It’s no secret that my twenties were kind of hectic. Pretty much on a whim (and because I liked the ring it had to it) I set myself the challenge of visiting and blogging 40 countries before my 30th birthday.
I was 26 when I came up with the idea of naming my blog 40before30 and was over half way towards my goal at the time. I worked in international events so it wasn’t so much of a stretch and I tucked into my new challenge with gusto.
But what I never revealed at that time was my how my travelling to all those countries was about more than just adding another number to a list. I was searching for something. Sometimes the search was for the ‘perfect man’, other times a ‘dream career’. Often I would travel to a new country and just repeatedly ask myself ‘Can I live here?’
I certainly wasn’t unhappy with my lot in London. Looking back I realise I was incredibly lucky to have found such amazing jobs. My work as an international events manager led to incredible experiences including briefing the president of Estonia on when to begin his opening speech, and my job at Flight Centre as Content and Community Manager taught me so much that is integral to my work as a blogger and freelance social media consultant now. In the end, even the right man turned out to be right under my nose, on Twitter no less.
But of course at the time I didn’t know where all this was going. So I kept travelling, at every and all possibility. Sometimes hurried, often frenzied.
My thirties have been a little different. Last December I took the big step into my 3rd decade and decided to slow down. I made a vow to travel less in 2015 and have stuck to it. I’m very content with my base here in Sydney and work has been (thankfully) steadily forthcoming and a lot of fun. I’ve only taken trips that I really, really want to do – not just because there was a window of opportunity I threw myself through head first – and I’ve travelled slower, more thoughtfully, particularly around Australia.
I’ve taken long road trips and marvelled at different landscapes, loved the randomness of lonely wayside inns and the unusual yet charming people you meet there. I’ve sought out people (either online or in location) who know the places I visit better than me – asking for their perspective on their country and what they think I should see outside of my personal wish list. I’ve travelled more with Justin (that man I met on Twitter) because I’ve found that sharing travel experiences makes them twice as special and the memories last much longer. I’ve also prioritised travelling home whenever I can, to spend time with friends and family and be content doing nothing but soaking up their company.
I share these thoughts today because the team at G Adventures want to help you take your next big step towards an extraordinary life. Entering a new decade or searching for a new career can be challenging so G Adventures will be sending 3 lucky winners on life-changing travel adventures. All you need to do is tell them why you’re ready to take the #NextStep.
Update: The G Adventures ‘Make Your #NextStep Count’ competition has now closed but you still have a chance to take the next step and choose to travel with a purpose. For more information click here.
I’d also love to know if the way you travel has changed as you’ve grown older? Have work or relationships effected your decisions? Let me know in the comments below.
*This post was produced in conjunction with G Adventures. Contest is open to residents of Australian and New Zealand. Hurry, entries close 6th December 2015 (also my 31st birthday!)
Sounds like you’ve had a good year of travel despite slowing down!
Definitely! Less places but in more depth has worked well for me. Plus I’m so lucky to be based in Oz which has a wealth of awesome sights! Come to think of it it’s probably cheating to class it as 1 country when it’s the size of a continent.. 🙂
I’ll be in my thirties in about 3 years. My goal is to speed up my travel a bit leading up to my 30th birthday, work abroad for a while and then slow down at about 33.
I like that plan a lot! It’s pretty much what I ended up doing and I really appreciated all the different stages.
Thanks for posting this, really insightful. I’ve been through my fair share of both frenzied and slow travel and can definitely see the merits of taking it on more calmly, and in a way, more confidently. I want to hit 30 countries by the end of next year, so 5 to go!
Good luck! That sounds like a nice fun but reasonable challenge. Enjoy choosing & exploring the destinations 🙂
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve gradually spent more money on travelling, especially on accommodation. However, since I’ve stopped working earlier in the year, I’m trying to go back to spending less, which is kind of hard when my husband isn’t too keen and never truly did backpacking when he was younger like me! I have so many places I want to go to. I’m now 34 and feel like I’ve travelled a lot, but on paper it only adds up to 23 countries – though I’ve never been one to rush through countries and I have travelled extensively in Australia, unlike many fellow Australians.
I think we are very lucky in Europe that it takes little time and less money to visit places that have a different culture, cuisine and language than our own. That being said, Australia is an incredibly vast and varied place and it’s fantastic you’ve had the chance to see a lot of it. I think each Aussie state should count as a new country – I’m sure your number will be a lot higher then 🙂
I think I’ve definitely slowed down when traveling now that I have just started my 30s. My friends and I would tackle so much in a few days before moving onto another city and now I like to take my time and just see one city to absorb it all. Also as my friends’ lives get busier with work, marriage, and kids, I find myself going on solo trips or group travel more often because it’s not as easy to coordinate a trip with friends.
I’m exactly the same! It must be an age thing 🙂