I'm sorry that this is another Contiki post, but it would be very unfair if I didn't tell you all how grateful I am for the amazing trip I went on. And it's my blog so you just have to deal with it :)
It really was the trip of a lifetime.
I need to explain something about myself for you to understand this... I'm shy. Like horribly shy. When it comes to meeting, or even just talking to, new people I would rather not say anything and have you think I'm rude than risk opening my mouth and saying 'hi'.
The week before we left on the trip I was so nervous about having to meet all the new people (and I say HAVING to meet people because it's not something I do by choice) because Contiki is largely about meeting new people while traveling. I would have been happy to just sit quietly in the corner of the bus and not speak to anyone but my sister. But that didn't happen. What happened was that I met a whole group of amazing new friends...and not the type of friends where you say 'We must keep in touch' and then you never hear from each other again...no, no...these are the type of friends that if you havn't messaged each other for half a day you start to feel a little fidgety, and maybe even a little lonely. And this isn't at all what I expected from Contiki. I expected to be wowed by Europe and the buildings and the art, but not to be wowed by the South Africans sitting next to me on the bus!
Yes...we are all South Africans. We made friends with Australians, New Zealanders, Malaysians and a whole bunch of other nationalities too...but our core group was Team South Africa, and we are all pairs of siblings. I think that is what really made the difference, there was no awkward fighting between friends and uneasiness when someone wanted to do something with a new friend and not the person they came on the trip with. Everyone understood the existing relationships and were comfortable with forming new ones because we were all siblings, we all knew what was going on between each other.
If you have a sibling, who is close to your age and that you generally get along with, travel together. It is amazing. Because you aren't going to spoil your trip by having a big fight over something stupid, you've done that a million times already and you both know how to deal with each other. Traveling with a sibling is the best idea you could ever have. Do it.
So today...I am grateful for my amazing sister, and my amazing new friends, the unlikely looking sisters from Somerset, the responsible and havn't-got-a-clue-what's-going-on brothers from Joburg, and the you're-actually-a-lot-cooler-than-I-originally-thought-you-were siblings from Pretoria.
Thanks guys, you made the 12 days we spent together unforgettable.
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