1st June 2019.
On this day four years ago two best friends, fed up and ready for an adventure, boarded a plane to India. Armed with a mosquito net that we used all of twice, a Lonely Planet travel guide and a few vague ideas we set off wearing some vile walking sandals.
And what an adventure it’s been.
This year has been a funny one so far with Lyvette settling in Sydney and me currently at home waiting for another New Zealand visa. This is the furthest we’ve been apart in four years, it’s weird. Our messages to one another now consist of pictures of Facebook memories with captions such as “remember this?”, “this was where it all began” and “remember how exciting everything was back then?!” And then we chuckle as one of us reminds the other of a memory they had forgotten.
“Remember when we bought 24 litres of water to go on a one night camel safari?”
“Remember when we narrowly escaped the death penalty in Singapore?”
“Remember when we almost missed our flight because you were an annoying hungover little biatch who refused to board the plane until you had a Burger King? So naturally I had one too.”
Remember, remember, remember….
So many things to remember, that have almost been forgotten. So many things that we’ll never remember that have been forgotten.
“Remember that time you practically got held hostage while you had your leg threaded?”
“Remember that time in Vietnam we saw that bus crash and all hell broke loose and we had to scooter through it?”
“Remember that time in Thailand you were so hot we found you in the freezer in 7-Eleven?”
The memories are endless, as have been the experiences and four years on the road lends itself to a lot of weird and wonderful experiences (especially if you keep heading back to India).
“Remember that time in Amritsar when we paid to push the rickshaw driver to our hostel?”
“Remember when you were given a dead mans leg in Varansi?”
“Remember when we saw the man levitating outside our room?”
Remember, remember, remember….
“Remember when we travelled the length of Manila to find that paradise island that no one had ever heard of and then it rained aaaaall night?”
“Remember that time we spent two days near that bus station in the Philipines because we liked the food?”
“Remember when that gekho pooed on your face?”
“Remember that time we went to that beach party and there was nobody else there? Because we were on the wrong island…?”
Remember, remember, remember….
And we keep on forgetting. And we keep on remembering. And we keep on rereading our blogs and laughing out loud. And we reminisce and we miss Asia and we miss the good times we had and we miss waking up everyday wondering what unfathomable thing can possibly happen to us today. But we smile and we thank our lucky stars that four years ago today we packed our bags and set out on this adventure.
Four years ago we started a journey that changed our lives forever. Four years that cannot be undone, nor would we want them to be. Four years ago we embarked on a journey that has not yet finished. A journey that created new experiences, new relationships and new ways of seeing the world. No matter what happens next neither of us will ever regret boarding that plane to India four years ago and marking the start of something new. We’ve had highs, lows and everything in between but we wouldn’t change it for the world (except Lyvette falling down the toilet in India – we’d change that).
“Remember that time you hurdled a dinosaur?”
“Remember that time you got diagnosed with a chapati heart?”
“Remember that time you were sick on a snake?”
“Remember that time that man in Malaysia pulled a chicken out of his bag and snapped its neck?”
Remember, remember, remember….
Four years ago we started a journey that changed our lives forever. Every tear, every smile and every thought – good and bad has been part of that journey and shaped the course of our lives forever. Every tear, smile and thought has added to the laughter and fond memories we now have.
And there’s one memory, the most prominent of them all. The one that we never forget. Ever. The one that, two weeks into our travels, set the tone for our adventures, the one that will haunt us for life whilst simultaneously providing us with the biggest laughs of all…
Because how could we ever forget those £1.50 Indian haircuts?
Because how could we ever forget those £1.50 Indian haircuts? Especially when you walk away looking like Wayne and Garth from Wayne’s World.
1st June 2019.
This marks four years of travelling for the Two Small Mancunians. On this day four years ago we were two best friends, fed up and ready for an adventure. Four years ago we made one of the best decisions of our lives.
Four years ago we embarked on an adventure that has not yet finished….
