2010 is a nice round number for a couple of reasons. It’s the start of a new decade, and for both Shirls and me it is also the year of our fortieth birthdays, a sort of half time in the game of life if you will (if we manage to live that long). So we decided that now was as good a time as any to go and experience a bit of the world before the second half kicks off (ok, that’s the end of the football references). Along the way our plans changed. After only two days in Bangalore we knew that for several reasons the experience was going to be generally a negative one if we hung around. But never mind, the sights of Rajasthan beckoned; the forts and cities, the Taj Mahal. And then on to Italy, France, England and South Africa, each place with its own unique memories.
And finally, inevitably, back home to New Zealand. It has definitely not been the most intrepid or arduous of trips; we have scaled plenty of low hills and ancient towers, but no mountains. Neither has it been ground-breaking or unique. The travel section at the bookshop heaves with quaint accounts of life in Tuscany, Provence, even England. So why did we write a blog?
Bruce: “Because Shirls blackmailed me into it.”
Shirls: “Because in years to come it would be lovely for us to look back and remember our trip, and also for our friends and family to keep in touch with us while we are away.”
So there you have it. Three months, fourteen flights, twelve trains, two rental cars and too many busses, rickshaws, tubes and taxis to count. It’s good to be home, but I have a feeling that this won’t be the last of the Two Trickers’ Travels. Maybe a 4WD overland from Tanzania to Namibia for our fiftieth. Anybody care to join us?
