Home and new beginnings

After a lot of soul searching, I left my job of 21 years just before going away. I figured it was time, and there was no better way to reset and start a new chapter than a two months travel extravaganza.

It certainly was that! We saw so much, we reconnected with a simpler way of living (not always easy!) and we had time to peek into what a different path might look and feel like. We saw Aus through the eyes of two people who had left behind covid, life’s sadnesses and hassles (we’d experienced a few of those in the last few years).

We were able to fully engage with each new day and immerse ourselves in each experience. Due to each destination’s new sights and sounds, it would have been all too easy to forget what we’d done in the previous days and weeks - thank goodness I decided to note my scribblings and reflections here!

Many days included routine tasks (we still needed to shop, do the washing, sweep the floors etc!), but with the knowledge that an idyllic beach awaited, or we might pan for tiny sapphires or look out of Matty’s windows and see kangaroos grazing just a few feet away.

When we were in Aus many moons ago, it was an affordable destination, we were able to buy lots of Aussie $$$ to our pound. Not so this time! We watched the cost of diesel (we needed a lot of it!) go up and up. A food shop wasn’t cheap, but eating out was dear too, so we ate ‘in’ more than out. I doubt Col will want to ‘chuck a prawn on the barbie’ for a while!

The Aussies were universally fab people to chat to (apart from one single worker in a cafe we visited who was the polar opposite!). They helped us if we were unsure and we’re always interested in our trip, where we were from etc, They helped to make our holiday.

The vibe in Singapore was completely different to Aus, but again, the people were great and we were well looked after.

It was a very special trip. We were lucky to have this opportunity at a turning point in our lives (thanks to some money left to me by my dad).

So here we are, back down to earth with a bump. I’m fine, but in my case this was an actual bump. I comprehensively thwacked my head on the corner of the kitchen cabinet the afternoon we got home. There was a lot of blood, so we had to spend two surreal hours in A&E waiting for my gash to be glued 🤕.

Of course life at home continued ‘as normal’ in our absence. Col comes back to an uncertain future. Compton Abbas Airfield, where he’s been a flying instructor for the last couple of years, was sold to Guy Ritchie (yes ‘that’ Guy Ritchie) when we were away. Due to the complexities and procedural hoops of running flight training, the school will cease at the end of January, so it appears Col will also be ‘not working’.

Col lost an old friend and business associate and missed the funeral. I lost a beloved auntie, but fortunately we are back for her funeral. We left with Liz as the PM and arrived back with Rishi picking wallpaper for No 10 - I could go on!

One last thing. I submitted a short written piece to a magazine way back in August 2021, for a regular feature they called ‘What I Treasure’. I then forgot about it. When we were away, I received an email from one of the editors saying they’d like to use it for this December’s Christmas edition. A copy of the mag was included in the heap of post we had to open.

It’s quite something to see your own words in print, albeit only 500 or so of them. As that moment of surprise and disbelief also feels part of our Aussie adventure, I attach the article here, should anyone fancy a quick read.

One of my friends said, you’ll enjoy the feeling of being home for a few days, then the urge to book the next trip will tap you on the shoulder! In our vast batch of post, there was a brochure from a company we’ve travelled with before….

Thanks again for all the lovely comments and for following our epic trip ❤️

Mmmmm is that a tap I feel on my shoulder…….? 😊Lue lisää