson you could ever learn about human beings and the world.
39. Clothes and food costs nothing to make. We are idiots in the West and slaves to the labels.
40. I can ride Asian overnight buses. Quite happily actually.
41. Being stuck on a night bus in the sweltering heat in the middle of the night for 2 hours whilst the police ransacked a bunch of cardboard boxes, recovering a load of stolen goods and watching our bus drivers try to bribe them.
42. I abseiled down various mountains, including through waterfalls, despite really not enjoying being in water very much and with a very painful cut on my leg (which is still ugly as sin and not properly healed 3 weeks later).
43. The insane beeping in Vietnam is courteous, not aggressive, and actually amazing fun when you get the hang of it and join in.
44. If you ever want to go anywhere in Vietnam, you go. Just go. You could stand at a traffic light, zebra crossing or hope to find a gap in the traffic all day long. Walk and don't stop till you get to the other side and you will be just fine.
45. How much more developed Cambodia is than Vietnam.
46. I seemed to only meet Canadians. It was as if the whole country was on tour.
47. There are far too many dogs in Asia. The condition of the vast majority of them is absolutely appalling and something really must be done to make Asians realise or believe that they will not be reincarnated as cockroaches if they start to get these poor animals spayed and stop the breeding. Plus, they probably shouldn't eat them, having seen how emaciated and fleas ridden a lot of them are.
48. Parenting in Asia is slightly different to what you see back home... Some of it's perhaps a little too lacklustre but overall I really learnt that babies, toddlers and children alike can really look after and entertain themselves if left to do so. I met kids that have nothing with some of the best manners I have ever come across. It actually made me feel a bit sick to think of the spoilt little brats you come across every day in the West. I feel sorry for my kids already...
49. I stayed for 6 NIGHTS on a (beautiful) island with 4 hours of electricity a day, no hot water, no AC or fans during the night, rats in my room, and slept in a bed that drenched me with water whenever it rained. This was probably my biggest personal achievement. I still can't quite believe I managed for so long.
50. Finally, I can go 10 weeks (in total) without seeing my boyfriend. This is something which all couples believe and say that they can do but proving it is very different. I am proud of us, and thankful to you Michael for supporting me in all the things I did and not once making me feel repressed or guilty for having such a wonderful experience whilst you were slaving away at uni. It was enormously appreciated.
So, all in all, I learnt a huge amount about my own character, human beings in general, and my limits. I saw totally different parts of the world in entirely different states of progression and had a brain overload of scenery and cultures, in the best way possible. I met some truly amazing people that I know I will cross paths with in the future and will always have a mutual spot on the couch for when in each other's vicinity. I intend to try to remain grounded in my aspirations and be thankful for all that I have and gain. Perspective is enormously important and is something that I really do believe is deeply embedded in my outlook from now on. In my opinion, there is no better way to spend your money or time than seeing as much of the world as you possibly can and, since I have only scratched the surface, until the next adventure. x
Oh, and my mother and boyfriend are my rocks. Thank you for everything.
The End.
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