Friday, November 22, 2013

Interview (8) - let me introduce you to Pam Lynch

Who am I?



My name’s Pam and I admit to being addicted to travel. I have a travel blog at http://www.travellingbag.wordpress.com
 
I blame my parent’s really, as I can’t remember a time when I haven’t gone on holidays. In my early life it was the annual pilgrimage to the south coast of England with bucket and spade. Then we emigrated to Australia and the buckets and spades were replaced with tents and fishing gear.

Of course the next step was overseas travel and with a young family in tow we headed off on a campervan tour around Europe. My eldest daughter still remembers her fifth birthday in Switzerland and that travel bug was passed on to her.


Amongst other things, in recent years, I have stayed in an eco lodge inTasmania (feeding wallabies from the balcony), taken a helicopter flight over the Bungle Bungles and fished for Barramundi (unsuccessfully) in the Ord River. I have travelled Europe by campervan, rail and car, spent time camping in Brittany, house swapped in Britain, self catered in Rome and luxuriated in a private villa complete with its own swimming pool on Crete. I have been privileged to share an unexpected late night cognac with a native Parisian artist and a Serbian architect, within sight of the Arc de Triomphe, only hours after succumbing to a taxi strike on a rainy Paris evening, and have been transported back over two thousand years as I stood at the spot where Julius Caesar was cremated.


I guess my ultimate travel experience came this year though when I celebrated my 60th birthday by taking part in a trek to Everest Base Camp. The year that I was born, 1953, also saw Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay succeed in climbing to the top of the world, they reached the summit of Mt Everest exactly 2 months before I was born.

The trek that I undertook was also part of the 60th anniversary celebrations and included a celebratory evening at Thyangboche Monastery within sight of Mt Everest.


Although I joined a tour I was a single traveller, my usual travelling companions were not keen to leave life’s little luxuries behind for the privilege of climbing in an upwards direction for 2 weeks, sleeping in tents and enduring toilet facilities that at best could be described as basic (don’t even ask about worst case).

It was the most difficult thing that I have ever done, both physically and mentally, but I am so glad that I did it.


I’ve been privileged to have been able to travel as much as I have but I’ve also foregone other things in order to achieve my travel dreams. Like most people I have to work to fund these travels but I have learned to grasp every opportunity. Who knows what tomorrow will bring.

My future travel plans? Money permitting - Machu PichuMorocco, New Zealand etc. etc. etc.

4 comments:

  1. 60th birthday in a trek to Everest! :) Very inspiring story, we wish you more travel in life.

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  2. That's so awesome Pam! I want to do this trek someday!

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  3. Replies
    1. Thank you so much...I need some motivation to keep writing :)

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