Reflection on my big trip – 10 years later

Machu Picchu. I can still remember it like it was yesterday.

I leaned against the stone walls of the Sun Gate to catch my breath. We started the day at 3:30am. There was a cool breeze in the air to join the surrounding mist which covered the valley below. It had been a long, tiring morning. Atop the Sun Gate, I looked down into the mist covered valley below. Everything became worthwhile. It had been a challenging four days with some amazing sights. Yet in this moment, nothing else mattered. Catching my breath, I made my way to a free terrace and sat down, wetting my cracked lips with water. 

I watched the mist disappear to reveal the mountain of Wayna Pikchu. The mountain stood there, revealed for a few minutes while the rest of the valley lay hidden by mist. The mist disappeared. The river revealed. 

It felt like I was being teased, as the mist still surrounded the hidden city. Patience paid virtue, as when the sun finally crested over the Sun Gate, the mist evaporated. There it was! Machu Picchu was below us. It was a breathtaking, mystical experience. The valley sensed my thoughts. It filled up with mist again, hiding the view of Machu Picchu once more after 10 minutes. 

Wiping away a tear, I started my hike down into the valley.

(25 March 2013)

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My travels continued on for the rest of the year. It changed the course of my life. I discovered new passions. I became an outdoor educator for a few years. Learnt Spanish. I explored. I grew. That year, and the years afterwards developed my shape. Now, ten years on, it’s good to pause and think about how it’s shaped my life.

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My actual 10-year anniversary was 1 March. It was on that day, 1 March 2013, when I boarded my flight out of Brisbane on a Friday morning at 6:30am.

Ten years later, the 1 March 2023 came and went. It didn’t register in my mind that this was the day. There wasn’t anything in my calendar to reminder me. It has been a big year for us. 2023 was, in some respects, a very tough year. A 10-year travel anniversary wasn’t front of mind. It is interesting, in a way, to reflect on the fact that I simply forgot. It wasn’t front of mind. The day that changed everything, that made me the person I am today, forgotten. Not forgotten. I can still vividly remember boarding the flight. The associate with the date however, was gone.

Given that this has been a tough year, it feels fitting, in a way, to share a long reflection piece on the past ten years. To revisit my journal of the year away and subsequent trips. To think about how I’ve changed. Relive a lot of the memories and revisit some of the photos. 

This is not a 10 year anniversary to celebrate my continued travels. That came to an end in 2018. Five good years. Then it was time to settle down. Then COVID hit. I met the love of my life and got married. We moved into a townhouse and are now getting ready to build a family and welcome our baby into the world. 

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For starters, going on that first big trip proved that I can realise a big, scary dream. I can wander the world for a year and figure things out as I go. I can navigate through uncertain and complex situations when they arise. It gave me the confidence to approach situations in a calm manner. It showed me that I can live the life I want, that it may be different to others, and that it’s okay. We are the masters of our destiny. I can either daydream about doing a bit trip for years, decades, or a lifetime, or I can be the person that goes and does it. I’m grateful that I was able to be the person that went and did it. 

Not that it wasn’t scary as hell to take the first step.

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Why though? There was a restless inside me. A curiosity to see more. To learn and experience more. To continue to grow, change and challenge the way I think.

When I was younger, I was fortunate that my parents were in a position to take myself and my sister traveling. I am extremely grateful that they were able to do this. These travels, along with my parent’s influence and teachings, helped us to gain an appreciation of the world around us. To understand cultural differences. To become aware of the differences in the world. My travels as a child included a trip to New Zealand and multiple trips to the USA, where we explored and spent time with family friends.

In 2008, I started to travel as an adult, when I was 22 years old. My first trip was a solo trip to the Southern Island of New Zealand for seven days. I had some raw and meaningful conversations about where they had visited and the world around us. This trip started to fuel the embers for future trips. I wanted to understand more of the world around me. The seed for my own extended trip was firmly planted in New Zealand. From that trip, each year I would head oversees, including:

• 2008 – New Zealand
• 2009 – Japan
• 2010 – USA, London, Western Europe
• 2011 – Hong Kong, Macau and China (Shenzhen)
• 2012 – USA, Taiwan

These trips gave me many memorable experiences. I met many travellers who taught me some very important lessons about the world.

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I’ve always been obsessed with Machu Picchu and ancient history. Standing at the Sun Gate, looking down, is still the best scenic thing I have seen. I felt awe. It also sparked another thought. Once which took me a while to realise. As I saw ancient wonders, great scenic destinations, continued on these amazing adventures, I came to a realisation. It’s great to experience these things. But even better would be to experience them with someone. To build memories with another person. With a family.

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I learnt to not plan too far ahead and to go where interests take you. That was how I ended up in Guatemala. I went to study Spanish and do some hiking. Climbing was introduced to me. I learnt about the idea of being an outdoor educator and that there are so many different paths one can take it life. Guatemala was a pivotal moment for me due to those lessons. Plus, the place is amazing. I returned a year later for three months to volunteer as a trekking a climbing guide. I look forward to returning again one day. 

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It’s interesting looking back. I’m doing so with the knowledge I have today. As the person I became. That I am. My reflections are tilted towards who I have become. Of where my interests are today. The events, conversations that I recollect are with that lens.

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Confidence and independence. Each day brought its own challenges. Where would I go? What was I doing next? Where do I stay? How are finances? What sights do I want to see? How did I want to talk to at the hostel further? 

Each interaction and decision gives you experience. It was like a role playing game. Slowly but surely, I levelled up. 

I became more confident talking to others. I was more confident deciding where I wanted to go rather than following an itinerary from the internet. Trying new things was normal.

I discovered coffee. Hello!

Jokes aside (and yes, I’m so glad coffee is in my life), it let me down paths I wouldn’t have imagined by trying different things. That is a benefit of travel. No one out there knows you. You can fail. Hard. You can totally botch it. You can say the wrong thing. Never intentionally. Then you move on to the next place. It’s a place to remake yourself and trying new interests for yourself. 

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At some point along the way I started thinking about duty. I suspect it was always there as with the wisdom of a few more years, it is a part of the values I was raised in. I started thinking of it more broadly. With more focus.

When I discussed values on my travels and in the outdoors, duty was always mentioned.

It’s no surprise that I ended up finding Stoicism.

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A major lesson was when I came back. When I was juggling two careers – outdoor education and HR. I learnt that you can have them both. That you can, if you think about it internally, craft the life that you want. That was the biggest lesson for me.

The life I want. It’s for me to decide. It’s for me to make happen. 

I went all in with climbing for a few years and had many wonderful trips. I was able to do a lot more travel. Saw some amazing places in the outdoors with wonderful groups of students and fellow instructors. I had a lot of great times with my family. I focused on my general health and fitness too. Became a much better version of myself. I volunteered in the community. I read more and in the things that interested me, because that’s what I wanted. Became a person that the person I wanted to marry would be interested in. I made new friendships. I married the love of my life. We purchased a townhouse.

My cup is overflowing each day. Not that days aren’t hard. Not that there are times that don’t suck. But I’m living the live I want. We are making improvements and better closer to our ‘perfect’ live too. It’s because I took the risk ten years ago and backed myself. I gained confidence, discovered myself, rediscovered some of my values, and gained lots of new perspectives which I use today.

All of those combined make me. Travel is a big part of that.