2020 Travel Round Up From The Happy Days Travels

I’m going to start this post with a big fat LOL! Because 2020 was not the year for travel, or anything for that matter. Well except for new words for the dictionary (furlough and social distancing), banana bread lovers, owners of hand sanitisers and Amazon.

I just read my 2019 Travel Round Up and I was a different woman writing that; a woman full of hope for the future and excited for my travel life in a world pre-Covid. I wrote in that article ‘not sure where else I will travel next year but here’s to hoping it’s lots’. Lots? Try none, zero, sweet eff all.

I’m going to try and write my 2020 travel round up of so little travel with some other things I did though.

January

Contents (jump to)

It was all going so well Pam. We went on a smashing holiday to New Zealand for a week to visit family (a holiday within a holiday the chefs at my work called it). 😉

We flew from Melbourne to Christchurch and then boarded the smallest plane I’ve ever seen in my life for about 40 minutes to Nelson. Stayed with family in Nelson half the week and then over the hill to Takaka for the rest of the time. We visited markets, had barbecues, trekked to waterfalls, swam in rivers and streams and had a cracking time.

Takaka River sign with river in back New Zealand

New Zealand Blog Posts:

February – March

After the holiday in New Zealand we returned back to our home in Melbourne and spent the time with friends and exploring Melbourne while working and saving for our big Australian road trip we were going to experience.

I had to finish my job at the end of February because my 6 month limit was up. I had the best send off from all my lush Bluetrain crew including tequila, karaoke and Ramen! The very next day, extremely hungover, my sister and her boyfriend surprised me by turning up in Melbourne for a week! It was lush to see them after 9 months and we had a blast around Melbourne before going on our epic 2 day trip down the Great Ocean Road.

After an emotional goodbye, they were off to Thailand for 2 weeks (lush!) and I was off to find a new job in the city. I found two jobs but the first was dire because of this virus that was making venues cancel events and people cancel bookings… The other job I did about 5 shifts before the same happened. Before I knew it, everywhere was shutting down and the fear set in all of us (and the pressure to go home). ScoMo actually said ‘backpackers it’s time to go home’.

Hindsight is a funny thing. If I knew then what I knew now I would have got a working holiday visa for New Zealand in January and stayed there. Because New Zealand has smashed this virus! Like I said, hindsight is a funny ol’ thing.

Flinders St Station Iconic Melbourne Landmark

Melbourne Blog Posts

Australia Blog Posts

April – August

Home. I had to leave my travel life and go home. It sucked. It still sucks. I am NOT happy about the situation at all. I wish I could have found a way to stay in Australia. (If I’d have stayed I would’ve been home by August but the fear and panic was ridiculous in March).

So between April and June we were in total lockdown in the UK and I was back home in Wales.

During the summer though, I did manage to go on a few days out, did seafood Sundays with my bestie, stayed local to Barry and Cardiff as well as some weekend trips in Cotswolds, Pembroke, Manorbier, Narberth, Bath and Bristol.

Neyland The Alumchine main meal of Fettuccini Al Cartoccio — Neyland

My UK Blog Posts This Year

August – December

Not much happened after the summer in terms of physical travel except for one last weekend in West Wales in my friend’s caravan in September. Other than that, I stayed at home and armchair travelled, dreaming of a better year for travel in 2021.

They’ve been boomeranging the rules in the UK since March. Back and for, in lockdown, out of lockdown, stay home but eat out to help out, work from home but critical to work in an office if your boss says so, wear a mask, but they don’t fully work, stay 2 metres from others, don’t mix households, form a bubble, burst that bubble, clap the NHS (but we aren’t funding them, clapping is enough), get a test, don’t get a test without symptoms, only isolate if you have symptoms, isolate if you’ve been around others who have tested positive, if they have tested positive but you test negative, still isolate. Do as we say, not as we do.

My best friend's chocolate Labrador on a walk in park

Ice cream at The Knap Barry with my best friend

Other 2020 Musings

Since we couldn’t leave our houses, I embraced the time we probably wouldn’t have again:

I have seen my dear family and friends (including new baby cwtches and my bestie’s 30th)
I read more than I ever have in a year (pending 43 books in total)
I watched umpteen travel tv shows and films
I cooked almost every day of 2020
I started walking October 2nd and have walked at least 5,000 steps every day since
I have been learning Spanish
I’ve laid out my ideas for writing books
I enjoyed writing my blog irregardless of not travelling
I found some great podcasts including my new favourite: The Travel Diaries
I began my skincare regime (prevention is better than cure)
I kicked a very bad habit to the kerb
I educated myself about the world, countries and travel as always
I appreciated local travel

Personal Thoughts on 2020

As well as being stripped from living my travel dreams in Australia, quite a fair few of other awful, horrific and deeply sad things happened in 2020. Mainly it was death. Unfair and cruel deaths. I think we are all closing the door on this year and raising a glass to a better one.

Hopes For 2021

I’m not rushing into 2021 with all the plans from the Lonely Planets books I’ve been reading but I wish, I hope, I dream that travel will resume with restrictions as necessary but that I’ll be able to travel again. I pray my family and friends remain healthy. I hope we all get through another year. We will.

Here are my top spots to visit after lockdown.

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2020 Travel Round Up