How is it possible that 2012 is already over?? The most amazing, happy, fun, exciting, epic year of my life comes to a close. I had eight months of traveling and seeing places I always wanted to see and meeting people I always wanted to meet. I tried to pick a small amount of photos to represent the year but it was sort of difficult to narrow them down. Here are some moments from my year around the world...
Fiji
Me and Nicole after getting off the ferry to Ovalau, unsure if we had a ride to the place we were staying for the next two nights.
Our first magical day in Fiji, which we spent with some locals who cooked us fresh fish and made kava all day long. This is Junior, he’s one of the most amazing people I’ve met. Really humble and kind and wise. He is a fisherman and wants to open his home up to travelers from all over the world one day.
Bobo! We stayed at his farm on Ovalau for a couple of days. Him and his German wife grow and catch pretty much everything they could ever possibly need on his land.
The local rugby team. These were some very happy and friendly people. Actually, Fijian people are probably the nicest people I’ve come across so far. There was no electricity in this village.
I took this after walking back from a little shop to get some beer with Nicole and Junior. This photos doesn’t do justice to the millions of stars you could see.
With more than three hundred islands that make up Fiji, five days was not nearly enough time to spend there. I am 100% confident that I will go back before too long.
New Zealand
Kayaking Milford Sound! One of my favorite sights in New Zealand. It was drizzling on and off during our tour, but still beautiful and Nicole and I had to brave taking our cameras.
Camping at Abel Tasman on St. Patrick’s Day with our Irish friend Bryan. I’m laying on a picnic table trying to keep warm while taking this photo. Fish eye lens and a slow exposure to pick up the stars/milky way :)
Glacier hike! Franz Josef Glacier on the south island. We had to wear crampons and navigate around some icy conditions. One of the more expensive excursions we went on, but that’s New Zealand for you, and it was worth every penny.
Look at this guy! He looks so happy. I died laughing when Nicole went to get the same photo and it hissed at her. Guess she was blocking his sun.
Our friend PJ on Somerset Farm in Wairarapa. Thanks to this guy (and his sister-in-law Kathleen) I met the love of my life that day :)
Bryan caught this ugly fish! I got super sick on this boat. I am just not built for the sea :(
What a night this was. After driving around forever looking for a place to stay, we finally stumbled upon the Fairlie Hotel. The owner, Barry, took really good care of us when the entire town showed up at the bar ready to party. We danced on the pool table, crashed a family reunion, and witnessed Iguana Wrestling for the first time. The food was also really great.
One of the views during our Tongariro Crossing trek! 20K hike that almost killed me, but it was probably my favorite thing we did in New Zealand. Parts of Lord of the Rings was filmed here, and the temperature would go from hot to freezing depending on where you were. It was intense.
We hitch-hiked for the first time in NZ! Had Tom and Dominic not picked us up we would have never experienced the Tongariro Crossing. So many random awesome days/nights transpired thanks to the people that picked us up. Totally worth trying if you feel safe enough. I’m glad I can say I’ve done it.
New Zealand is high up on my list of favorite places. There is SO much to see and do here in such a small amount of land. We just scratched the surface in three weeks. It is beautiful and exciting, and if you’re into extreme sports you could do much more than I even dared to try. New Zealand has a special place in my heart.
Australia
Bronte Beach, a lovely beach! You can walk thirty minutes along the coat/cliffs to Bondi Beach, which was a beautiful walk. The waves were way too intense for me to get in the ocean though.
Taking the ferry from the Sydney Harbor to the Taronga Zoo. Sydney is one of my favorite cities. Something about it just feels so comfortable and exciting at the same time.
Three Sisters in the Blue Mountains. We took a bus out here and stayed a night, then went on a cave tour and hunted duck-billed platypuses. Never saw one :(
Our awesome Korean friends Ronnie, Dukki, and Joseph. I love them. We met Dukki in Queenstown, New Zealand, and after a night out dancing he insisted we stay with them when we came to Sydney. We helped them (briefly) stock veggies at their grocery store right when we got to Australia, went out dancing, and had real Korean cuisine for the first time. Thank you Facebook for helping to stay in touch with people you meet on the road.
Nicole doing the classic shampoo pose during our Uncle Brian’s Tour out of Cairns. Really fun day, I recommend the tour.
Damian, Moey, and Paul picked us up when we were hitching from Newcastle. They invited us to the bar-b-que they were on their way to, and we had a blast riding dune buggies, swimming, and hanging out with the family that night. They even let us stay the night and dropped us back on the road the next day!
