It’s now the latter half of 2021, we’ve been through nearly two years of a global pandemic that has changed the world, and changed how we live our lives – possibly forever. Prior the pandemic, I was travelling roughly half the year. Business travel took me to all corners of the world – I woke up in different cities/countries on a weekly, sometimes daily basis. I lived in airport lounges, and could unload my carry-on luggage into an airport security tray so quickly and efficiently, I would get a Gold medal if this was an Olympic sport. Lima, Sao Paulo, Santiago, Vancouver, Singapore, Jakarta, Manila, Vietnam, Tokyo – that’s what a typical month and a half would look like at times. It was a lifestyle that the nomad inside of me savored like a meal at a Michellin-starred restaurant. I relished all the different experiences, seeing different cultures, peoples and ways of life. I even relished the chaos, uncertainty and clash of cultures that also came part-in-parcel with international travel.
After 53 countries and many years of this lifestyle, there was a part of me that started to wonder – is this it? I was terminally single. It’s impossible to build a meaningful relationship when you are constantly jetting-off to the far corners of the world every week for half the year – and I basically worked in a field that was full of other equally-single women (probably single for the same reason). I didn’t even bother putting away my suitcase for half the year. It just sat in my living room ready for my travel season routine of coming home, dumping everything in the suitcase into the washer/dryer and then dumping the cleaned items back into the suitcase for the next trip. Home was a layover those days.
In March 2020, everything changed. My travel schedule went from logging over 100,000 flight miles annually to zero. Regional lockdowns meant I couldn’t even travel to a different province in my own country. Airports, luggage carousels, the sensation of waking up and not being entirely sure which country I was in (It happens! And it feels like you’ve woken up in a Jason Bourne movie when it does), became a fuzzy, distant memory. Trips to the grocery store became the most exciting part of my week, and for a brief period of time, I (like many others) languished in grief over what was lost. After allowing myself to wallow for a few weeks over a situation none of us really had much control over; I woke up to the fact that I had the privilege of living in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Sure, the coronavirus pandemic has taken away one of my greatest outlets of adventure – travel; but Vancouver’s a pretty amazing place to be “trapped” in during a lockdown. Surrounded by the ocean and mountains, Vancouver also has mildest climate in Canada. I live in a veritable wonderland for outdoor activities; and with the outdoors being one of the safer places for activities that limit coronavirus transmission I went on a mission to set myself up take on as many local outdoor adventures as possible.
By Spring, I had bought myself an inflatable stand-up paddleboard AND an inflatable kayak – why I didn’t do local watersports earlier – when I lived in a city surrounded by water – is still a mystery to me. But better late than never! On nice days, I would take the SUP out on the calm, waveless waters of False Creek; and by the Summer of 2020 I was beach-hopping by paddleboard, and going on 20KM paddle extravaganzas.
I even ventured into the strange new world of online dating during the touchless COVID-era… how was this supposed to work, anyway?? Turns out, not as badly as I expected. Video dating means you can pre-screen a lot of candidates from the comfort of your couch without even having to change out of your sweatpants (or black Lululemon leggings if you’re a true Vancouverite). Dating by video also negates the need to have an escape plan in case it ends up being a bad date. Getting out of a bad Zoom date is as easy as stating that your phone is dying and that was it. Pretty convenient! I mean, the possibility of inadvertently killing each other if we ever met in real life due to a deadly virus that has caused a global pandemic part, notwithstanding. The COVID-era meant I had to get to know someone before I gauged that they were actually worth taking the formidable risk of meeting in real life. Meeting in real life became the COVID-version of finding someone who was “sponge-worthy” (for anyone who gets the Seinfeld reference).
By the beginning of 2021, I started to get to know a local man – originally from Germany – who piqued my interest for being emotionally open, empathetic, intelligent, AND hilarious. He used phrases like “This is perfectly cromulent” (Homer Simpson reference) with a deadpan German accent. Why wouldn’t I want to know more?? After video-screening this man, we met up for a bicycling date outdoors. He brought wine to the beach. His name is Jens, and we’ve been together ever since!
During a number of global crises in the past and present, global leaders/commentators have mentioned that “[t]he Chinese word for ‘crisis’ is ‘danger’ and ‘opportunity’”. While I certainly didn’t see it at first, the pandemic did hold an upside for me. It slowed my life down enough to take on new sports and local activities, that I never thought to take up when life was going at 100/mph. My life even slowed down enough to find love!
What about travel? Will my inner globe-trotter ever get a chance to stretch her legs again? Well, as luck would have it, I have a one-year deferred salary leave coming up in January 2022! After nearly two years not being able to visit outside of Canada I have a pretty epic round-the-world trip in mind. I’ll be documenting my global adventures on this blog. I’m hoping to offer a different take on travel, and tips for travel for those of us who aren’t 20 years old and fresh out of college anymore. I’ll also use this blog to document local trips in the Vancouver and British Columbia area – that can hopefully inspire others to fit in some smaller adventures – even while living a busy 9-to-5 life.
