Hi everyone, here I am again. It’s been a while, right? As you can tell from the title, I have a good reason to be back. I’m currently on a plane to… Guatemala! Yes, time for another trip. This news may come as a complete surprise to some, but it’s been on the cards for a while. Actually, from the moment I decided to come home from my previous trip, I already knew that I wanted to go on another trip.
And that’s Guatemala. Or well, that’s where I’m starting my trip. Why Guatemala? Well, I’ve already been to the USA and Mexico, and Guatemala is located below that. In Central America. It won’t be a camper trip this time, because I left with my backpack. My ‘plan’, if you can call it that, is to slowly head towards South America from there. Or, if I’m completely honest, I can really end up anywhere in the world. So most likely towards South America. But if I feel like going to, say, Japan or South Africa, then I’ll go there. I have that freedom, so I’m going to use it. The same goes for how long I’m going away, because I don’t have a strict plan for that either. I don’t think I’ll be away for more than a year, but never say never. And at the same time, I can be home again after 2 months, if I get tired of it. That takes a lot of pressure off me, I have to say, because I’m free to go and stand wherever I want. Real freedom 😊
Do I really have no plans at all? Well, a few half plans. In Guatemala I would like to take a Spanish course. After all, it’s by far the most spoken language on the entire continent, so I think you better understand and speak it. And I think it would be fun to do several hikes, both in Guatemala and abroad. I’ve already seen such beautiful natural landscapes all over the world, and I think it would be really cool to add some more! There is also a chance that I will visit some friends, or that they will come visit me during the trip. That would be nice too. I might also want to stay in one place for a longer period of time so that I don’t have to move around all the time, and really make a place my own. A beautiful island or a big city would be nice. And oh yeah, visiting as many football matches as possible also seems really cool to me. Still a bit different than Stadion Galgenwaard (stadium of FC Utrecht) I think 😉
Is it that easy to keep leaving the Netherlands? No, it certainly isn’t. I understand that it may seem that way from the outside, but unfortunately it isn’t. Or fortunately not, I should actually say, because that means that I am doing well in the Netherlands. And I have realized that again in the past 8 months. It was really nice to have everyone so accessible, that really felt like a luxury. It was nice that I had all my good friends within a few minutes. During the week, having a nice meal with Carlo & Daphne or being able to stand on the sidelines of the Hercules of my good acquaintance Younes. But also playing football again, man, I missed that. And big news: I even scored a goal. And no, not during training, but in a match 😉. Yes, it was really nice to have so many familiar people around me again, I even enjoyed going to the office (I have to write this down because I’m going to send my colleagues the link to my blog).
But you understand that it feels double to leave again. On the one hand, I don’t lack anything in the Netherlands and on the other hand, the urge to see more of the world remains. The calculation keeps coming up in recent years: I am still healthy + I have no responsibilities in the Netherlands + my parents & friends are still healthy = I have to travel now. In a few years my life could suddenly look completely different, and then I would regret not going. Anyway, what I really want to say: I will miss you and I am already looking forward to seeing everyone again!
For now I will leave it at that. The journey can go in all directions and it is nice that you follow that via these travel updates. A big hug & I will keep you informed. Adios!