Dinner with our Cairns family. It rained almost the entire week we were in Cairns, but it was one of the most memorable weeks for me thanks to the awesome people staying at our hostel. So fun.
We really connected with people in Australia, though most of them weren’t even Australian. I was sad that I never saw a duck-billed platypus in the wild, so I’ll have to go back. Also, I want to camp under the stars at Uluru.
Indonesia
Gili Meno! One of the three small islands off the coast of Lombok. We came to this island completely on a whim. After a flight from Bali, at taxi ride to the harbor, and a “fast boat” to the island, we arrived here after dark with no idea where we were going to stay. The boat crew dropped our bags on the beach and pulled off without saying a single word. Nicole and I found this to be pretty hilarious. Fortunately, you can walk the entire island in an hour, and the coast is lined with nice/inexpensive places to stay. Beautiful beautiful beautiful island, and we loved the staff at our hotel :)
At the Elephant Caves in Ubud. Lovely and so so hot.
Monkeys at the Monkey Forest! They will steal stuff right out of your hand if you aren’t careful. One tried to get the hand sanitizer out of my bag. Who are you kidding little monkey, you don’t clean your hands after going to the bathroom. So cute though.
Indonesia was amazing but kind of difficult at times. We were hot and dirty most of the time and scared of the bathroom in our hotel room, so one day we paid $40 USD for a four hour spa experience. I want to fly back there just to do it again.
Part of the amazing family that adopted us once we got off the ferry from Bali to Java. Thank you for an unforgettable day, Hilmi! You were so kind to us.
Prambanan Temple. Neato.
Watching the sunrise over Mt. Bromo. This was a super special experience. Totally worth waking up at 4am.
A view of some of the rice paddies during our eight hour train ride. They were selling caged birds on the train.
I would really like to go back to Indonesia with a little bit more patience. When I look back at the photos it looks like one of the most beautiful places we went. The cities are hot and crowded with way too many motor bikes, but there are so many breathtaking sights and we missed a lot. My overall feeling towards Indonesia is that I really need to give it a second chance.
Singapore
The Singapore Flyer, really pretty!
Daiquiris at Sentosa with Kip and Monica, our awesome hosts that put us up for a week in Singapore and showed us around. I’ll get to see them again in Hawaii this June for their wedding!
Lighting incense at a Buddhist Temple.
Singapore was very relaxing for us. It’s a very modern and very clean city. We felt a little bit pampered there :)
India
The Taj Mahal, of course. You can’t tell that there are about a billion people milling about in this photo. It was a zoo, but very glad to be able to say I’ve been here.
Such pretty colors..
Giving our camels a break in the desert in Pushkar.
Me on my camel, Jimmy. I think he liked me alright.
Well, India was an experience. It’s a place you either love or hate. I’m not sure that I’ll ever go back, but you never know. It’s a huge place and I hear the beaches in the south are nice.
Nepal
Nicole posing for our “Into the Wild” photo.
Kathmandu, as seen from the staircase to the Monkey Temple.
Most of our meals..
Us and our tour guide Bik during our three day trek. Very awesome experience.
Stopping to rest…and take photos.
Walking around Nagarkot. Friendly locals and beautiful views!
I loved Nepal. Nicole got to go back a second time with our friend Monica, and I hope to do the same! We didn’t even get to see the Himalayas because it was too foggy the week we were there, so I have to make a second trip one day. The people were really nice and the countryside was amazing. Kathmandu is also a really cool city with a lot to do. I really loved it there.
Europe
I’m throwing all of the countries in Europe into one section. We hopped around Europe for three months this summer!
Nicole on a rainy day in green Ireland!
My brother and I stopping off during our Ring of Kerry adventure with the family!
At the Cliffs of Moher. It was a perfect sunny day in Ireland and I love loved it here.
I got to shoot Kathleen and Dermot’s wedding in Shannon, she was the perfect bride!
The view from the top of La Sagrada Familia.
My family and I at the coliseum in Nimes, France! A lot less crowded than the one in Rome..
Photoshooting in Paris with Holly and Nicole.
On the beach on Monaco, playing with the shutter speed and flash..
Holly checking out the traffic in Paris. Or, the traffic in Paris checking out Holly.
Nicole in Chamonix, France. I loved it here! There aren’t many places more beautiful than the Alps. It was a long day of trains to get here but so worth it.
We met Choo and Chelsea in Rome outside the Coliseum, they’re from Knoxville, TN (where my dad is from), small world!
At the Amalfi Coast, Italy. Picture perfect place.
Hanging out with the folks at our tent hostel in Munich, Germany. We slept in bunk beds with one hundred other people in a giant tent (called The Tent), it was one of my favorite places we stayed during the trip.
