Epilogue

Wow – that was some trip. The report alone runs to 42 pages of A4 text in size 12 font. I don’t think I have written that much since University! This journey started with a lot of reflection on what it meant to travel and I guess now that the travel has been completed – does this mean that the journey is complete?

This has probably been one of the hardest trips I have made. Admittedly the 5 weeks away last July was a long time but it was just in two places and the work was so hard that I didn’t do much else. This trip was complicated, unstable and a little lonely as I did the whole trip by myself. It is not one that I would like to repeat really – I think I might have more flying on my next DONE4 as I might endeavour to really max out those miles and see if I can almost qualify for EXP on one trip But I will try and do that in about 16 days rather than 25.

So what lessons have I learned on this journey. The obvious one is that hand luggage only is not a method of travel it is more than even a lifestyle – it is a religion and I will praying in that Church as much as I possibly can. It gave me so much more freedom but at the same did make for some recurrent wardrobe choices

So what was it like to travel as an experienced traveller? Well to be honest based on the rookie mistakes that I made, the items I lost and found, the poor seat choices and a general lack of focus – what this trip has shown me is that my journeys in reality have only just begun. I may know the best F lounge in HKG airport but I doubt that Kiwiflyer, NM, serfty or Dave Noble are the last person called to the flight because they are sipping beer in the lounge…

Although this trip was hard and too long what it has done is give me a chance to make more of the journeys I will be taking. It gave me a kick up the backside to shake my arrogance and complacency. I did more for myself and more outside of my office and room service than I have done before – forced I guess because I was travelling by myself. More importantly it gave me the chance to travel with mrssimongr and not just to BNE again – but somewhere different where she was in a top of the range J seat.

Where to now then? Well next is a couple of simple CircleAsias in November and February and then potentially we may be seeing The Grand BEHEMOTH in March but between now and then I have to wait for my kitchen to be installed, have my first Christmas with my newish Australian Nephew, buy a car and grind mrssimongr down into accepting that we need a new TV

So for a short while, this Chocka Bloke Checking out