I was lying in bed last night counting sheep and listening to my daughter cough up a lung when I realised how quickly the last 15 years have passed me by. It feels like only yesterday I was impressing customers with my cocktail flaring skills from behind the bar on the beautiful island of Santorini in Greece. Now I’m married (for the second time) with kids and a mortgage. Where has the time gone… ?
Having started from scratch two years ago (and then seeing my cousin and her husband doing it recently) got me thinking about how much I have moved around since leaving school: 4 years in Stellenbosch, 9 months in Cape Town, 6 months in London, 4 months in Israel, 6 months in Greece, another 6 months in the UK, 12 months back in George (where I grew up in South Africa), 2 years in London, 4 years in Padua ( Italy), 5 years in London and finally, two years in Australia. And that’s just places I’ve lived in! I think I counted about 39 permanent addresses that I’ve had in my life time.
When it comes to travelling, I could add another 33 countries to that list: Namibia, Comores, Maldives, Egypt, Cyprus, Turkey, Croatia, Malta, Germany, Austria, Spain, Portugal, France, San Marino, Vatican City, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Norway, Estonia, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, USA, Canada, Barbados, Bahamas, Tortola (BVI), Martinique, St Maartin, St Lucia, Malaysia and Singapore! You should see my passport(s)!
What do I have to show for all this travel? Memories. Fantastic friends. And photos! Lots of them! 4 fat albums full of prints from the old days and over 20 000 digital photos on an external hard drive! Some of these can be seen on the net.
You know what would be really great? Catching up with all the people I ever met while backpacking around. Oh, and finally getting to South America would be pretty awesome too!
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8 thoughts on “Lying in bed, thinking…”
Kim aka Lucy
(25 September 2009 - 14:34)We love you guys and are so glad we got to share some of these memories too! When I say we, I don’t mean Lucy & I.. I mean Andrew & I 😉
Deb(Wife)
(25 September 2009 - 15:19)Yes, so so many great friends and memories and one day, hopefully in time to come we will all be together on a island sunning ourselves, drinking cocktails and watching the munchkins run a muck!!!
Snuva
(28 September 2009 - 09:09)My frustration with having lived not as many places as you, but several, is that the internet and easy access to email didn’t exist earlier. I’ve lost track of sooo many friends! And now am considering whether or not to turn old photos / journals into blog posts – mainly so I have them more easily accessible for myself and can move some of those old albums and photo boxes off bookshelves where I’m always desperate for space!
I’ll have to check out more of your photos when I have time.
Del
(28 September 2009 - 10:11)@Kim: … and Lucy of course! 😉
@Deb: Just a little bit of sun would be nice right now!
@Snuva: I’ve managed to keep in touch with some people from my later travel years and contacted a few from my earlier travels via Facebook, but yes, very frustrating!
SA Expats
(28 September 2009 - 18:49)Lol! I know the feeling.
Terri
(30 September 2009 - 11:36)“You’ll always have Paris”, eh Cuz? (Or Namibia, Comores, Maldives, Egypt, Cyprus, Turkey, Croatia, etc etc..!)
Fantastic. I bet it makes you want to go and do it all again.
b.t.w. if it’s sun you’re after, we have plenty of it up here in Queensland…
po
(1 October 2009 - 21:16)Wow, you really have lived everywhere! Do you feel tired of moving around, or do you miss it?
Del
(5 October 2009 - 15:57)@Terri: Actually, I don’t really like Paris that much…
@Po: I’ve had enough of moving! Once more (to my dream home), then I’m done for life…