How do you retell an adventure? I am glad to share the experiences Jeremiah and I had on our trip through Thailand and Cambodia this past month … but how to start? Well, let’s lay out a map of Southeast Asia and I can better visualize the travels, ok?
After all, 20-someodd days of living life on the other side of the world is long enough to forget a little bit; and if you know me, it’s long enough to forget what happened yesterday.
I can tell you that the bright-eyed (if not a bit groggy) people who set out on this adventure were in no way anticipating the journey that would come to pass. But isn’t that the way life goes? … Plans have a way of changing mid-flight.
We intentionally, painfully, liberatingly planned to: travel light, travel cheap, and let the experience lead us.
In hindsight, we did alright on the ‘light’ and ‘cheap’ points, but we excelled at letting the experience lead and change us! I know we both can say implicitly that we have grown individually and as a couple by leaps and bounds. I have always mused that you really get to know your partner during projects and travel … that theory was tested during our month apart from the people and life to which we are accustomed. You cannot help but change.
As we settle into being home, hang out with family, spend time with friends, and jump head-long into the mounds of ‘adult to-do’s’ we end up often mentally slipping back to the days and weeks we spent in a land made of red dirt and lush greens. A layer of rubbish, plastic debris, and dust was prevalent in most of the places we visited, but the beauty and magic of the land is undeniable … and the spell has been cast. If you sit long enough with either Jeremiah or me you will likely be told a story from our trip. We can’t seem to help ourselves, please do be patient with us.
Over the next few weeks I will share some of the memories we have made and try to take you to the unforgettable sites we have seen. We hope to spark your interest in Thailand and Cambodia, and in international travel of all kinds! We will offer the feeble advice recently acquired from a ‘learned it the hard way’ perspective. And, finally, we will show you some marvelous images photographed by Jeremiah Andrews Photography (not to mention, a few snapped by little ole’ me).
I am excited to get underway in the next few days … stay tuned!
We want to know it all now!