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As my plane climbed out over continental America and headed for the open ocean of the Atlantic, a certain phrase bounced around my mind, in the gap between every moment of somnolence. It was simple but poignant: “We’ve seen the world”. 9 hours later I had completed the full circumnavigation of the globe. I was back in the UK, after 62 days, 16 countries and 44,000 miles.
Less than four hours after my extremely long day (that started in the Cook Islands) had ended, I was conscious once again, vowing to battle on for what would be the remaining 72 hours of this entire two month trip. My incentive for staying lucid would be a full day cramped into a tour bus alongside 60 wailing Americans – and their kids. Yes, I was on a tour to the Grand Canyon.
I stand on the fringes of the Pacific Ocean and gaze out at the interminable distance I’ve yet to travel. Resonating in my head are the soothing tones of a song I first listened to in 2006 when I was planning a different trip around the world and visualising what the Cook Islands might be like. 3 years later the daydream had become a reality while the music had retained its pertinence.
There isn’t a more enigmatic sensation than returning to the place where you began, realising all of the ways in which you have changed and it has not. Nor is there any way to adequately describe how it feels to know you’ve travelled around the world. 44 days, 12 countries, 4 continents and 32,000 miles had come and gone since I last set foot in the UK, and now here I was, back.
I may have only had a couple of days to explore New York City before completing my round the world trip and flying back to the UK, but I soon discovered that, despite some opinions to the contrary, it was more than enough time to develop a good feel for the place. Travel is about quality over quantity after all, and I came fully intent on breathing in every second.
