So, What Have I Learned?

Monday was travel day – back to London before I flew out to Africa on Thursday. It was a day that started at 9.30 am with the train to Milan, then the bus to Bergamo, the plane to London Stansted, the train to London and the underground to where I was staying. I arrived 12 hrs later, very ready for a good catch up over a cup of tea.

I had lots of time to reflect on the journey – what had I learned about myself over these past 5 weeks ...

What kind of a traveler was I? A few things jumped to mind:

• I can be cheap ... I don't like paying the full tourist price for a bottle of water and will wait and walk and get one at the 'regular' price
• Give me a map and I have a whole other level of comfort and confidence
• I love to see from the top of things – so stairs, tower, hill, whatever, I will climb to the top – it's all about getting maximum perspective
• I'm much better at asking for help – and enjoy the brief connections and conversations which that act often produces
• I budgeted this trip – and yup, have a lovel xls with many tabs, a few models and both detail and summary views ... can't take the analytical xls geek out of this traveler :-)
• I've really enjoyed the train – it's relaxing and a great way to see the countryside and smaller communities
• And finally, I'm really not a backpacker ...:-) not a 1 night here, 2 nights there kind of traveler (unless I'm in a car). I much prefer to be in one place for a few days, get the feel for it and have a chance to find the 'real' town versus a flying visit focused on the 'must see' sights. Having said this, I need to balance that and not stay in places too long either (both Siena and Florence were a day or two too long)

What have I learned about myself? The trip has been a great opportunity to see my decision making style in action – it was even starting to frustrate me! There is no doubt, I am slow to pull the trigger. Yes, I like to have all the information and understand my options – but that isn't actually where I get stuck. What prevents me from pulling the trigger, especially when I have a good gut feel for the right decision? On this trip, I noticed how much I relied on talking an issue through with someone else before making the decision. Talking things through has always been part of my thought process and I really enjoy it – but should it be necessary? Fundamentally, it comes down to seeking validation from others versus being truly confident in what I want – versus what I should do or what others might expect. Comes back again to “what others think”. And at a certain point – how much should that really matter? This is my life and I need to live it for me. I'm clearer and more conscious of this – and now let's see what I do with it!

My other realization, I am done with traveling on my own for a while ... I've done a lot of traveling on my own over the years – often because I needed the vacation and there wasn't anyone to go with – not that truthfully, I worked terribly hard to find someone ... This trip, I've traveled on my own purposely – and it's been great – but by the last week in Italy, I was definitely getting tired of my own company. And I had such a great time with my friends in Santorini – I knew what I was missing. I'm glad that Africa and India will be with other people – and I'll be curious to see how I do – I'm not worried in the least. I know it will go well.

Wow – I can't believe one trip is down – 2 more to go. I am absolutely loving it!