G'day! I'm Chris. I left my home in rural Australia back in 2007 to pursue a life less ordinary.
I specialize in ambitious travel - bucket list worthy journeys such as the Great US Road Trip, the ultimate African safari, and following the length of the Silk Road.
So you’re heading on a world adventure? You’ve got your itinerary, flights and accommodation booked, but have you thought about the vital travel insurance cover you’re going to need to protect you on your trip for medical emergencies, lost luggage, cancellation and more?
With so much choice out there it’s easy to end up paying too much for cover that you don’t need, or picking an insurer that doesn’t offer the right protection for your trip.
So, here’s some tips from Compare Insurance on how to get the best backpacker insurance for your trip:
1. Get enough cover so you’re not out of pocket later
We know you’re probably on a budget, however you shouldn’t ignore travel insurance. The worst thing you can do is under insure and have to pay big later. You might be able to afford to replace your camera if it’s stolen, or a flight that’s cancelled because of mechanical fault, but could you afford to pay $2,000 for a broken arm, let alone a $20,000 medical bill for a week in hospital? Backpacker travel insurance is a small cost to pay when considering the medical bill you could be left with!
2. Compare insurers to find a cheaper price for your destination
Depending on where you’re going, you’ll probably be able to bag yourself a bargain by shopping around. Some insurers will list different countries cheaper than others e.g. Some list New Zealand under ‘Pacific’ and others list it separately by itself, which tends to be cheaper. Compare insurance providers to save yourself a few dollars.
3. Pick a destination that’s covered by travel insurance
It’s not wise to travel to a destination that’s not covered by travel insurance such as those in political unrest or in a warzone. Check smarttraveller.gov.au for travel advice before you go.
4. Make sure your adventure activities are covered
Not all adventure activities are covered in a standard travel insurance policy. So if you’re planning on rock climbing, go-carting or perhaps going to a festival like running with the bulls in Spain, you should check that your planned activity is covered. Travel insurers such as itrek tend to cover more adventure activities. ‘Winter cover’ for sports such as skiing and snowboarding can be added to most policies.
5. Find an insurer that covers for longer trip duration
If you’re heading overseas for a year or more, get a policy that covers for longer length trips and with the flexibility to change details easily.
6. Increase your excess to keep costs down
The more excess to select to pay when you make a claim can reduce the cost of your overall insurance premium to start with, but remember you will have to pay more later if you do in fact have to claim.
7. Make sure your expensive belongings are insured
Bet you’re planning on taking your iPhone or tablet travelling, right? Have you thought about whether travel insurance will cover them if they break or are stolen? Some travel insurance policies have limits on how much they will insure single items for, which can be as low as $350. If you’re taking your laptop or SLR camera away with you it’s best to get it insured separately, or increase your single item limit within your travel insurance policy.
8. Pick a good company
We understand you’re looking for cheap backpacker insurance, but don’t buy the first policy you come across. Read customer insurance reviews to help you make an informed decision before you buy.
So there you have it, our 8 tips to help you find the best backpacker insurance around. Follow these and you’ll be sure to find yourself a corker!
A final word of advice from Smart Traveller ’If you can’t afford travel insurance, you can’t afford to travel.’
Happy backpacking jetsetters!
Compareinsurance.com.au is a leading Australian insurance comparison website where you can compare cheap backpacker insurance quotes simply and easily.
What are you waiting for? On your marks, get smart, compare!
Perhaps one of the more confusing inclusions on my bucket list of 302 Things to do Before I Die is a section ambiguously labeled as ‘Manly Things’.
What Are ‘Manly’ Things?
We live in a world where what it is to be a man is a considerably less cut and dried thing than it was in the past. Time was that the universal ideal of manliness in a western setting was a pretty standard thing. In the time before we had metrosexuals and cosplayers and emo kids and sensitive new age guys, we just had men and those who were not men.
Now, as somebody who definitely fit into the old ideals of manliness, I’m all for this broadening of the definition. I can’t imagine my very traditional 1950s grandfather would have been especially pleased with his grandson’s inability to do most practical tasks.
