By telling us your country of residence we are able to provide you with the most relevant travel insurance information.
Please note that not all content is translated or available to residents of all countries. Contact us for full details.
Shares
Booking a plane ticket was all that felt right. Navigating life felt unfamiliar. I was learning to live with uncertainty, surrounded by other people’s grief which was blocking my own. I didn’t know how it would work, I’d always had a connection to the land, but this time I knew she wouldn’t be there when I got home. There’s a sense of euphoria in thinking a trip will change your life. You’ll fall in love, maybe never come home and live the quiet life on a farm with cattle dogs and sheep. That thought crossed my mind many times as I crossed the South Island of New Zealand. What would life be like if I did live on the road? The impact wouldn’t be as strong , thats what I do know! Travelling makes us believe in uncertainty and challenge what everyday life means. Whether it be bungee jumping or trying my first oyster, that feeling is something I’m not willing to give up for a lifestyle. The road trip almost felt like a rite of passage, one i’d like to continue into new decades. Stopping at camp sites and bakeries. Eating scallop pies and turning into a critique who appears to rate them all a 10/10. It was peaceful up the coast, around every corner was another emerald lake that would have you chanting WOW on repeat. There was a stillness in it all. Some tears nearly fell for what nature is capable of with its vast landscapes. Some days I swam in the sea, others involved hiking volcanoes and getting drenched with rain on a boat at Milford Sound. I would’ve loved to text her about it all. The glaciers she’d visited three years earlier or the heart attack I nearly had 1 tenth of the way up Roy’s Peak. It was frosty at the top and believe it or not starting a hike at 3am doesn’t mean you’ll have the mountain to yourself, but it does mean breakfast is on the menu when you get back to town. There was something cool about watching the sun rise from the top of a mountain. I sat on a big rock and watched the sky change from pink to blue. I didn’t feel the need to be stuck on my phone, a place I selfishly wanted for myself. The mountains most definitely have souls. They make everyone a hiker , partly thanks to the Instagram aesthetic, but mainly for the reward you get when you hit the top. I found my ability to grieve and still enjoy life on a holiday, where I was often alone. A guilt I never wanted to acknowledge without admitting my sister was gone. Loneliness is not being alone but missing the person who would’ve loved the view.