With one day left to New Year‘s, it is time to revise what my life brought me in 2016.
Practically speaking, last year this time, I had a car, some savings, a job, and a girlfriend. Now I walk on foot, own a debt, am unemployed, but still have a girlfriend. Conclusion? My girlfriend is awesome.
Let‘s dig a little deeper, shall we?
January
I quit my office job as an accountant and said:
It is time for me to become a writer.
Something told me that the best way to do it is start traveling around Central and South America. So I bought my tickets from Lithuania to Costa Rica. Exciting times.
How I see it now?
I was freaking brave... and a little careless soul. Nonetheless, the best decission in my life.
February
I learned that it is scary as hell to be thrown into unknown with limited money, and zero knowledge of local language.
I genuinely thought that I am going to die on the first day in Costa Rica. That was when I realized that travelling is more than just bees and flowers. It’s more like a constant fight with the world.
How I see it now?
I will never regret it as it is the best adventure in my life. One hell of a ride it was.
March
My girlfriend joined me in this adventure. A lot of the time I don’t understand how hard it was for her to do so(I am young and silly man), but deep down I know how brave and loving she is. It makes me happy.
How I see it now?
Our relationship went through a lot. For 10 months, we have seen each other every day for 24 hours. Just imagine that. However, we are still rumbling and that is a good sign!
April
Got my first article published. I don’t have words to describe how proud of myself I was. It seemed like earnings of one dollar from a thing I love to do is much more than billions from something I hate.
http://travelicious.world/the-untouched-nature-in-costa-rica-monteverde/
How I see it now?
After reconsidering everything, I think those billions sound really nice. I could use some money. Still, I will die knowing that feeling of earning money from your passion. It is a great one, my friends.
May
I found out that earning money from writing is not that easy. Also, I had to admit that my English sucks compared to native speakers. What did I do? Kept on going and got rejected again… multiple times. What did I do? Repeated it all.
How I see it now?
We all get rejected in life and it is only up to us if we choose to work on our game to succeed next time, or just give up. I choose improving any day.
June
I just watched EURO 2016. What can I say…? I am a football fan, and you can put me in the jungle, I will still find a way to watch the game. Also, I kept writing in free time from football. My girlfriend was not super happy about entire situation. I am sorry…
How I see it now?
I don’t regret a single second, wasted on football, and am looking forward 2018 World Cup.
July
By this time we have visited Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Mexico. Also, we have seen some wonderful places like Semuck Champey, Monteverde, or Cenotes in Tulum. All those places were breathtaking and I had no doubt in my mind anymore about the beauty of nature. I wish that all the people would acknowledge that beauty.
How I see it now?
After almost a year on the road, I learned that a “Must-see” place does not exist. It just does not. Every single millimeter of nature is beautiful would it be my home in Lithuania or Machu Picchu. So never bash yourself for skipping something in your travels. Not worth it. Better appreciate what you get to see.
August
Staying in Oaxaca and watching my financial situation going deeper and deeper into the hell’s pit, I understood that if I was a country, I would probably be Greece – beautiful, positive, happy, but broke as shit.
Also, I understood that we, humans, have stupid illusions regarding what we want. Yup, no one is capable of knowing when certain things will happen, so patience is a huge virtue. I anticipated that my writing will break through faster, but it did not.
How I see it now?
I think I have learned to face the reality. It is a massive achievement and I owe it to some hard days during the travels.
September
First signs of exhaustion kicked in. We have spent 2 weeks road tripping around West Coast in the USA, sleeping in National Parks, and walking dozens of miles every day. After that extraordinary trip, I and my girlfriend traveled to Colombia completely exhausted. I will be honest, it really seemed that we should have ended all the traveling by that point, but we kept on going.
How I see it now?
Nothing in life is easy and we have to be prepared to fight. I fought through 2016 and I will keep doing it forever.
October
We have joined a film production company in Medellin as actors in a “House of Terror”. We did live shows through all October. I got to play a zombie, get make-up, and feel what it is like to be acting. Well, I would not want to do that. It is super exhausting, make-up ruins your skin, and the industry itself seems a little vague.
After live shows ended, we had to make a short movie. However, we found out that our director was a really bad person (it requires a different post), so all the actors flee before the first night of filming, which happened to be 31st of October. I really thought that somebody was going to die on that Halloween.
How I see it now?
My childhood dreams of being an actor are long gone.
November
We got robbed in Peru. It was one of the hardest blows that I and my girlfriend had to take during whole trip. We are still feeling the financial loses; we have no credit cards left to dispose; and we have this constant fear of losing our last important stuff.
However, I understood coupe valuable things. Firstly, you can only count on yourself, because others are busy caring for themselves. Secondly, banking system sucks in this modern world. Lastly, we are stronger creatures than I thought and any problem can be overcome.
How I see it now?
Completely the same(..not much time has past).
December
Found out Steemit and was focusing on my writing most of the time. I think Steemit is a great platform to be in, and I hope it will thrive in the future. I met some nice people here and I hope to keep in touch with them and meet some new in 2017 as well.
Also, I fell in love with Argentina and I am seriously thinking of staying in Buenos Aires for a year or two.
How I see it now?
Well, December is now.
Conclusion
Even though, everyone hates 2016, for me it was the best year so far. I am glad that I could experience what it is like to be a traveler. I am blessed to have my girlfriend in my life. I cannot be happier about spending so much time on writing. And I just wish that everyone would be a little more adventurous in 2017. It might be hard, but it brings unforgettable memories!
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