Saturday 28 February 2015

Wild by Cheryl Strayed

The final book in my Goodreads 2014 challenge of 12 in 12 months! Coming in two months late, but never mind...

I absolutely loved loved loved reading this story and couldn't put it down! I haven't yet seen the film, but as with Julia Roberts in Eat Pray Love, I think Reese Witherspoon is the perfect actress to play this part.

As I've also been planning and dreaming and scheming for the last couple of years to do something big travel-wise, it seemed appropriate to be reading how Cheryl prepared herself for the Pacific Crest Trail - or didn't - as in the case of the giant backpack and too-small boots. But who cares! That's all part of the fun and challenge of doing something amazing, and it makes for humourous reflection when you recount the tales from your travels. If you can laugh at yourself, good on you!

I enjoyed this story so much because I connected with the author and understood why she was trekking the PCT, not just to escape, but that deeper spiritual meaning. If you love travelling and you do it for yourself to "get out of the box" as I do, often it's therapeutic at the time, yet I don't fully understand how it's helped me until much, much later.

"It was all unknown to me then, as I sat on that white bench on the day I finished my hike. Everything except the fact that I didn't have to know. That it was enough to trust that what I'd done was true. To understand its meaning without yet being able to say precisely what it was..." (Page 311)

There are some great quotes in the book and one of my favourites is this:

" Tell me, what is it you plan to do
With your one wild and precious life? "

Mary Oliver - "The Summer Day"

Thursday 26 February 2015

Two year travelling dream

I'm coming to the end of Wild by Cheryl Strayed on my Kindle and it's seriously whet my appetite for some long overdue travelling adventures, so... after two years of dreaming and scheming, today I've finally booked the Central Americas trip I've had my eye on, and the flights to go with it!

It takes in five countries in almost three weeks - Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala. I've added time in Canada either end to see my family to make it a 32 day trip in total. EXCITING!!!