I think we’ll be alright with the slight copyright infringement.
So, here I am, about to embark on definitely one of the most impulsive enterprises of my life but hopefully also one of the most worthwhile. Beautifully crazy, as per the name of the blog and my favourite Argentinian’s nickname for me.
The bare bones of this idea fermented whilst sat on an Argentine hillside in the midst of a somewhat savage dust storm, last October. Whilst sitting there, enjoying a cup of somewhat chewy herb tea, thoughts turned to my imminent return home and a slight sense of impending doom. I looked back over the preceding three weeks of great food, relaxed culture, new friends and amazing countryside and wondered what, exactly, was stopping me from making this normal life, if only for a while.
One of the great benefits of public sector jobs is flexibility. And for the time being, the ability to take extended career breaks. A job to return to, a Plan B. So, on my first day back at work from Argentina, I grabbed the initiative before my sensible side took over and booked 3 years off work. (My sensible side has since clawed back some ground by cutting this in half, but I digress…)
My initial plan was just to fly to North America, travel for a few weeks and then hopefully settle for a while in Argentina. However this has slightly gone by the wayside upon reflection and, partly, ESTA requirements in the USA not making it workable. But, in its place, an entirely new and slightly harder plan has emerged.
The end goal is the same: Travel to South America, travel around Chile for a while and hopefully settle for a few months at least in the Argentine countryside for as long as I can support myself from savings and the odd bit of work-for-board.
The bit in the middle has become more carbon-neutral: No planes. A train all the way from Taunton to Moscow, and then across Siberia, Mongolia and China. From there, who knows- Japan is certainly on the list. There are lots of ferries there from mainland China. And then Oz, NZ and the small matter of the Pacific to cross.
I am expert in talking myself into bigger plans than originally anticipated. And this unfortunate side of my personality is currently thinking that if I’ve already made it approximately 8000 miles around the world overland, is there any reason why I shouldn’t complete the remainder by sea?
To be continued… Freighter Travel
In my next blog post, I’m going to be discussing the benefits and pitfalls of holiday planning.
loquitohermoso 