I’m trying to wrap my head around this… three years ago, after selling my house of twenty-three years and letting go of most everything I owned, I packed up my carry-on and flew to Puerto Vallarta with my then girlfriend Kelly. This was going to be the start of an around the world adventure. 

At the time we weren’t sure how long we were going to be gone. “A year or year and a half” said Kelly. But I think I had A different time frame in mind. It’s a big world and I wasn’t sure how long it would take to see everything I wanted to. The one thing I was clear on was that this was a unique window of opportunity and it wouldn’t be open forever.

I was healthy. I had the financial resources so I could travel on a comfortable budget (not extravagant mind you). I had been living with this dream of world travel for many years. I had trimmed my wings to raise a family and focus on career. But it was now time to fly. 

Four months after we left, Covid hit. We were stranded in São Paulo, Brazil for almost 5 months. We made the most of it. I think it was Kelly’s favorite time. The normally chaotic city was subdued and beautiful. Restaurants were open for take-out. We cooked , made cocktails and hung out. Called friends back home and went for bike rides. We certainly didn’t suffer.

As Covid made Brazil a poster child of how not to handle a pandemic, it became clear it was time to move. We escaped on an empty airline to Istanbul. We were ready to get back to adventure. 

It’s facinating to look back over those Covid years. People were locked up. Isolated. Zoom replaced work meetings. Childen missed years of social schooling. The list goes on. No one travelled for sure. 

We did.

And it was amazing. 

Can you picture Rome and Venice without crowds? How about Dubrovnik with a few locals sipping coffee in the warm sun while their children played in the empty square? Something they had not seen or done since the crush of tourist ladened cruise ships took control of their lovely cities.

Now it was all theirs.

I have to admit there were times when it was too spooky. Entering a popular restaurant and being the only people there. Or walking along empty streets that once held crushing crowds. I remember joking if the apocalypse had actually arrived. That somehow the world had ended and we were the last two people standing. 

But it hadn’t.

People were afraid to travel. And yes, borders were closed and plane flights were cancelled. Travel became this game of cat and mouse. I spent hours trying to figure out a way to follow the sun and find a country or a city that would give us just enough excitement to keep us occupied. They were out there… and we managed to find some great places.

So what did we discover?

We found locals who were rediscovering their own cities. Yes they were not making money, but they didn’t seem to care. (I’ve become aware that in other countries, money doesn’t have the power that it has over the western world — less it turns out, is happily more.) And Covid travel encouraged Kelly and I to travel slower. Take our time. Stay in the moment as we chartered a course that became visible only a few steps ahead of us. There was a freedom to this that became a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Now, post Covid, the crowds are returning, prices are rising and finding that quiet space is more of a challenge. Though, not to paint an overly romantic picture, it is very nice to have more restaurants open and live music filling the air. 

So here I am, three years later. I am a solo traveler now. Kelly lasted for half of that. (That was probably all she wanted in the first place.) I, on the other had, found my calling — exploring this amazing world has become my passion. Meeting different people from different cultures has become a joy that I’ve become addicted too. Living simply out of my suitcase has freed me of the need to constantly buy new things. I am, in a very real sense, re-discovering who I am.

I am free. I am finding a world that is nourishing. That is beautiful and full of wonder. That keeps me in the moment and is leading me somewhere that I don’t have a clue about.

I am living close to the bone. Without a doubt closer to my spiritual essence. I meditate more. I consciously breathe more. I give thanks and am humbled by the opportunities that fall in my path. 

And I am grateful for my friends who support me and reach out and ask “Where the hell am I?”

As my journey continues, I promise to keep you posted as I find out the answer to this myself.