“As the day was dawning, my plane flew away” – Noel Gallagher.
COVID played a major part in slowing down the lifestyle of a tourist. For me, when COVID all began back in December 2019, I had 2 trips planned (for December 2019-January 2020 and February 2022. I managed to squeeze both of those in before the first lockdown, in Poland where I have resided since 2016. This means, I still managed to visit Greece, Morocco, Egypt, the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, England, Poland, The Netherlands (stop over x2), Angola, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Zambia, South Africa and Lesotho all before that first lockdown. Then – boom! I stayed in Poland non-stop without moving for 19 months. I had no flights for 22 months!
My Caribbean Adventure in 2021: PCR Tests, Island Hopping, Short Flights
My first trip away was in September 2021 and even that was only a short bus trip from Warszawa in Poland to Kaunas in Lithuania. But it was a start. Flights still ran, around the world with companies like Jazeera airlines able to survive and fill their aeroplanes during the tough times. By the end of 2021, I had finally been on a flight again. I clocked up a few more miles in the wake of a scandal and ongoing depression. I was able to swallow Albania in November 2021, which finally completely my UEFA football countries jigsaw in Europe despite a nasty fall the day before that trip.
Backpacking in Albania: On Arrival in Tirana, I Had Completed Every UEFA Country But Had Deep Depression
After Albania, I finally decided to try and travel furth afield and have since managed one trip to The Caribbean and three to Africa. However, cheapskate travel just wasn’t an option anymore. I had been so cheap back in my glory days. I was able to backpack countries with nonchalant aplomb, often spending $10 – 20 US per day. Now, flight prices rose but the biggest issue was whether countries would let me in and whether the dreaded “up your nose” PCR test was needed. In short, I spent £1,400 on PCR tests in late 2021 just to travel again. Twice, I was stranded in countries because of their stupid 48/72 hour rules. At one point, my PCR test was out of date by 20 minutes (before the flight) but I was at security 3 hours before that and they wouldn’t accept, meaning an extra £600 I needed to spend. Ouch. I got stranded in The Seychelles before 2021 had faded out of view. I worked a bit online there and actually finally completed my “I Went To Gdansk With Somebody” book.
I was flying again
I was flying again
And then in December 2021, I decided it was finally time to crack some more of the Caribbean. I wanted to maximise it and island hop. But I became PCR test loyal, doing 17 tests on that trip alone. 16 of them were negative and one was inconclusive.
PCR COVID test loyal at Windsor Park, Roseau, Dominica
I somehow found a cheap flight from Frankfurt to Barbados and started my Caribbean adventure there. I then veered into Grenada, Saint Vincent And The Grenadines, Saint Lucia, Guadeloupe, Dominica, Sint Maarten, Saint Martin, Antigua (but not Barbuda) and British Virgin Islands. Before that trip was planned, the only real countries I skipped from my original itinerary were Martinique, Montserrat and Saint Kitts and Nevis. Martinique I couldn’t board my ferry from Saint Lucia due to waiting on my PCR test. The other two I had to stroke off due to time constraints.
Fit For Life – PCR test loyal in Grenada
It was still a very satisfying trip and I was so happy that I was travelling again, especially having to get all those PCR tests. Before those PCR tests, I already had two COVID vaccinations, and even after that I got a third, another COVID vaccination. It was a lot of fun but the shine had been taken off taken for me, and indeed life in that respect hasn’t been the same since my depression began deeply in 2016. I crossed the European land border in Sint Maarten and enjoyed the famous Maho beach where I was aeroplanes.
Sint Maarten / Saint-Martin
Backpacking in Sint Maarten: Aeroplanes Flying Above Your Head At The Famous Sunset Bar on Maho Beach
As that trip was successful, I was able to travel again in 2022 to Mauritania, Canary Islands (Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria), Portugal, Azores, Alderney, Cape Verde Islands, Guernsey, England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, France and Morocco. Of those, only Mauritania, Canary Islands, Alderney, Azores and Cape Verde were new countries. I was wacaday stopovers on the brain and I didn’t need them but it has inspired me to book another trip for Christmas 2022 – back to the Caribbean again – hopefully. The next challenge will be flights, PCR tests and visas. It will be tough but I am ready for the challenge.