While I don’t adhere to conventional views of masculinity in some ways, that doesn’t mean I don’t mourn the death of the man who was actually capable of doing manly things like hunting, building things, or defending his lady friend from rogues.
For that reason, I included a number of more traditionally ‘manly’ things on my bucket list:
5. Climb a mountain and give a barbaric yawp at its peak.
7. Spend a week camping and living off the land.
45. Finish a marathon.
66. Catch, clean, and cook my own meal.
67. Build something with my own two hands.
106. Win an athletic contest.
107. ‘Work’ a wrestling match like the guys in the WWE.
108. Be in a fist fight.
117. Score the winning points in a game.
123. Learn to do a standing flip, kip-up, or handspring.
131. Have a debauched boys weekend away in a foreign country.
141. Eat only things I cook or prepare myself for one month.
142. Have a six pack or killer biceps.
146. Learn to light a fire and then cook something on it.
152. Overcome my fear of huntsman spiders by holding one (or a tarantula).
170. Yell at a tornado (from a safe distance).
206. Hike to Everest Base Camp.
213. Rough it in the Arctic or Siberia.
228 – Fire a gun. Further to that, fire an automatic weapon or throw a grenade. (Achieved in February 2013)
233 – Swim with a Great White and conquer my fear.
296 – Have a truly debauched, decadent boys’ weekend in Las Vegas.
298 – Play a game of full contact American Football.
Bucket List Focus
I’ve focused on the daydream of a debauched, Hangover inspired boys weekend in Las Vegas in the past, and this week I’ve opted to focus on a weekend of rugged manliness as I try to check off some of the above.
My very manly friend, Dave, who caught and cleaned our lunch while we were in Tea Gardens
Obviously they all can’t be done at once, but quite a few of them could be checked off by grabbing some mates, picking up a couple of tents, grabbing some essentials, and going out into the wilderness to test our mettle against that cold-hearted bitch, Mother Nature.
The “where” of it would decide what exactly was possible, but at the very least I’d be able to:
Spend a week camping and living off the land.
Catch, clean, and cook my own meal.
Learn to light a fire and then cook something on it.
If I picked locations wisely, I’d also be able to check off one (or more) of the following:
Climb a mountain and give a barbaric yawp at its peak.
Rough it in the Arctic or Siberia.
Overnight in the jungle.
Go rock climbing outside of a gym.
Although, as we learned from Christopher McCandless, roughing it in the the Arctic probably isn’t a great idea for a rookie camper…
Pretty much anywhere I go, there’s the chance to get bitten by a wild animal and survive too, but I’d rather it be something relatively placid like a koala or fawn than, say, a lion or tiger.
Although either of those would get me one step closer to checking off #221 on the list: “See a tiger, giant panda, bear, elephant, lion, giraffe, hyena, bison, blue whale, platypus, rhino, hippo, and gorilla in the wild”…
The Lure of Camping
Despite my decidedly indoorsy look and lifestyle, I’m actually quite enamored of the great outdoors. Some of my favourite memories from my trips abroad have involved just being out amidst nature; whether that be all alone in Walnut Creek Canyon, riding above the trees on the Route of the Hiawatha, or spending a day in Yosemite National Park.
Taking in the sunset atop Sentinel Dome in Yosemite National Park
Maybe it’s that I grew up in smaller towns where I became quite comfortable with the lack of traffic noise and conveniences, or maybe it’s because I find that I’m at my most inspired when the wind is blowing through the trees and I’m as far removed from ‘today’ as I possibly can be.
The more I talk about serenity and inspiration, the more I feel like it wouldn’t be a particularly rugged or manly weekend after all…
Back to Manliness!
In truth, I do think it’s lamentable that so many of my peers have been reduced to office-dwelling milk drinkers. I’m not saying we should all be brash outdoorsmen who beat our wives with clubs and have big bushy beards, but seems to me the majority of men these days would be hard pressed to survive a few days in the wild or the zombie apocalypse – myself definitely included.
