I honestly don’t think I did much this year. But, when I look back it seems I had a really busy year. It was nice to finally head out exploring after a couple of years in the UK.
Here is a round up of my adventures:
Countries – 5
New countries visited: Hong Kong, Slovakia.
Flights – 8
Trains – 3
Boats – 2
Miles travelled – 22,254
8% of the world visited.
Anyway, I am spending my time relaxing in the Lanzarote sunshine planning my 2023 travels and boy do I have some big plans. My photographer and I have decided to go back to Asia but we are having trouble choosing where to go. I know I want to go everywhere but we don’t have enough time. I’ve decided it’s time to push my limits and go places I never imagined I would visit. However, before announcing my plans I thought I would look back on 2022.
January was a very quiet start to the year, I was suffering from burnout. Turns out you can go on too many trips. I put down my blog and picked up my gardening gloves. It was a delightful couple of months growing more veggies than I could eat.
February changed my life forever. I ventured into philanthropy and it was the best experience of my life. Nothing is more rewarding than collecting medical equipment and learning a new language. Watching my boxes go off to Ukraine was a great experience. Though if I ever see another roll of cellotape I may cry.
March involved exploring Northumberland, I lost myself in the wildflowers of Wallington Hall. Staying in the UK has its perks, I would normally miss the bluebells, daffodils and blossoms because I would be abroad. The spring was mild and really sunny which made it the perfect weather to go outside.
April took me to Cragside, Mainsgill Farm and the Lake District. Three places I really love for the flowers, food and furry friends! Mainsgill camels were a site to see, as was the ostrich who did not like my photographer. But, my favourite moment off 2022 was watching my photographer run away screaming after spotting an adder on the path. I scaled my first fell and spent the next four days with achy legs. I can’t miss out the infamous photo mistake my photographer made, the photo below always cheers me up when I see it. I cannot wait to return to the Lakes to discover more, who knew somewhere so beautiful is on our doorstep.
May was a quiet month for me, I supervised whilst my photographer studied for their exams. But June was full to the brim with adventures!
I went on my annual trip to Edinburgh to visit the Van Gogh alive exhibition. The art coming to life really changed my perception of Van Gogh. Back home I went to a street party, then had 5 celebrations for my birthday (I won’t say how many hangovers I had …).
July was time to hide because England went up to 40 degrees. I harvested my tomatoes, courgettes and peppers. Followed by another collection of medical aide to send across to Ukraine which kept me busy all the way through August.
September took me on my first flight in nearly three years. I said “Dzień dobry Polska!” to my favourite city in Europe, Krakow, the starting point of my road trip. I hiked through the city and found some incredible new places, whilst also revisiting a few old favourites. From Krakow I went to Sromowce Wyżne-Kąty to get on a boat through Dujanec River Gorge (a butt numbing, beautiful adventure) to Szczawnica. Szczawnica is a gorgeous Polish town which I would love to visit again in the future. My road trip then took me to country number 14, Slovakia. I had done zero research prior to this trip but was pleasantly surprised by Slovakia. Treetop Walk Bachledka was a thrilling experience which made me realise that I might be a little bit scared of heights. I headed back to Krakow to visit the Botanic Gardens, I couldn’t leave Poland without a visit to my favourite place.
October allowed me to finally meet an otter, not in the wild, but in Washington Wetland Centre. I also met some animals at the Festival of Light – did I mention there was a dinosaur themed area. From the autumnal sunshine, I then took the longest plane ride of my life. Halloween was spent in the air somewhere over India.
I landed into Hong Kong in November, the best and craziest trip of my life. Travelling without my photographer was scary but something I quite enjoyed (don’t tell them). I don’t think I will ever stop talking about this trip. The best moment of the year was a ride on the Star Ferry, followed closely by the soup (you’ll have to visit my blog post to see it!). Everything was incredible, from the city lights, to the typhoon and the food. Hong Kong is a place you have to experience as the blogs just don’t do it justice.
December has been another busy month, I celebrated Christmas at Beamish (the blog post will probably appear in January, oops). I enjoyed seeing the snow on the beach, something which is a really rare occurrence. But the best part was getting to wear my red wellies again.
Finally I flew out to Lanzarote to celebrate the end of the year with my photographer, doing what we both do best, eating and lying on the beach. Rounding off my busy four months which involved setting foot in 7 countries and 2 continents. I’m spending a few weeks recharging my batteries before beginning my next adventures.
To all of the followers, friends and fellow dinosaurs, hotels, travel companies and tour agencies, thank you for joining in the fun and for your unwavering support. 2022 was so much fun with the added bonus of ticking off a few things on my bucket list. I can’t wait to see what 2023 has in store!
Happy New Year everyone!
For a daily dose of dinosaur, feel free to visit my Instagram Vegan0saurus
Rex the Veganosaurus 
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