Well, it’s been a year. Definitely not the year I had anticipated, but a year nonetheless, so what better thing to do than take some time to reflect on everything that happened in 2020. All of this years adventures are linked wherever mentioned, so feel free to take a look at the full posts too! I was one of the first to greet the New Year, celebrating in style in a backpacker’s hostel in Bundaberg in rural Queensland where I was undertaking rural farmwork in order to apply for a second year visa to stay in Australia for a little longer.
During this time, I also got my first tattoo (probably not the last), and of course spent ample days at the beach – I was in Australia, I mean, you have to! Soon enough I was celebrating the end of farmwork and saying goodbye to some of the best people I’ve ever met; before catching a morning train back to Brisbane for the next leg of my adventures.
A friend and I took a day trip to North Stradbroke Island for a little getaway, and then I headed off on my own for a whirlwind tour around Australia, flying first to Sydney to see the city, some foggy Blue Mountains, visit the Hunter Valley wine region, and meet some of the local wildlife; and then bussing it to Canberra. Known as one of Australia’s more boring cities, I actually really liked Canberra, and would recommend it to anyone interested in history, politics, culture or education, as the city is full of museums.
I fell in love with the next place I visited – Melbourne – and truly hope that I have the chance to live there upon my eventual return to Aus. I saw wild penguins in Phillip Island, toured the Yarra Valley wine region, and took a tour along the Great Ocean Road to see the Twelve Apostles and some truly stunning scenery. My tour ended in Adelaide, and you can read all about my Australian adventures on this blog – everything is linked in this post, or you can type what you’re looking for in the search bar!
I had plans to spend some time in Adelaide and the Barossa Valley, but there was a concern that if I stayed any longer, I might not be able to fly out should things shut down due to Covid-19, which would be a major problem considering I was meant to be attending my brother’s wedding a few months down the line. As such, an executive decision was made for me to cut my trip short and head to the Netherlands to wait this thing out at my parent’s house.
Spoiler alert, I’m still waiting it out, and so North Holland has been my home for the past nine months and honestly, I’ve learnt a lot about Dutch living – so much so to even fill two blog posts of their own. It was pleasant to arrive in the Netherlands in Spring, with beautiful blossoming trees and baby animals everywhere you looked, and it also gave me a chance to improve my cycling since that’s how literally everyone gets around here. I think my proudest achievement of 2020 is learning to cycle one handed, and that’s a skill I know I wouldn’t have picked up had it not been for this weird year.
I swiftly got a job teaching online, and have been filling my free time cycling, painting (four large paintings now in the bag for Ciara’s future house), writing, listening to music (check out the songs that got me through2020 here), and exploring a little bit of the Netherlands, including places like Edam (as in the cheese), Utrecht, and some pleasant smaller towns along the coast.
2020 has hardly been a year of much travelling, at least compared to what was planned – I was intending to head to the States for my brother’s wedding which has since been postponed, and then smash my way across Europe for a few months, but sadly Covid got to Europe before I did. However, all was not lost, and I did manage to get ‘away’ twice – first to Cyprus where I spent a blissful ten days relaxing on the beach, scuba diving the Zenobia wreck, making authentic pottery, and taking day trips to Ayia Napa, Nicosia, and Limassol. Again, all of that can be found on the blog, so if you’re looking for some escapism, you can find it there! Cyprus is now the sixtieth country I’ve visited, so still on track for 100 countries by age fifty, and you can read all about the places on my bucket list here. My other getaway was more of a staycation, to a Dutch island called Ameland, where we spent a few days cycling, cycling, and more cycling.
Upon my return, and with no trips to the hairdressers on the card with increasing restrictions, it seemed like a good idea to dye my hair, so after testing out whether blondes have more fun than redheads, I’m checking to see what it’s like for brunettes. I’ve also been presenting a few shows on UK Country Radio which has been great to get back to my country music roots and connect with friends from across the globe who haven’t heard my voice in a while!
It was a quiet Christmas here, although I did finally make it into Amsterdam for the first time during my stay here, which was pleasant to see the trees and lights and get in the festive spirit. I celebrated at home with my family with a sunrise cycle, plenty of food and a well-deserved day off. Quite a change from my Christmas last year, but pleasant nonetheless.
It would be easy to dwell on the ‘what ifs’ had this year been different, and whilst it probably won’t go down as one of the best years of my life, there have been some real silver linings. I had a great start to the year filled with great people and great experiences; and even lockdown has had some highlights: unlocking my creative juices, getting fitter than I’ve ever been, reconnecting with old friends, and knowing that this might be the last time I’ll have this much free time. I hope 2021 will be 'good different' and I’ll have some more exciting stories to share with you, but the fact that I’ve managed to fill an entire blog post with this year speaks for itself!