Does a man piss in the woods? He certainly does!
A week in the wild ‘roughing it’ with our smartphones and high quality tents and warm sleeping bags and eskies full of food certainly isn’t likely to make us all Bear Grylls style survivalists, but it might move us a little closer to being self-sufficient human beings; and I can’t say that would be a bad thing.
Your Say
What’s your stance on camping? Do you like to rough it in the wilderness? Or are you more of a fully furnished campsite with BBQs and toilets kind of person? Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
Or do you prefer your nature in bite sized, day trip varieties?
This is a bit of an odd travel daydream for me, as I’ve actually been to New Zealand before over ten days in what has become known among my friends as ‘the break-up tour‘.
But that doesn’t stop me from seeing friends or fellow travel bloggers talking about it and feeling just a little bit jealous. My ten days in New Zealand were amazing, no doubt, but they merely whet my appetite.
If you follow me on Twitter or on Facebook, you’ll know that I’m something of a raging nerd. I’ve even set up another site (Multiple Nerdgasms) dedicated to all things geeky. I swear, I’ll actually put some work into it someday!
When my ex and I first started talking about going to New Zealand, my first request was that we pay a visit to Hobbiton near Matamata on New Zealand’s North Island. While I’m ashamed to say I never did get to go knock on Bilbo’s front door, it’s meant that I need a return trip to take it all in.
‘Edoras’ the home of the Horse Lords and much of the action from the Two Towers. Photo by A Dangerous Business.
Whether it’s the aforementioned Hobbiton, Edoras in Canterbury, the Pelennor Fields in Mackenzie County, Fangorn Forest in the Fjordland National Park, or the very Middle Earth panorama that can be seen around Queenstown – no nerd should go to New Zealand without getting a little Middle Earth on their itinerary.
Amanda over at A Dangerous Business has done a bunch of Lord of the Rings stuff if you want to learn more.
#4 – Visit Wellington
It’s somewhat crazy that I haven’t made it to New Zealand’s picturesque capital, Wellington. While I did technically stop in briefly on Christmas morning as we flew between Nelson and Rotorua, I haven’t yet had the chance to do the city justice.
New Zealand’s ‘Melbourne’, Wellington is the place to be for culture junkies, hipsters, foodies, and those who want to learn more about the Land of the Long White Cloud. Nearby Mount Victoria is also a potential Lord of the Rings tour inclusion, and for families there’s stuff like zoos and museums to occupy even on the rainiest of days.
Many people have told me of their love of Wellington, so I guess it’s time I visit and see if it’s all it’s cracked up to be.
#3 – Adventure and Adrenaline in Queenstown
Queenstown was arguably my favourite place in New Zealand: a place of such breathtaking beauty that I wouldn’t have objected if we’d just settled in the quaint mountain town for the entire ten days and soaked it all in.
From Queenstown we launched our visit to the stunning Milford Sound and also did some mildly adrenaline inducing ziplining, but I really did miss out on what is seen as New Zealand’s Adventure Capital.
Jet boating through Shotover Canyon is one of many ways to get your heart racing in Queenstown. Photo by Rob Young.
I’ve dabbled on the tamer end of the extreme activities pool by doing stuff like white water rafting and black water rafting, but I’m keen to make the step up to some truly heart-pounding stuff. Queenstown is the place to be for bungee jumping in New Zealand, but there’s also thrill inducing activities such as canyon swings, jet boating through narrow canyons, hang gliding, and para-gliding to be done as well.
#2 – Sky Dive Franz Josef
I’ve spent a day walking up and picnicking on a glacier, but that doesn’t seem nearly memorable enough. Not when you consider the fact I could jump out of a plane and soak in the startling contrast of the glacier and the semi-tropical forest right beside it.
Sky-diving is seen as a pretty exhilerating experience even over cow paddocks, so I can only imagine how mind-blowing it would be to see the awesome majesty of a glacier as I screamed my lungs out at the sheer insanity of throwing oneself out of a perfectly good plane.
