I wrote the following back in October 2022 when I was less than a month out from leaving Europe.
At the time I was in Ioannina, Greece and if my photo gallery is reminding me correctly I was sitting on the edge of the lake in the afternoon sun, enjoying my book and reflecting on the journey of the 8 months that had been and gone.
26th October 2022
The idea for this post came sometime around the end of September at the end of my second month at the summer camps in Romania.
But it feels suitably appropriate that I write it now as I count down the final days of my adventure through Eastern Europe.
It has gone just past 8 months since I left New Zealand and by the time I fly out of Athens I will be 6 days short of 9 months.
An epic Journey through 7 countries over 35 cities; countless museums, ancient cites, views, activities, and restaurants. And yet what remains one of the most interesting, exciting, and
bittersweet parts;
The many, many incredible people that I have met.
Some for a day,
Some for a week,
and Some for even longer.
Some I would meet in one city only to find them again days or weeks later in another.
Its a difficult thing travelling alone. The freedom of choice is wonderful but those times you find yourself without company to share a moment can be hard.
It’s not unfamiliar territory, even at home one can find this but
thousands miles away with only the small comforts you could bring do worsen it.
But then you step out and you find fellow travelers or kind
locals and those feelings are washed away.
New adventures occur that wouldn’t happen otherwise;
- Impromptu Overnight Bus trips
- ATV rides through mountains
- Car rides to old monasteries
- A Tattoo you never thought you’d get
And all of these become some of the fondest memories because you got to share them with new friends.
That’s another great thing about meeting people while travelling. You can go from strangers to friends in a matter of minutes.
Sometimes you ‘Quiz’ each other
What’s your name?
Where are you from?
Where have you been travelling?
Where are you going?
What do you do ?
and you find something in there to connect to.
Taverna Tradicionale KARDHASHI – Great food, Great People
Other times you’ll be at the end of a great meal and think this persons pretty neat, then you realise you spent an hour talking with
them and don’t even know their name.
Or less commonly you happen to carry bird and meet people
who have already heard of you and are thrilled to meet you.
In many ways it’s the same rituals most of us follow at home you
simply have to do it faster.
And that brings us to the bittersweet part.
For all the speed with which you meet, the speed with which you leave is near the same.
Sometimes you get lucky and you stay a while but more often than not Goodbye is only days away.
You’ll find it doesn’t matter how long you’ve know them. A
short time can be just as hard as a long time. You may even
find the shortest can be the hardest, whether you admit it or
not.
But it happens, we all have our plans, our dreams and we’re all
here trying to follow them.
Now at least, these Goodbyes don’t have to be forever.
Staying connected is easy and now you have new friends in
more places and chances to meet elsewhere in the future.
It doesn’t make the Goodbye any easier but its a nice thought.
Perhaps its better to think of it as a See Ya Later; maybe you will,
maybe you wont, but you did have a brief time together and your adventure was all the better for it.
I’m leaving Europe soon but I hope for many of the people I met it’s only a See Ya Later and not a Goodbye.
See Ya Later,
Cohen
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