December 2014
Amanda writes: It was more than a year ago that we decided we were going to do this. After making the decision on our wedding anniversary there was a distinct shift. I don’t know how else to describe it other than to say there was a shift in our approach to life.
So here we are in December of 2014. We packed up our lives in North Vancouver in July 2014, only five months ago and started enjoying Canada. Our present situation isn’t far from what we had imagined. Sure things have changed somewhat in terms of the precise plan we laid out, but to be honest we only laid out a plan at the beginning to appease a lot of questions. I know it may sound bizarre.
One of the great things about Andrew and I is that we’re on the same page in terms of mapping out this trip. Every day is a new day and we make plans only as the days come. Certainly we must have some idea of our destinations and dates, but really it’s more about the journey and adventure and meeting people. When we first launched the idea and shared it with friends and family it was very difficult for others to understand that we don’t really have a firm plan of when and where. Therefore in order to share our dreams with others we assigned some dates and destinations to the idea. The planning has helped some with regards to achieving goals and seeing family and friends, but it has also reminded us that plans get changed.
I watched a TED talk tonight by Ben Saunders who recently travelled to the South Pole. While the trip itself is an incredible mental and physical feat, the thing that stood out for me most was his realization that it’s not about the destination; it’s about the journey. And that is how I feel about our trip. As I type this we are not currently cycling and there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about getting on my touring bike. But I also know that they are tucked away safely while we fulfill one of our passions of meeting new people and learning a new language.
So this ‘vacation’ from cycle touring is not a break in our trip, it’s simply a part of it. We are enjoying the journey and it has opened my mind to the possibility of spending more time enjoying communities and people and culture and perhaps taking breaks from continuous cycling. I’ve lived a pretty sheltered life. I was born and raised in the same City and only recall living in two homes in my youth, both of which were cycling distance from each other. Therefore being introduced to a new community and new friends and routines is enlightening to me. People are so friendly.
So until we hop back on our bikes in a few months, we will continue to enjoy what planet earth has to offer. Our new friends for a season we hope will remain friends for a lifetime like our friends that we are missing right now. And between now and those few months we’ll decide where our bicycles will take us, only to be changed right up until the day we get back on those touring bikes.
Thanks for your patience with our less frequent posts and we look forward to sharing our adventures in the months to come.