#1 – Explore Fjordland National Park
Few places on this earth are quite as beautiful as the Fjordland National Park on the country’s southern island. Home to Milford Sound, the Fjordland National Park is a perfect example of New Zealand’s enviable wealth of natural beauty. Sheer cliffs, snow-capped peaks, and the vibrant green of the grass against the impossible blue of the sky… it just needs to be seen to be believed.
While I have had the pleasure of taking it all in from a boat on the Sound, I’d love to someday go back and just take it all in at a more leisurely pace.
Oh my God! It’s coming right for me!
The Park has a number of multi-day hikes for the more extreme hiker, and it’s actually on my bucket list to someday complete the Milford Track, but after two years in noisy China – I’d settle for a day out under the open sky with only my thoughts for company.
Your Say
There are just some of my reasons why I’d love to return to New Zealand someday. What are the things you’re dying to see or do in New Zealand
Planning your own trip to New Zealand? WebJet have all the information you’ll need.
Another year over and it’s time for a bit of reflection as well as looking forward to the year to come. Last year, I was proudly able to say I’d checked off five of my New Year’s Resolutions for a 50% strike rate.
Let’s take a look at my 2013 Resolutions and see how I went.
Continue to improve Aussie on the Road and launch another site.
Travel to four or more countries.
Finish a novel or game design.
Improve my physical shape.
Complete another ten bucket list items.
Get rid of my credit card debt (again).
Continue my education.
Learn to speak another language.
Get my life into some semblance of order.
Be a better friend, brother, and boyfriend.
Successes
I didn’t do as well this year as I did in 2012, with only 3.5 of my ten resolutions managing to get completed.
I enjoyed pretty rampant success with checking off bucket list items in 2013, with the below items all being achieved at some point in the year.
See a ping pong show in Thailand.
Make over $1000 for charity.
Go white water rafting.
Visit Angkor Wat
Travel somewhere by river boat.
Perform an obnoxious karaoke duet with a significant other.
Get rid of my credit card debt.
Visit the Killing Fields in Cambodia.
Hike through the Jiuzhai Valley National Park in Sichuan, China.
Fire a gun.
See the Giant Pandas in Sichuan province, China.
Make pottery while listening to Unchained Melody.
Not a bad effort at all! Almost all of these were achieved during a four week visit to Thailand and Cambodia back in January/February, so I guess it’s safe to say I rested on my laurels after that!
A very hungover Aussie on the Road with the pandas in Chengdu.
I was also proud to finally pay off my $7000 credit card debt. A lot of luck factored into this – as I picked up a paid writing gig that brought in around $11,500 over the course of the year. I used this to pay off my debts and it’s funding this month’s visit to the Philippines as well. I’d been investigating companies that help people like me get finance with bad credit, but luckily I was able to make it work without that service.
I managed to visit four countries in 2013. Cambodia and Thailand for the first time; and Australia and South Korea for return visits.
I’m going to give myself a partial pass on last one. While I wasn’t a better boyfriend (and actually ended a long term relationship mid way through the year), I do think I was a much better friend and was able to be a better brother due to one of my siblings moving to China.
Failures
I failed more than I succeeded when it came to my resolutions this year, and many of them are frustrating failings because they weren’t particularly hard to achieve.
Improving Aussie on the Road, for example, really just required me to be more regular in my posting and more dedicated to site maintenance. While this shiny new layout is proof that I’ve finally gotten my act together, I’ll see 2013 as a missed opportunity when it comes to blogging.
Case in point: I still haven’t posted about the visit to Thailand or Cambodia way back in January 2013!
Getting my life into order, losing weight, and finishing a novel or game design should have been easy to achieve too. My work week has varied between 12-20 hours at most and that should have allowed plenty of time for me to get things in order. I could blame Skyrim or Game of Thrones or World of WarCraft, but at the end of the day it was me being lazy that lead to me not checking off most of my resolutions this year.
