45th parallel south

I have been lazy with this blog. I knew it would happen. Blame it on the shoddy Internets in Vietnam and Thailand, or the lack of electrical power in our campervan in New Zealand. Blame the crumbling temples of Angkor Wat, the floating villages of Ha Long Bay or the gushing glaciers above the Tasman Sea that have otherwise distracted me. But here it is, one last whack at the ‘ol word press before our re-entry in just a few days. Gulp.

I won’t recap the past 2 1/2 months since my last post. Perhaps you’ve seen the pretty pictures on Jackie’s Instagramaphone. If not, I’ll tell you about it over beers sometime soon, I hope.

But I do want to say, as I sit on this cool morning overlooking the mirror-still Lake Hayes with preternatural mountains rising off the rim…I do want to say how grateful I am. I’m grateful for my little speck of a life, for this brief window of time on this wide and varied planet. I’m grateful that I’ve had the chance to take a beat from the mad dash to see a fair slice of it. Earth is truly a garden, here to experience with all our senses in wonder and awe. And it is far more accessible than I ever thought possible. If you want some tips on how to do it, I’m happy to share, just as many fellow travelers have shared with me.

I am grateful to friends and family back home who encouraged our lunatic voyage, as well as those we traveled with along the way. Our hosts from India to Lake Forest to France to Brooklyn get a gold star, as do our San Francisco kin who housed our dogger. Our home is always open to you all.

Most of all, I’m grateful to Judah, Oliver, and Jackie for being my shipmates. It hasn’t always been easy. There have been tears of homesickness, throes of dysentery and bare-knuckled fights in the campervan. But the sweetest part of our 7 1/2 months tramping the globe was this meandering, golden moment together. Thank you guys for making this journey the experience of my life.

We did it!

Love eternally,

Dave