4.1 - Around the World (Plan)
"Some journeys take us far from home. Some adventures lead to our destiny." - C.S. Lewis
Reader, welcome to the first travel post of this travel blog! I’ve talked about some, to be frank, heavy experiences up until now, so I’m excited to shift to a lighthearted topic. As I announced in the last post (and as you may have seen in the welcome email or About section), I’ll soon embark on a year-long journey around the globe. With a trip of this length, it’s not feasible to plan out every detail (nor am I even close to doing so). However, what I do have set is the high-level itinerary and a few bucket list items (BL), so I want to share that with you! I’m also sprinkling in what I’m calling anchor activities (AA)— time that is intentionally designed to encourage reflection/prayer, and keep me grounded in my goals/purpose for this adventure. Let’s jump in!
USA/West Europe/North Africa
Apr 2024 (1 week) - New York City 🇺🇸
What better way to make this dream into reality than NYC - the concrete jungle where dreams are made of.
May 2024 (3 weeks) - Morocco 🇲🇦
BL: Camping in the Sahara
May-Jun 2024 (3 weeks) - Portugal 🇵🇹
BL: Taylor Swift Eras Tour concert. Will she add a song from TS11 to the set list is the only question…
AA: Walking the Camino de Santiago (Porto-Santiago leg). Also known as the Way of St. James, this is a traditional Christian pilgrimage that ends in Santiago de Compostela in NW Spain. The path I’m taking is 245km/150mi and is typically completed in ~2 weeks.
Jun 2024 (<1 week) - London 🇬🇧
To see a couple dear friends
Jun 2024 (<1 week) - San Francisco 🇺🇸
Because I love trans-Atlantic flights! Jk, brief stay in the Bay to attend the wedding of a close friend.
East Africa/West Asia
Jun-Jul 2024 (3 weeks) - Kenya 🇰🇪, Tanzania & Zanzibar 🇹🇿, Rwanda 🇷🇼
BL #1: Safari in the Masai Mara and Serengeti, during The Great Migration, in a hot air balloon (Kenya, Tanzania). Watch the TikTok below, and you’ll understand why a balloon is required.
BL #2: Searching for silverback gorillas in Volcanoes National Park (Rwanda)
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Jul-Aug 2024 (3 weeks) - Turkey 🇹🇷
No particular bucket list items—just excited to take in and learn about a country and culture that is largely an unknown to me.
South/Southeast Asia
This part of the itinerary is very much not hashed out, so the time periods are a best guess. Flights between most of these countries are short and affordable, so there’s less pressure to have everything set in stone.
Aug-Oct 2024 (3 months) - Thailand 🇹🇭, Cambodia 🇰🇭, Laos 🇱🇦, Vietnam 🇻🇳
BL #1: Exploring the Ha Giang Loop on a scooter
BL #2: Loi Krathong Festival in Thailand (if I’m there in November)
Oct 2024 (<1 week) - Singapore 🇸🇬
Oct 2024 (2-3 weeks) - Nepal 🇳🇵
AA: Yoga + silent retreats
Nov 2024 (1 month) - Indonesia (Bali, Komodo Island, Raja Ampat) 🇮🇩
BL: Scuba diving!
Dec-Jan 2025 (2 months) - Taiwan 🇹🇼
Most of this time will be spent in Taiwan with family, with potential side trips to Hong Kong 🇭🇰, Palau 🇵🇼, and Japan 🇯🇵.
BL: Celebrating Lunar New Year’s in Taipei with family
South America
After a few weeks to rest up in Texas, it’ll be time to head south to one of my favorite continents.
Mar 2025 (2-3 weeks) - Ecuador & the Galapagos Islands 🇪🇨
BL: Liveaboard scuba diving trip
Mar-Apr 2025 (2-3 weeks) - Peru 🇵🇪
BL: Machu Picchu, Rainbow Mountains
AA: Ayahuasca retreat. Look it up if you’re unfamiliar!
Apr-May 2025 (3-4 weeks) - Chile 🇨🇱, Argentina 🇦🇷
BL: Hiking Patagonia
Apart from the stop in California, I’ll generally be heading east. For a better visual, or if you’re a travel nerd like me, here’s a flight map (start in NYC and go 👉🏻). These are the main airports that I’ll (most likely) be transiting through.
If you have any suggestions, tips, or advice on any of the places I’m going to visit, please leave a comment! Would love to pick your brain, especially if you’ve ever lived in any of these areas.
Well, that about wraps up our time together this week. If you’re wondering how I’m putting this whole trip together, that makes two of us 🫠 The process is intimidating, especially when I was first getting started. To be completely honest, I stared at a blank Google sheet for the first couple of days.
Later on, I’ll share a bit more about my planning process, including budgeting (I was a financial advisor, after all), my ambitious plan to get an ATW plane ticket (using credit card points, in business class!), and resources that I’ve found helpful. I’ll also talk about what I hope to get out of this life adventure that is approaching much faster than I thought it would.
And finally, after a four year hiatus, I’m returning to Instagram with a new travelgram! I’ll share some pictures in this blog, but IG will be the best place to see the full array of my adventures.
What is your Instagram handle??