My 2014 Resolutions
#10 – Improve Aussie on the Road and launch a new website.
I didn’t manage to achieve this last year, but my goal in 2014 is to make Aussie on the Road one of my main sources of income rather than just a passion project. The shiny new layout and the horde of recent posts are a positive start, but over the course of the next twelve months I hope to not only generate more engaging Aussie on the Road content, but also launch a newsletter and YouTube web-series.
My second website, whether it’s my Korean Tourist project, my nerdy Multiple Nerdgasms side project, or something entirely new will come later in the year once I’ve got Aussie on the Road under control.
#9 – Get into better shape.
2013 was not a good year for me healthwise. I stopped running and traded it in for an exercise bike that acted as a drying rack more often than a bike for much of the year.
In the past month I’ve renewed my dedication to riding and have invested in a home gym, so I’m hoping that will lead to a renewed focus on being a healthier and happier person.
At my healthiest, I ran three times a week and finished the City 2 Surf in under ninety minutes. So long ago!
#8 – Successfully set up a new life for myself in Thailand.
The day-dream this year is to relocate to Thailand (likely Chiang Mai) so that I can follow in the footsteps of blogging legends like Man vs Clock, Where Sidewalks End, and One Step Forward and focus on my blog full-time. Whether this simply means working harder at home or splashing out on a office space to share with Byron & His Backpacks, it also means learning to better budget.
#7 – Check off another 10 bucket list items.
This should be pretty easy. It’s the one resolution I’ve managed to check off consistently since I started sharing them. Any suggestions?
#6 – Finish Dustbowl.
My long suffering fantasy novel has been stuck at 168 pages since early 2012 despite a pleasing clamour for updates from a few dedicated draft readers. My mind has been abuzz with ideas for it lately, so it’s a matter of sitting down and just getting it out on paper.
I’m hoping that Thailand will provide a more inspiring writing environment than smelly, hazy Nanjing.
#5 – Scuba dive more often
I got my Open Water license way back in 2010, and haven’t been diving since January 2011. For shame! I fell in love with scuba diving from the very first dive, so it’s a crying shame that I haven’t done more in the years since.
Since getting my Open Water license in late 2010, I’ve only racked up five dives. This needs to be amended!
With the Philippines on the horizon and Thailand in my future, I’m hoping to not only dive more – but also to advance farther along the road towards eventually getting my Dive Master’s ticket.
#4 – Be a better uncle.
I’ve got an adorable niece and nephew back in Oz, and I’m ashamed to say I haven’t been a great uncle to them. Not that I’ve been a bad one, but they’ve both only met me a couple of times and I’ve missed a lot of their big moments already. Young Ezekiel is already talking and Ally’s just started walking!
I’ll be home in August so am looking forward to showering them with gifts and attention.
I’ve only met my adorable niece, Alchemy, once!
#3 – Visit 3+ new countries.
This is going to be a piece of cake to achieve. I’ll be visiting the Philippines in three weeks and the UK in May, so all it’ll take is a side jaunt to Laos, Burma, or Vietnam to tick this one off for me.
Of course, I don’t intend to stop at three if I can help it.
#2 – Be happier.
Boo! What a generic and non-specific resolution!
2013 was not always a happy year for me. While my battle with the black dog didn’t reach 2011 lows, it certainly was a year that was more down than up.
In 2014 I hope to be happier both in my own company and in the company of others. I’ve made steps towards that in 2013 by joining the Nanking Nation late in the year, but I’d like the happier me to have a broader circle of friends and a romantic life that compliments his life rather than defines it.
#1 – Spend more time outdoors.
Nanjing’s pollution and weather extremes haven’t exactly been conducive to spending time outdoors, but my burgeoning internet addiction and general sloth also played their part in 2013. My seemingly constant tiredness of late could well be a Vitamin D deficiency, so I’m hoping to get outdoors more often in 2014 to be a healthier and happier person.
Playing cricket in China is one of my few exercise outlets in Nanjing. Photo by Landon Veregin.
