figures

Tonight is my last sleep in Europe, I hardly think forty thousand feet above Germany counts. If I manage to sleep that is. I am pretty happy to be going home though, six months is a long time to be a gypsy traipsing around Europe. As a round off, I thought some facts, figures and impressions about this trip might be interesting.

This trip has carried me a total distance of approximately 53,340 kilometres as the crow flies from Melbourne to Melbourne. In terms of actual distance travelled I am looking at something more in the range of 57,000 with all the walking around cities, the twists and turns in roads and train tracks... it adds up. This grand adventure has taken place over 165 days and had me sleeping in 44 cities across 17 countries, not to mention the various day trips and what not. I have also attempted to say “hello” and “thank you” in 15 languages (including Berber and Flemish). Note: “hello” in Czech is “Ajoy”, pronounce A-hoy...like a pirate...

In this time I think I have been mistaken for 7 nationalities other than Australian and had a local beer in every country other than Morocco. I know, I have failed, but it was Ramadan and that feather in my cap really wasn’t worth 12 to 18 months. I had added 57 facebook friends, lost 2 towels and 6 individual socks (only 2 of those were a pair and only 3 of those were my doing). I have travelled by bike, ferry, plane (13 flights in total I think with 5 carriers), car, train, taxi, bus, foot, row boat, tram, chair lift, cable car, camel, repelling, swimming (from island to boat to different island) and piggy-back. I guess roller-coasters aren’t a mode of transport since it’s from point A to point A, but I went on 10 different coasters an average of 3 times each. Also, my $16 pair of Dunlop Vollys have seen twice as much action than my fancy Merrell travel shoes and lasted about as well as Dave’s $120 Hally Hansen walking shoes. Which is to say poorly. I think I have managed a load of washing every 12.69 days (I can only count 13 loads for the entire trip) and not eaten a proper steak since leaving home.

I have been a busy boy as you can see and I really have enjoyed it all, regretting very little. It’s easy to see in retrospect places that you maybe shouldn’t have gone, but I have learnt than no amount of reading helps and the experience one person has will likely conflict dramatically with that of the next you meet, you just need to weigh all your options, stick with what you think is a reliable source and just make the best of it. Hopefully I can find somewhere else in life to apply some of this life experiences.

When asked “do you think it has been worth it?” I will no doubt respond with something obtuse and evasive like... “In what way do you mean?” Money wise? No, I don’t think so... it’s hard to justify spending this much and no doubt it could have been more sensibly spent on a house deposit, new cars or something else just as boring. Experience? Hell yes it’s been worth it. When else would I have this sort of opportunity to see so many places and meet so many people with such freedom and ease? But it’s all apples and oranges because you can’t put a monetary value on the sights, friends and experience, and really, that’s a good portion of what this trip was about.

I have met scores of people from dozens of countries in these six short months, and as my parents have always been fond of telling me. It’s who you know. See, I listen. So when I'm broke and unemployed, living off a shoe string budget (a skill I have picked up travelling) and can look back on all the money I spent over here as an investment in my future. That will make me feel much better. I’m sure it will...