I woke up today and thought I would publish a little blurb about what I’ll be up to this year. The next few months are all planned out, however, July and onward to the end of the year is a bit more of a mystery. While I’m still weighing out my options, I must keep in mind that as particular situations develop, my plans may change as well. I’m not talking about a relationship or anything like that – because being gone for 4-8 months out of the year really can put a damper on all of that rubbish. There’s a chance that I may be relocating and settling down (slightly) in Florida with a friend, but if that doesn’t happen, I’ll likely remain on the road for the remainder of the year. But until things become clearer, I’ll digress and move forward with my whimsical travel planning, expecting that I will continue my travels for another 8-months…

I left Borgarnes, bypassing the Westfjords peninsula via Route 1. However, the next time that I find myself in Iceland, I plan on roaming through the entire peninsula, if possible. The roads on Route 1, between 60 and 61 were absolutely awful. I found myself driving over a snow-covered mountain from hell, where I could barely see in front of my car, and I couldn't go any faster than 20 MPH. A lot of the roads were hugging the side of a cliff, where one wrong move, one slippery slope, and I was going to meet my demise. It was a bit unnerving, to say the least.

I first visited London in 2012 with a few buddies – we were on our first European trek (my second actually) together, and to be honest, we made A LOT of mistakes. We under-researched, over-planned the wrong parts of the trip, and was basically not ready for a lot of what we encountered. We over-payed for hotels and rental cars, not thinking about the simplicities of things like insurance or the cost of gas – and a couple of the guys didn’t bring enough money to survive a week on, so to say the least, things were a bit stressful at times.

I’ve been an international traveler since I was 15-years old, and while I’ve always wanted to visit  Asia, Africa, and South America, I’ve yet to make that happen. When I was 15, I visited Canada for the first time, and since then, I’ve spent most of my travels wandering around Europe, with brief visits to Morocco, Puerto Rico, and Iceland. For some reason, I have always had a sort of mental complex, for when I start something, I have to finish it. So for years now, I’ve had it in my mind to ‘conquer’ Europe before I go anywhere else. In 2013, I spent nearly eight months in Europe, trying to do just that. The simple fact, however, is that THERE IS SO MUCH to see in Europe, that even if I were to visit for six months, every year, I would likely be well into my 60’s by the time I saw everything that I want to. With that said, I depressingly say, I may never achieve this particular dream of mine, however, I sure as hell will keep trying to!

When you’re considering a sunny, beachy, paradise destination, you typically won’t look any further than one of the many islands in the Caribbean – at least, most Americans look to the islands south of their shores first. I’ve only visited Puerto Rico up until this point in my travels, and if you’ve read my blog before, chances are that you know what had happened to me when I visited. So, while I’m sure the Caribbean is full of wonderful places, beautiful beaches, and crystal clear waters, I have to remain a bit more caution than I normally would – I would hate to go through a repeat of that situation, as it was one of the worst to ever happen to me. The worst thing, to me, about the Caribbean is that it’s one of the regions of the world with the largest gap in range of wealth – that can justifiably make some people more desperate to make ‘ends meat.’

Iceland, the Land of Fire and Ice, has been at the top of my 'must experience' list for a very long time – and I have to say that it certainly didn't disappoint. I arrived in Reykjavik via Iceland Air from London, England, with a brief stop over in Oslo. I grabbed my luggage from the belt and proceeded through the main doors of the Keflavik International Airport, where a man stood holding a sign with my name on it – I can't say I've ever had that happen before, so it was sort of exciting. As I walked out of the airport, the crisp and chilling Iceland air took my breath away, yet the quality of the air and the mesmerizing moods of the island took a hold of me immediately.