Temporary Forever Friends

I have had a little hiatus from blog posts as of late.  I have no inspiration… I am bored of Asia and ready to move on to explore an entirely different part of the world.  Unfortunately, for the first time on our journey, we are tied to a timetable that will keep us in Vietnam ‘til October.  Don’t get me wrong- Vietnam is lovely but just- Same Same But Different- compared to some of the other stops we have been on, and I hope the situation will change with the coming weeks.  I guess at the end of the day, it is all a state of mind and not only that, it’s about friends.  Just the other night, as I sat at a bar with some new found friends, I realized just how lucky I was and on top of that, I wished that I would have documented our chance meetings a little better along the way.  I felt almost emotional- hmmmm, it could have been the cocktails- but really, that is one thing that makes travelling interesting and exciting.  It is about the people you meet, their ideas and their inspirations.  We have met many like minded people on our trip- some for just moments and others we have spent days, weeks or even months with.  They are the people you can talk to about life, share travel stories and shared destinations and in the end, often learn a different idea or view on life.  For the moment, they become a comfort, a way to re-centre and come back to reality and when you are on a long journey, reality tends to get away from you.  Whether they offer a reminder as to how lucky we are to be on an extended trip or just offer a good night of drinking and dancing, a temporary friendship is like nothing I have experienced at home.  The relationships you build on the road are short lived and I think for that very reason they are more intense.  There is something to be said about having a forever friend for only hours, there are no lines that are tiptoed around, there is no courtship- it just is what it is, you just are who you are, and it’s nice.  It is so nice, that often the goodbye is just too hard to handle.  Dan and I have gotten good at delaying the tearful goodbyes by simply avoiding them all together.  A simple see you later will suffice.  Like I mentioned, I have not documented many of the great people and the times we have had with them as much as I would have liked but there are a few that have made it into our photo album along the way.

Obviously, after spending so much time in Khanna, our friends became more like family.  I hope that one day Dan and I can show them the same hospiality they showed us, in our own home back in Canada.  One day it will become reality.

Awe- Khajil was my favourite.  She and I had a certain connection even though we hardly spoke each others languages.  She is such a beautiful, bright girl. 

 

This is a lovely picture of all the family we stayed with during our tour through the Punjab.

 

A nice little trip through Amritsar with the ladies – we miss you!

 

Ah Monty and Sonu… good times, thanks for showing us around Delhi.

 

Ha Ha Monu… you will never live this down.  Oh Shit God, Shit God, Shit!… Ha Ha.

 

Johnny and Rizwan- you two made our trip to Udipur all that more memorable.  "Chai, Chillum, Chapati!"

 

Some whiskey with some friends during the colour festival always makes for good times.

 

Hey!! Our first fellow Canadians.  Because of you guys our stop in  Macleod Ganj was the longest to date.

Yum.  Great iced tea- thanks for the bracelets and the friendship.

Hey Lilli!!  Why do I only have three pictures of you?  Miss having you around :(

 

Oh my..this was an interesting evening.  There is nothing like a small dance party on our first night in Saigon.  Strange, just strange.  Thanks for the  warm welcome, staff at the New Pearl.

 

Oh ladies, Audrey & Arianne, You two made our trip through the Cu Chi tunnels, well, absolutely

hilarious. Thank you for teaching us so much about life in the Phillipines, and for a fun day. It was great to meet you!

While our friendships on the road have been unique, special, and oh-so memorable, more than anything it makes us miss our dear friends back home. You guys and girls are what 'Home' really is, and we wish more than anything that you could be on this adventure with us. My life-long best friend, Jessica, is at home busy with her new awesome business, and you can check out her website here. http://www.living-simply.ca/ So unique, and incredibly special, definitely check it out!