Thanks everyone - I really do appreciate the comments. The photos, well my dad was a press photographer and so I grew up round cameras. I was a software engineer for 30 years but took voluntary redundancy a couple of years ago and now I'm sort of pre-tired and working as a photographer when I can. Not much money in that nowadays
Most these were taken on the phone. I take a little SLR but I hardly use it and don't think I'll bother in future. Takes up too much space. The writing - no idea where that comes from - just a stream of consciousness really. We've all got our own style I guess. Can't make any money out that either! I constantly remind myself of how fortunate I am doing this stuff. Life is all about compromises - I don't own much, dress like a vagrant, drive an old car, don't go out much when I'm home, and of course behind every globetrotting man there is a hard working and very understanding woman!
Next trip .. it's difficult. I've done a fair bit now and the only trip of all that I've done that I would gladly repeat town for town is my Everest trip from last year. All the others I'd do again with a little variation to add something new. I really really do like Russia though. It's 'first world' enough to provide all the required infrastructure and reasonable food, it's pretty cheap to travel long distance and it's definitely
different enough to feel properly foreign. Couple that with the insane scale of the place and it's an enticing place that I'd happily go back to. I'd feel happy to run a trip out there, just have to get some people interested. Not everyone can get 7/8 weeks off of course though. Lots of people have the money .. this trip cost me maybe £4500 ... it would cost bit more to go up to Magadan ... but a lot fewer people have the time.
We'll see.. I've been home about a month now, and I need to have something to look forward to next year.. Once you catch wunderlust it cannot be cured, it can only be treated