Overlanding through China as amazing life lesson about relationships

Who knew that my Big Trip would already from the start provide me with such a valuable visualization of how successful long term committed relationships work.

There is an Australian couple travelling with me. They’re in their 60s but they’re so much younger in spirit and mind than many 20 something year olds I know back home. I have been stealing little peeks at them over the last few weeks and observing their cute relationship rituals (and there are many on display every day – and I mean it in the most affectionate way possible!). They are so clearly very much in love with each other after all these years and experiences that decades of sharing a life brings along. What fascinates me a lot (and makes me just a touch envious) is the great balance they seem to have found in their life between having a true family home back in Australia and actively pursuing their love for travel. They have made conscious choices over the years to go travelling together, save money together for that specific purpose and organize their work and family matters in a way, which enables long travel periods of time away from home. They have been “serial travellers” for many years and still today – in their 60s – are taking 3 months off to travel from Beijing to Istambul on an overlanding truck! Nothing short of amazing in my view. And believe me, long term overlanding can put a difficult strain on you and your relationship. Long driving distances mixed with sometimes very intense sightseeing and physically exhausting activities, and above all being 24/7 with the same people and not really being able to get away for “a breather” for longer than few hours – all this can make the most loved up couple allergic to each other to the point of wanting to sleep in separate tents. Not my Australian friends here. They seem to be impressively experienced hard core travellers who have probably over the years weathered every possible dramatic travel scenario in the book. And they’re still here, enjoying every minute on the truck across vastness of China, excitedly photographing temples and landscapes and, most importantly, absolutely loving doing all that together. After 40 years of marriage!!

I would give a lot to have what they have when I’m in my 60s. Oh well, for now all I can do is to continue discovering the beauty the world has to offer on my own while keeping the faith that one day I’ll find The One who will happily share those hard driving days on an overland truck with me and share my everlasting love for a slightly vagabonding lifestyle.