DanVenture Travels – 2020

Hi reader! I should say welcome back to DanVenture Travels since it has been 2 whole months since you’ve heard from me. I could use the excuse that I was busy with work & moving apartments, but that would be boring.

As I have done in the past, I wanted to write a post about the year that has been. However, the year was 2020. Enough said.

Instead of focusing on the numerous negatives, I’ll be looking at some positives.

I got to go to New York City for the first time this year. I haven’t written about this experience yet, but it was such a phenomenal time. Being in places like Times Square, Central Park & Grand Central Station is simply magical.

A lot of introspection happened this year. Most of us had so much time on our hands so this is something I think almost everyone can relate to. I’m not going to go into this because it is such a deep topic & not my area of expertise, but I believe this is a positive.

I set travel goals. I would struggle to choose a destination before the pandemic because I wanted to see everything & go everywhere. This year saw almost every country close their borders & put plenty of entry restrictions in place – not new news but helped me prioritize future trips. While I still say I’d be happy traveling anywhere, some places have become more important for me to visit.

It was a fantastic year for DanVenture Travels. Unsurprising given how much more time we spent online this year, but the blog saw substantially more growth & traffic than ever before. I am so grateful for the support.

I developed a new appreciation for home. Living abroad at the best of times will do this to you & I believe I had this appreciation before the year started. 2020 elevated this appreciation because home was so much further away than ever before. Before the pandemic, if your finances & schedule allowed it, you could make your way back to your home country if you wanted to. There were months this year when there was no possible way for me to get home even if I really wanted to. I immersed myself in South African music & movies, I cooked food I grew up eating & I had lengthy conversations with every South African I came across.

I did get some travel in. Although lots of travel plans were canceled, I did get to travel a little bit. Notably, I got to visit 5 ‘new’ countries this year. I got to go to Canada, Nigeria, Nepal & the Netherlands for the first time as well as a bucket list destination – Bulgaria.

As 2020 comes to an end, I’m looking forward to a more positive year ahead. I’m not oblivious to the hardships that are happening & that will continue to happen for some time, but I’m looking forward to positivity… even if it is just my attitude about life.

Thank you for your support in 2020. Happy New Year!

Keep traveling, keep safe.

DanVenture Travels