Nikki and I are giving a talk on our trip to Cuba, on Saturday the 21st of November at Chester, Grosvenor museum. More details here.
I always say, in adventure there’s no 2nd chances.
I was faced with a dilemma recently. A chance to visit Japan, and spend Christmas in Malta (along with a weekend away before Christmas, and a weekend away in the lakes).
Problem, this will leave me with just a few days holiday between now and the end of July.
Logically, I should hold back more holiday. I don’t know what opportunity’s are around the corner.
Practically, I’m just going to go. These trips are real now so I’ve opted for adventure and thrown caution to the wind.
I’ve often advised people on how to get out and find adventure if they’re on a budget, but what about if they haven’t got enough holiday from work.
Adept now, at making the most of the 141 *, I present a plan for what I’ll do for the first half of next year to illustrate what is possible.
Firstly, my adventure season doesn’t really start until the end of March, so I won’t need any time off before then.
| 25th – 28th of March | Walk Hadrians wall over the Easter bank holiday |
| 30th April – 2nd May | Bank holiday weekend, I’ll go youth hostelling in the Peak District for my birthday |
| 28th – 30th of May | Bank holiday weekend, camping in the Lake district |
| 4th – 20th of June | 9 day walking trip in Morocco. Will use my 4 days remaining holiday, and I’ll have to buy an additional 1 |
| 1st – 3rd July | Weekend in Iceland. Late flight on Friday, normal weekend |
| 29th – 31st July | Camping in Tenby |
| 12th – 14th August | Youth hostelling in the Yorkshire Dales |
I’ll probably do even more than this, and I’ll be out with the walking group every Sunday that I’m free.
I hope you can see that people who say I can’t get out in search of adventure, I never have the time, just need to re-think their priorities.
* 141 is calculated to be the number of free days an average working person has in a year.
Ironic that I started this post talking about no 2nd chances.
I did my first trip around the world in 2004. My first stop was Tokyo for 4 days.
I remember being exhausted from the work I’d had to do in order to take the time away.
With little travel experience up to that point, I hadn’t really researched the place.
As a result, I spent one day on an organised tour, and the rest of the time, just wandering around.
I missed an opportunity, which I deeply regret (above is a picture of the Shinegawa Prince hotel where I stayed with its’ amazing bar on the 41st floor).
Well, now that I’m going back to Japan, I have to chance to put things right.
With 3 days in Tokyo, I’ve planned an extensive itinerary, which I’m really excited about (and that doesn’t even include the stuff I’m doing in the rest of Japan !)
And, I’m going to revisit the bar on the 41st floor with its spectacular views.
Sometimes there are 2nd chances 🙂
Near and far, the search for adventure continues…