The One Where COVID-19 Happened.

‘‘Here is to 2020!’’ we all cheered on New Year’s Eve. ‘‘Bring it on!’’ we said excitedly, setting our goals and new years resolutions.. ‘‘2020 will be great!’’ we told each other as we raised glasses of champagne and looked forward to the year ahead.

COVID-19 has turned the world completely on its head. 2020 (so far) has been a year of loss, loneliness, boredom, distance, fear and total devastation. Face masks and social distancing have become the new normal and life as we knew it is a distant memory in the past. Events are still being cancelled, restaurants and pubs were shut for a period of time and the travel industry has suffered greatly.

I do want to take a moment before I continue to acknowledge all the lives COVID-19 has taken and all the families who are grieving loved ones. Yes, it was annoying only being allowed out for 1 hour of exercise per day and yes I was gutted when the Craig David concert was postponed to next year. But all of that is irrelevant compared to what some people all over the world have gone through because of Coronavirus. This global pandemic has affected us all - some more than others but I do know for sure - nobody could have predicted what 2020 had in store for us.

As you know, I was fortunate enough to go to Brazil before everything came to a standstill but I did have a few other trips booked for this year which have now been cancelled. Paris, a Spa Weekend in the UK, Bali, Venice and Nice. What does a travel addict do when they’re not allowed to travel you might ask? Well first of all, we have seen some of the hottest days ever recorded in London so my freckles have definitely made an appearance! I’m also writing this dripping with sweat so I feel like I’m on holiday in that humid heat we all love- but a dip in a cold bath is the same as a swimming pool right?

Amongst things such as moving house, completing the couch to 5k programme (again) and baking copious amounts of banana bread I have put together a list of the things I have done that has kept my ‘travel bug’ alive throughout lockdown.

1. Setting up this blog and a travel instagram page!

Lockdown deprived us all of so many things but one thing it did give us was the gift of time. Time we normally don’t have. I was furloughed a couple of weeks into the pandemic and at first I really struggled with the idea of not having a structure or routine to my day. However, I decided to use the situation to my advantage and planned to finally set up this blog - an idea I had been toying with for a while but never got round to doing because life is just TOO DAMN BUSY! My insta page @laura.ann.explorer is a page where I can connect with others and upload my own content of my travels up until now. For me, it has been really important to reflect on happier times and look forward to a time when we can experience new places. I even worked on a great project with a friend of mine Lewis, who created a logo for me - you know, to make me ‘official!’.

2. Scrolling through my travel pics countless times.

Having this instagram account meant I needed content. And if I wasn’t able to travel in the near future, throwbacks were the only thing I had. I have absolutely loved going through all my albums on facebook to find the pictures to upload. Seeing where I had been and recalling all these memories made me feel so happy and fulfilled. It’s sometimes easy to lose yourself in life but it is so important to take a moment to appreciate the places you have been, the people you have met, the landmarks you have visited and the cultures you have immersed yourself into. I have spent hours throughout lockdown scrolling through old albums and have remembered some of the most hilarious or breathtaking moments as though I was there all over again. If you can’t go on holiday right now, try to relive the ones you have already been on right?

3. Joining numerous Facebook groups.

One of the things that has really got me through the lack of travel is connecting with like minded people and being inspired by other people’s travel stories. I joined a couple of travel pages on Facebook (Travel Addicts UK and Girls LOVE Travel) where people share their own experiences and ask for advice on upcoming trips. Seeing those photos and hearing their tales has really opened my eyes (even further) and it’s great being connected with thousands of people from all over the world. We are all in this together and it’s great to surround yourself with others who share the same passions.

4. Adding to my never ending bucket list.

From joining these facebook groups and following fellow travellers on Instagram, I have been inundated with photos of beautiful pictures from all over the world. I fell in love with places I hadn’t even heard of and instantly added them to my bucket list. I also did numerous quizzes online to pass some time. My favourite was the ‘How many countries can you name in 6 minutes?’ I see myself as an explorer but I soon realised I wasn’t as knowledgeable as I thought! This prompted me to research all these countries and more often than not, I added them to the list of places I wanted to visit one day. My list is definitely twice as long as it was in February!

5. Finally finishing my scrapbooks.

At the start of lockdown, the first thing I thought was that I could finally finish my travel scrapbooks. Scrapbooks from 2016 that I never had the time to finish before. The bag containing all my photos, tickets and boarding passes from my backpacking year had become a permanent fixture in my bedroom but now I had days on end to relive that year all over again. I found out my travel journal and read it front to back, arranged the photos in chronological order and recounted the most memorable moments I had experienced. My scrapbooks are now officially completed and that bag in my bedroom is completely empty!

2020 hasn’t been the greatest of years so far and so many of our exciting adventures have been cancelled or postponed but sometimes it’s so important to stop and have that moment of pause. It’s so easy to keep ticking off your bucket list but if you don’t stop to appreciate what you have done and where you have been, what is the point? I’ve always been one to see the glass as half full and I try to take the positives from any situation so the time this pandemic has given me, I am thankful for. It has very much kept my travel bug alive and I look forward to travelling and appreciating things again in the future.

Laura-Ann

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