Well here I am, after thirteen, and then some, months I've ended up at my last traveling destination: Singapore. And well, I like Singapore! This place is a city that seems like it was made in the year two-thousand-twenty-something. It's incredibly clean and welcoming. I know Angeline would kill me for saying it (Which is a suprisingly ironic punishment considering that the reason she doesn't like Singapore is because they still use the death penalty!), but I love Singapore! For my last night out here I ended up at a club that was on the 72nd floor of a sky-rise. It was pretty cool to be dancing with my feet high above this concrete country. Soon after I headed to the airport where the fun really began. Free internet, movie theatre, and X-box stations kept me awake all night. But the reason for my writing wasn't to go on about how cool Singapore is (even though it really is), rather it's a bit of a salute to my journey.
I've had quite a bit of moments, both shared and kept. There's been Bangkok and Brisbane, Melbourne and Malaysia, Christchurch and Kuala Lampur, New Zealand and Newcastle, Sydney and Singapore and all the stops in between. And to say the absolute least: It's been quite a ride!
I've been recently asked a few time, what my favorite part was. I couldn't answer it on the spot and with much thought, I still can't. For me the year has been built up of many parts and without any one part, place, or person I believe a lot of things would've been different. Except for the time I put 20 bucks on a coin toss with a Maori scoundral. That probably didn't need to happen! But as for anything else I can think of, I guess you could say that it was all meant to be (Cheesy, I know).
I often imagine what it would be like to bump into myself in the airport just as I got off the plane 13 months ago and have both selves just look at eachother. I think I (the now me) would just smile and say to the 'old me', "You have no idea what you're in for,mate!" And then the old me would probably say to the new me, "Why the hell did you just call me mate?"
Anyway, that is what made this such an incredible experience for me: I truly didn't know what I was getting myself into. But I got into it and I got into it deep. I made some stupid mistakes and some great choices,like when I decided to fire myself from my door-knocking job (Good choice). I learned a lot about nothing I thought I needed to learn and I wouldn't change a thing.
So thanks to everyone for all the floors, couches, hammocks, backseats, warm meals, cold beers, and just a shoulder every once in awhile. I certainly can say that I couldn't and wouldn't have done it without you. Take care of eachother.
Happy Trails... Until We Meet Again,
Ryan
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