On 28th August 2015, a month after my graduation from Bristol University, I flew from London to San Francisco to begin an adventure in the Americas. I’ve been on the road now for just over 16 months, as far south as the Caribbean beaches of Panama and as far north as the magical woodlands near Portland, Oregon. My route has been a seemingly senseless zig-zag, a yo-yo between the United States, Mexico and Central America. It has been directed by a desire to feast my eyes on all the finer details of Mother Nature’s wonders, and has been dictated by VISA restrictions, music festivals, friends-with-plans and plenty of hitch-hikes that keep on giving.
I move from A to B on the generosity of strangers and have covered thousands of miles with just my thumb. To date, I have been in 771 different different vehicles: cars, lorries, vans, motorbikes, tuk tuks, pick-ups, buses, coaches, a few times with the police and even a dust-bin lorry. That means 771 different conversations (some of them mimed), 771 perspectives, 771 opinions, 771 lives into which I have had, at the very least, a brief glimpse, and at most, I have truly shared and experienced.
I have learnt that the people of this planet come in so many forms and that predominately, overwhelmingly, they are good and kind. They want to share and want to learn and are so often full of surprises.
Until now, I have been sending my stories by email to friends and family at home, as well as to new faces I’ve met along the way. This year, I have decided to get my stories, musings, photos and tips for surviving on the measliest of budgets down in a blog. And of course, I’ll be keeping my hitch-hiking tally up to date! Let’s see where I am on this this big ball of green and blue when it ticks over to 1000…
771 Rides
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| Somewhere in Chiapas, Mexico |
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