Three days in paradise
Since I started travelling I think part of me has secretly been keeping one eye open for places I could potentially settle down in the future.
I’ve lived in London for 13 years and I’ve absolutely loved it. I loved the hustle and bustle of the city, the fact that everything is pretty much on your doorstep and that there is an endless amount of things to do there. As a child I was brought up in Newcastle in the north of England and I also loved that.
Since being ill however, I found that my love for city life has diminished somewhat. In Central and South America the only thing I looked forward to when going to a city was the chance that there might a Starbucks and an English speaking cinema there. In the states those things are everywhere so the only things I really enjoyed about the cities I visited were the people I met.
During my treatment I was lucky enough to live in a place called Richmond in the South west of London. It’s almost like living in the countryside there, It’s so beautiful. I lived near the river and lots of beautiful parks. Richmond is almost like living in the countryside. I used to walk by the river when I felt my worst and it always made me feel better. I found being around nature so revitalising and healing. I would sit there and smell the trees and listen to the sound of the River Thames rushing by. My living room looked out onto a huge private garden which had loads of trees and even a foxes den. I would sit there for hours staring into the garden. When the wind blowed it sounded like the grandest of storms but it was just the wind blowing through the leaves. I absolutely loved it but it was still quite a busy place with lots of cars and people around.
I’ve just spent the last three days in what I can only describe as my dream home. A small cottage in the hills of upstate New York complete with hammock, a record player and it’s very own vegetable garden. Much like the barn in Idaho the windows in the bedroom had no curtains so you wake up with the sun and when you turn your head slightly you are looking out over the beautiful hills of New York State.
I absolutely loved the fact I could pick my own veggies for dinner. Only picking what I needed for that meal and knowing it was all organic without any of the rubbish sprayed all over it.
The sunset last night was one of the most beautiful I have ever seen and seemed to last forever. The weather is not the best here at the moment but once the sun sunk beneath the clouds it lit up the sky and looked like a Monet painting.
I think the main reason I want this kind of life now is because it makes me feel healthy. I imagine the clean air going into my lungs, I look at how green and healthy the trees and plants are and just listening to the birds and the wind makes it difficult to feel stressed about anything at all. Pure bliss.
As much as I love London I’m not sure I see myself going back there after this trip. There’s a family ‘Von Trout’ cottage out there somewhere and hopefully one day I’ll be able to unpack my bag there for good and feel healthy every day.
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