Elizabeth Gilbert's words of wisdom

This is by a writer called Elizabeth Gilbert.I didn't expect it too,but I keep reciting it to myself because I found it very intriguing.It fits my ethos exactly,I hope it interests you the same way it did me.

"If you are brave enough to leave behind everything familiar and comforting (which can be anything from your house to your bitter old resentments) and set out on a truth-seeking journey (either externally or internally), and if you are truly willing to regard everything that happens to you on that journey as a clue, and if you accept everyone you meet along the way as a teacher, and if you are prepared - most of all - to face (and forgive) some very difficult realities about yourself....then truth will not be withheld from you." Or so I've come to believe." 

WWOOF

So now the first destination has been decided,what shall I do when I am out there? Well a good friend called Adam pointed me in the direction of WWOOF (World Wide Organisation of Organic Farming).It's basically an organisation in loads of country all over the world where you pay a yearly membership fee to volunteer on a organic farm for roughly 6 hours a day,and in return you get a bed and three meals daily.

Why not kill two birds with one stone? Gain priceless experience by volunteering on a farm in cultural melting pot like India,meet some really interesting people,and see some incredible views that photos in a book just doesn't do justice.But also keeping my budget at a very minimum.From there,who knows what will happen.

I have talked about this for a long time(you're all probably really tired of it by now) with friends,family and just random strangers that I come by.And a lot of older people I have talked to have said these words that have been hammered into my little brain, 'If I was younger I wish I had travelled a lot more'.The key word there being 'wish'.Dreams and wishes are there to be accomplished,otherwise life would be pretty fucking boring wouldn't it? In many years time I wouldn't want to think to myself 'What if I had done that?'

If you have a dream,don't wish you had done it,just do it!

Some bad news

The day that would be the worst day of my life to date was 22nd September 2011 a few weeks after I came back from Italy and I will never forget those words my Mam said to me that morning 'Son I have some bad news,your Dads died'.He passed away outside a taxi rank in Middlesbrough that morning of something called hyper-tensive heart failure.Boom my world had collapsed,plans halted and I was in a state of utter shock.What the hell do I do?! We went to the funeral up north the following Friday,and the same night came back to go to my Aunts Wedding in Horsham on the Saturday,such a contrast and such an emotional time in the space of 24 hours,I just bit my tongue and put a brave smile on.

Time went on very fast and I began to think about what to do.I decided to delay my plans till at least I had gotten my head right,at such a difficult time,travelling was the last thing on my mind.

I filled that time with the only thing I could do,go out as much as possible,seeing friends and family at every opportunity I had, after all life really is too short.

Due to the unforeseen events that did happen,I began to think about the purpose of travelling,why do it,and if I didn't do it,how would I feel about it.It had been such a big dream to backpack,that if I didn't I would be so angry with myself for letting this great opportunity pass by,big decisions had to be made.

When my Dad was alive I would of liked to think he would of been proud of me for taking life by the horns and running with it,doing what I wanted to do.So after a lot of thinking,a lot of talking and listening with friends and family I've decided to jump head first in the deep end and go to India.Book it,pack it and fuck off.

The start of my Big Adventure

What's a 24 year old,single male who has a tendency to wander going to do with ones life?

Last year I decided to quit my job that I had for 7 years,and backpack as far as I can go with the money I had at the time,I had been saving for approximately 3 years for this moment and the time had come,the most exciting and nerve racking time so far in my life.
My first destination was to be Italy,for a whole month on my own to dip my toes in the backpackers world to see what it was like.And to tell you the truth it was the best experience I could of had,it opened my eyes on surviving on your own,having to fend for yourself in a completely different country,but also I had a whole month where I could go wherever I wanted,with whomever I wanted,for pretty much how ever much time I wanted,imagine that,would you do it?
The time I was in Italy I went to Rome,Pisa,Bergamo,Ferrara,Bologna,Venice,Florence,Luca,Naples,Amalfi Coast and Positano.I had some great experiences like drinking a bottle of wine and whiskey ontop of the steps that overlooked Florence with a couple of Turkish guys and a Canadian guy I met as the sun went down.However corny that sounds,that moment there summed up why Traveling is one of the greatest experiences a person can have,meeting total strangers and becoming friends by spending time with them doing things you wouldn't normally do.

I came back from Italy and immediately packed another bag to go to Creamfields in Chester,that too was something great to experience again,60,000 people just having a great time with each other.

So the seed was set in my brain to get work abit more and travel again,this time for a lot longer and alot further away from England.