No trip to Germany is complete without having a giant beer in the beer garden!
Sitting by the river in Amsterdam.
Part of my daily routine during my week alone in Frankfurt, Germany. Very very relaxing time to myself!
Prague! I love the roofs in this city.
Beer with my honey in Prague.
Martin showing me a good time in Prague!
Absinthe for the first time in Prague, I wanted to try this for so long!
Pardubice, Czech Republic, the town where Martin is from. Getting to see his hometown was really special for me. I got to meet his mom and some friends. Look at him carrying my heavy bag ;)
Martin and his friends at their annual football (futbol? soccer?) tournament in Krenov. This was a big weekend-long get-together in which I got to witness the typical Czech life :)
Cappadocia, Turkey. We rented a car and drove eight hours from Istanbul to get here. It was unlike anywhere else I went this year!
Cave hotel! So cool.
We found a nice isolated spot to watch the sun go down. This was right off the side of the road.
The Fairy Chimney rocks in Cappadocia.
My friend Kelly and I got to meet up and rented bikes one day in Interlaken, Switzerland.
I spent a few days alone in Innsbruck, Austria. This was on top of one of the mountains via the gondola. Very docile cows!
Having a beer on the mountain while a little boy plays the accordion next to me.
I got to go to three shows in the UK with my friends (O’Brother) from Atlanta, they played the Reading and Leeds festivals and I tagged along to Scotland as well. And I bought that sweet sock monkey hat.
Watching Passion Pit and taking photos from the shoulders of some nice dude.
In Piccadilly Circus (London) with you know who.
Abbey Road! I’ve wanted to go get this cheesy photo for a while now :) The Beatles are my favorite band so this was really cool for me!
Iceland
This was where we were when we realized that the road that takes you to the Dettifoss waterfall was closed due to snow. I was with my friends Evan, Graeme, and Chase, who just happened to be in Iceland at the same time as me. Martin was working, so I got to spend a few days driving around the island with them. So incredible.
Entertaining myself in Selfoss.
Postcard landscape at Skogafoss. We were both in shock at how beautiful it was here.
Jokulsarlon. I can never remember how to spell or pronounce this place. When we walked over the hill we all gasped at the view on the other side. Unreal.
Just some snow-capped mountains along the ocean!
These guys were EVERYWHERE in Iceland. They roam around free in a lot of places. Occasionally they are fenced in, and then sent to the slaughtery to become food :(
Birds in Selfoss. Magical!
Lina and Rasa, my Lithuanian friends that work at our hostel in Selfoss. They were great, and they even set me up with some photo work with friends of theirs in Selfoss!
Finally, the Northern Lights!! One of the best things I’ve ever seen. The lights just dance around in the sky, it’s unbelievable.
Jokulsarlon again. So so pretty. This was one of the main things I wanted to see in Iceland and I was not disappointed.
If I HAD to pick, I would probably say that Iceland was my favorite place I visited. It’s magical and unlike anywhere else I’ve been. You feel like you are on another planet, everything is so weird and beautiful (I guess that word gets redundant when you are traveling the world), and the people are really friendly once you get to know them. I got to spend a month there with Martin while he worked (he was there two months but I had to leave early thanks to the stupid Schengen Visa rules), and I would go back in a heartbeat. In fact, I would like to go again this year, especially since I’ll be in England and really close.
Hawaii
Hawaii! Kauai to be specific. I have friends that live here so I got to spend a few weeks here before going back to Atlanta. Hawaii is one of my favorite places on earth.
Hanging out in a hammock on James and Katie’s outdoor guesthouse.
The beach in Hanea. It was usually pretty people-less.
I get to go back to Hawaii this summer for a wedding, and I would like to do the Kalalau Trail hike, but I’m not sure if there will be time. Love love love Hawaii!
Martin and I in the US! His first time here.
Clearly 2012 was the best year of my life. I went to twenty countries:
Fiji, New Zealand, Australia, Indonesia, Singapore, India, Nepal, Ireland, Spain, France, Italy, Germany, The Netherlands, Czech Republic, Turkey, Switzerland, Austria, England, Scotland, and Icleand. It’s funny, originally I was going to start the trip in Thailand, and I haven’t even made it there yet. That is where Nicole is right now though! In 2013 I really want to make it to some places in Africa (specifically Madagascar) and a lot more of Asia. I’m *hoping* that some work will take me to South America. Martin and I are starting out the year in London and we’ll see where it takes us! So, that is my 2012 wrap-up. One more week to go before I leave for England, I am so ready!!