If that means learning a few new hobbies like rock climbing, kayaking, or hiking, so be it!
2013 was an interesting year for me. It was a year that saw me travel to two new countries, explore more of the one I call home, end a relationship, revisit some old favourites, and make the decision to have faith in myself and give myself permission to succeed in 2014. After spending the last two years of my life treading water and teaching ESL here in China, 2014 will see me take the leap of faith in my own writing ability as I head to South East Asia to focus solely on my blogging and on finishing my novel.
But before looking to the future, I thought I’d take a look back at the year that has been.
January – Thailand
The year got off to a positive start when Nomadic American and I rang in the New Year at Shanghai’s Boxing Cat Brewery with a hundred or so complete strangers. But after sharing a midnight kiss, we found the bottomless beer offer had expired and we’d have to endure a three hour wait for cabs in the freezing cold Shanghai streets. When we did finally get home, it was doubled on the back of a complete stranger’s motorbike as he raced through the darkened streets of the French concession!
January also means Spring Festival in China. While Nomadic American took advantage of her cushier schedule to spend three weeks in Malaysia, I joined her in Phuket to begin our joint South East Asian odyessy with visits to Koh Phi Phi, James Bond Island, Koh Phangan, and Koh Samui. These visits included battling food poisoning in Thailand and taking part in the world’s dodgiest eco adventure on Koh Phangan.
February – Thailand and Cambodia
February saw us continue our travels through Thailand with visits to Koh Tao, Bangkok, and Chiang Mai. We both fell head over heels in love with Chiang Mai. God willing, it’ll be my base of operations for 2014.
Here I am being utterly bad-ass with a pair of AK47s in Cambodia
We finished up our time in South East Asia with a week split between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. I adored Cambodia as much as, if not more than, Thailand. Its warm people and beautiful temples captured my heart at the same time its more recent history broke it.
Nomadic American and I fulfill a lifelong travel dream by visiting Angkor Wat. Stunning!
Returning to bitterly cold China after our trip was a bit of a slap in the face, but we left Thailand and Cambodia with plenty of fantastic memories.
March – Shanghai
March was a fairly quiet month. We spent St. Patrick’s Day in Shanghai and spent Easter in Nanjing’s Xuanwu Lake park with a picnic to celebrate my last day in the country before returning to Australia to renew my spirits and my visa before starting a second year in China.
April – Home!
April featured three fantastic weeks back in Australia catching up with friends and loved ones. I picked up food poisoning (from dodgy Chinese of all things) on day #1 in Sydney, spent a week on a family vacation in Queensland, and finished it all off with a week of catching up with old friends in Sydney.
My brothers and I surround my adorable niece, Alchemy, while we’re on holiday in QLD.
My 2013 farewell to Australia featured new friends and some drunken staggering between Sydney bars, wizardry at Scubar, and a shiny new iPad to replace the one Nomadic American broke while we were in Thailand.
Returning to China wasn’t without its hitches – I got stuck in Hong Kong overnight, but came home to a fantastic welcome home care package and a cooked lunch from the aforementioned American. Awww!
May – Jiuzhaigou
I timed my return to China perfectly, arriving just in time for a paid week of vacation. After much arguing and second guessing as to where we should go, Heather and I eventually boarded a late flight to Chengdu where we spent a week doing some pretty fantastic stuff that I’ve yet to write about. We played with pandas in Chengdu, visited the world’s crappiest theme park (Happy Valley Chengdu), and visited arguably China’s most beautiful spot – Jiuzhaigou.
Looking buff at Jiuzhaigou
We also drank entirely too much while befriending backpackers, leading to me spending most of our final day in the city in the fetal position. Whoops!
A very hungover Aussie on the Road with the pandas in Chengdu.
June – Money!
Travel wise, June was a bit dull for me. While Nomadic American jetted off to explore Guilin and its surrounds, I stayed at home slaving away on a new freelance gig. The perk to writing an Australian Culture curriculum? I’d get paid a sweet $11,500 Australia for the work. My credit card debt would be a thing of the past, I’d be able to pay my parents back, and I’d still have some money left over for my 2014 travel plans.
