There we go, another twelve months done and dusted. In the spirit of the media at this time of year, as this one winds to a warm and muggy close, I've been doing some totting up:
- 8 working trips (when are they not, any more?)
- 7 international (Australia 4 times, Cook Islands, Mauritius/Reunion, USA)
- 1 domestic (West Coast)
- 26 flights (plus 1 in a hot-air balloon)
- 83700 kilometres flown
- 22 airline meals eaten (best: Air Mauritius business class; worst: Air New Zealand economy - sorry, Air NZ, but that shepherd's pie? Disgusting)
- 1 aeroplane walked on (747 at Longreach)
- 6 train trips (TranzAlpine Christchurch-Greymouth, Spirit of the Outback Rockhampton-Longreach, Westlander Charleville-Brisbane, Amtrak Vancouver-Seattle)
- 67 nights spent away from home
- 52 different hotel beds slept in (most comfortable: Te Waonui Forest Retreat at Franz Josef - loved that goosedown mattress!)
- 10 3B1 notebooks filled (1 mislaid, sob) (UPDATE: Found!)
- 51 stories published in 13 publications with a further 14 sold
- 6 exotic creatures cuddled (panda, koala, kangaroo, python, baby croc, lizard)
- 1 horse ride (not enough!), 3 snorkelling sessions, 1 bike ride, 2 kayaks
- 4 times underground in caves and mines, 3 towers climbed
- 11 museums visited, 3 rum distilleries, 2 sugar refineries, 1 model ship workshop, 1 salt pan
- 6408 photos taken
- 1 time caught with a flat battery
- 38 rages over exorbitant internet charges (best: Mauritius and USA; worst: Australia)
- 213 times unzipped the wrong pocket in my backpack
- and too many friendly and interesting people met to put a number to.
So, a good year for me and lots of reasons to look forward to the dawn of the next. Yay!
2 comments:
Very impressive - especially the 51 stories - you're a machine Pam! Well done...My own totals are 13 countries - Thailand, Laos, Canada, UK, Czech Rep, Serbia, Turkey, Spain, Vanuatu, Samoa, Fiji, Cook Islands and Australia - 20 weeks on the road and one new Christmas present to self I absolutely love - my new iPod Touch - going to be very handy - hope you had a good Xmas and good luck for 2011 - I have about 10 stories already scheduled - off to Burma and Yunnan with Carol in Feb and then I'm staying on in Hanoi for LP - Brett
Wow, not so dusty yourself, Brett! 20 weeks on the road makes you a serious traveller. But still having fun too, I'm sure. All the best for 2011.
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