Today itself has been spent gently in the warm company of our dear friend Craig in Marshfield (Jenny is in Wales); it has been wonderful to simply connect with Craig over the day - a lovely man-date! Once finished packing, I will make the 90 minute drive to Heathrow, dropping the car off and making my way to the flight.
I will more fully summarise once I get home and have overcome any travel effects, but in the meantime, a few quick thanks:
- Our travel agent Allie at Flight Centre, Ashgrove (although she has moved on into a training role - pity for us, but congratulations Allie);
- Sam Brooks for pointing me in the direction of AirBnB - a great way to travel;
- All of my hosts found through AirBnB - other than a few hiccups it has been overwhelmingly a good experience, and the connections made have been great;
- The European train companies and the whole Eurail experience - very positive and easy way to travel;
- Various android phone apps - including translator and GPS;
- The Scunthorpe and surrounds Higgins family - I loved meeting you all and spending some time with you and getting to know you: thank you for taking me in as one of the family so quickly;
- Our very dear Brisbane friends Craig and Jenny now living in Marshfield, UK - your hospitality, warmth, love and care are truly inspiring, and we are blessed to have you both;
- Everyone who has followed my and George's blogs; and
- Those of you who have commented along the way - particularly my older brother Michael for the occasional insights.
As I have mused with a number of people, a trip like this has been so different to anything similar taken 10-20 years ago - the ability to use the internet to look up information, make plans, and book events and accommodation; mobile phone travel sim cards enabling communication almost anywhere (when they decide to work, of course); GPS making it possible to drive around the UK without referencing a map; Weebly (my web-site and blog creation website of choice - which also means that a) I have a good diary of my travels, and b) I haven't had to write a single postcard, as hopefully you have kept up along the way; international debit cards, allowing; and Skype, which has meant that I have been able to chat with Kim regularly and freely (if at times a bit disjointedly depending on the internet connection available).
I am looking forward to being home and taking on life positively; I know that I have learnt from this experience, and so look forward to whatever comes next.
Thanks for joining me on this journey; keep in touch,
Simon