Two days ago I turned 31. As I sat waiting eagerly for my gluten free Lebanese feast to arrive, S asked me a question. What were your favourite things that happened while you were 30? Well, it didn’t take me long to realise there were quite a few.
30 was very, very kind to me. The very best bits were all friends and family related, but seeing as you probably don’t know them, I’ll share some things you might be slightly more interested in. So here are some of the great things that happened while I was 30. I…
2 ¦¦ Travelled to 4 new countries: the US, Andorra, Indonesia and Malaysia (technically I transited through the UAE on one of my flights to Australia but I don’t think that counts. I also stood 10 feet from Myanmar but I don’t think that counts either.)
3 ¦¦ Saw the sunset in Santorini
4 ¦¦ Saw the sunrise in Borobudur
5 ¦¦ Threw a joint 60th birthday BBQ with my husband, the first time our families have been all together since our wedding (six years ago)
6 ¦¦ Flew in a seaplane
7 ¦¦ Went on a cruise
8 ¦¦ Travelled to 8 US states, all for the first time
9 ¦¦ Got my braces out!
10 ¦¦ Rode in a becak twice (two times too many)
11 ¦¦ Rode a train for over 45 hours
12 ¦¦ Rode a scooter for the first (and hopefully last) time. No I did not drive (S took one for the team) and yes I pulled this face the entire way.
13 ¦¦ Spotted wild whales
14 ¦¦ Visited Melbourne for a day
15 ¦¦ Visited Mildura for a day
16 ¦¦ Applied for, and was granted, two Australian working visas
17 ¦¦ Discovered New York with my bestie
18 ¦¦ Celebrated my Grannie turning 90 in the most traditional of English Country Houses
19 ¦¦Visited the Sutton Hoo hoard at the British museum
20 ¦¦ Picked up post in an Indonesian post office from a lady who spoke no English – and I speak no Bahasa – but we made it work. She was lovely.
Sidenote: explanation of the little plushie I received in the post coming soon.
21 ¦¦ Sold, gave away or threw away over half of everything we owned
22 ¦¦ Walked the canals of Birmingham
23 ¦¦ Took a boat down the canals of Bangkok
24 ¦¦ Fell in love with the space needle
25 ¦¦Fell in love with the Sagrada Familia
26 ¦¦ Cooked everyone who came for dinner the same pudding (a self saucing chocolate thing) and it came out different every time
27 ¦¦ Had my photo taken by strangers in Indonesia, because I am so white. I mean I know I’m pale but seriously. Way to give a girl a complex.
28 ¦¦ Cooked with poo
29 ¦¦ Had pizza 103 floors up
30 ¦¦ Watched the sunset over Bali from the beach in Lombok, with the waves lapping against the shore and a drink in hand
What are some of the great things you’ve done this year?
-Rachel
Happy belated birthday! These are such fantastic achievements and milestones … including cooking with poo, haha!
The photo of you on the scooter is pretty much the best thing ever haha. You are awesome.
Glad your 30th was so memorable. I turned 30 twice, crossing the dateline going east from Australia to the USA. We stopped in Hawaii for fuel and changed crews. Both sets of crews had a cake set out for me thanks to someone inside United Airlines. That I’ll never forget and I am glad your 30th year was equally unforgettable!
hope your day was incredible Rachel!!! 🙂
So many fantastic adventures – and Australia promises even more adventures for you!! That sunrise picture is so striking – but so many of your pictures have beautiful dramatics. I just love looking at them!
Sounds like 30 was full of many good things! May 31 be even better!
Happy Birthday! What a great year. I’m sure 31 will be filled with Aussie adventures and I can’t wait to follow along!
great events indeed! well, the best things that happened this year was… well, I publish a post about it soon:)
Such a lovely list! What a great year 🙂
It sounds like 31 has a lot to live up to! Your 30th year has been awesome and you’ve gotten to do and see so much! I know that y’all will be taking as much advantage if being in Australia that you can!
What an amazing year you had!
I totally feel you on the chocolate self saucing pud issues. I’ve been developing a recipe for ageeeeeeees and everytime it comes out different and I feel like I can’t put it on the blog because I don’t know which end result people will end up with, haha!
WOW – genuinely impressed how much travel you did in just one year!!! And 31 is going to be full of Aussie adventures I’m sure 🙂
Rachel, seems like your 30th year was filled with tons of exciting events and adventures. How was the sea plane? Here’s to even better 31st! xx
Love this post! I think perhaps we should all write a list like this every year on the eve of our birthdays to remind us of the fun times. And that scooter photo is just ace. x
Happy belated birthday!! Getting working visas in a foreign country is no small feat, that I know for a fact! Also, I didn’t realize that that train trip across the USA was your first visit to the country! I like that you visited both of my favorite “homelands” in the past year…have you been to China yet? That’s my other favorite.