July – Goodbyes
July was a tough month. After over a year together, Nomadic American and I decided to part ways. With her visa in China up, she headed off on a multi-month tour of Asia while I remained behind in China to lick my wounds and focus on myself. It was my second experience with what I like to call ‘Expiry Dating‘ and I’ve got to say, saying goodbye to a long term travel and life partner is no easier the second time around.
Sad face.
July was the month I said goodbye to my travel companion of a year, Nomadic American. Here we are at a tea ceremony in Shanghai in October 2012.
It wasn’t all doom and gloom, though. My brother, Dominik, and his girlfriend, Bronte, moved to Nanjing to start their own ESL teaching careers!
August – The Boys’ Weekends
One blessing of my newfound singularity was that I had more time to spend with my friends. Byron (of Byron and his Backpacks) and I joined forces with another young and single co-worker to embark on a pair of wonderfully fun boys weekends in August. Not at all deterred by 40+ degree days, we paid a visit to Hangzhou and its picturesque West Lake before swinging by Qingdao for its tremendously underwhelming International Beer Festival.
Byron, Hogg, and I take Hangzhou by storm.
Alas, the universe clearly couldn’t handle our bro’ings on, as Byron soon found himself shipped out of Nanjing on assignment to butt-fuck China.
September – Return to South Korea
September saw me reunited with two old loves – Nomadic American and South Korea. Two months after our break-up, Heather and I joined forces once again for a week long assault on my former home. In eight days we managed to pack in some tourist time in Seoul, a tumultuous visit to Busan, a night at the Jinju Lantern Festival, and a return to my old stomping grounds in Gwangju.
Reunited with old friends at the Jinju Lantern Festival
The trip was not without its hiccups, but all told it was a wonderful return to a place that introduced me to travel and still holds a very important place in my heart. It was also a sobering experience with the perils of time travel; how returning to a place that holds happy memories can be immensely bittersweet.
October – Joining the Nanking Nation
Travel-wise, October was all quiet on the western front for me. The only notable moment? Joining the newly formed Nanking Nation and participating in their Halloween pub crawl.
Making new friends with the Nanking Nation. Photo by Leven Smith.
In the months since, I’ve attended both NKN events including a wonderfully boozy booze cruise to ring in the New Year. My one big gripe about my time in Nanjing has always been the lame duck social scene, so finding a group of 40-60 people to go party with once a month has been great. My social circle has expanded from a dozen or so people I work or play cricket with to 30+ people who I chat with, grab dinners with, and party with.
Good times.
November – Debt Free!
November was a quiet month save for one pretty sweet piece of news – my credit card debt was gone! I’d get to celebrate my 30th birthday by checking off a bucket list item (pay off my credit card debt) and with renewed hope for 2014.
December – Christmas and New Years with Family
December was the month of family. With my brother and his girlfriend having moved to Nanjing in July, I had company for the big three in December:
My 30th
Christmas
New Year’s
My 30th birthday featured gifts, ten pin bowling, and dinner with my family and friends. After I’d dreaded the big day for quite a while, it was a wonderfully warm and pleasant way to start the next decade of my life.
Christmas in China last year meant running away to Hainan, but this year we settled in and did our level best to turn Nanjing into something resembling home. With a lot of shopping and a little help from Fields in Shanghai, we managed to have a tremendous Christmas. More on that later though.
Dom, Bronte, Dave, Byron, and I ring in the New Year in Nanjing with the Nanking Nation. Photo by Christian Piana
And how did I finish 2013? Drunk on a boat with a sixty or so of my closest friends, of course! Nanking Nation’s NYE Booze Cruise was a fittingly fun way to wrap up what had been a very up and down year for me. It had been more up than down, but I wouldn’t be too sad to say goodbye to 2013.
But more on that later as well…
Your Say
How was your 2013? What were your highlights and lowlights?
By 
