CRASHING INTO POTENTIAL

We have come to the end of the line friends. EP.38 is where we stitch it all up, and boy has it been a ride. I have enjoyed making this podcast so much and I so happy you have too. In the episode, I make my way back to Australia for a quick surgery on my broken face and I fly back to the USA, landing in LA.

I was in LA for a few days before meeting up with Daniel and Kieran on their return from Mexico. Once we met up, we were all set to drive over to Arizona to see what spring break was all about and no. it did NOT disappoint. 

A quick stop off in Las Vegas before parting way with the boys and heading back to Vancouver, Canada. Here I would go on a little road trip with my best friend (now FIANCE and mother of my back girl, Giselle) Jasmine. What a great end to 17-months of amazing travels. I don’t regret one thing I did on that trip because every event is a story of its own.

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We are edging closer my friends. In episode 37 in a heartbeat, because of a stupid decision, I had to pack my bags and return to Australia. This was that point in my life where I discovered that I obviously have more than 9 lives. I during our road trip in Banff, I was involved in a trip-ending accident that could have quite easily been life-ending knowing my background. 

German snowboarder – 1

Me – 0

That’s right, I face-planted into someone on Lake Louise and in a split second, my trip was over. Boom. Done. Dusted. Game, set, match!

If it wasn’t for my determination to finish what I started, I would forever regret my decision.

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In episode 36, come along as I read to you chapter number 23. Chapter 23 is the experiences that I had in Canada throughout my second season there. After having an absolute baller time in Europe, I dragged that high with me around the world. I was under the misconception that my social anxiety was all but gone, taken care of, but no it wasn’t. NO SIR!  It was just lurking in the dark corners of my mind ready to come back out as soon as I let my guard down. Well, it didn’t take long for this bad boy to come back out to play, did it?

I was now there with a mate from back home and as much as I thought that would be better, it wasn’t! No one’s fault but mine, so I had to accept it for what it was. All in all the winter wasn’t too bad and I can tell you that I did enjoy myself a lot.

Halfway through the season, we left on a road trip that had us crossing the USA all the way to the west coast.  

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In Episode 35 I finish off my time in Europe on a massive high. After the stress of chapter 21 in Germany, I could really let my hair down andf just go wherever the wind took me. I had certain places to be at certain times but in the middle of all that, I could do what I pleased. 

I went on to visit and revisit 10 countries. This part of my trip was definitely the biggest growth period I experienced. I am so grateful for all the opportunities I got to experience and all the incredible people that I met. I recommend that you follow my jourmney below while looking at all of the images. Enjoy

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In EP.34 - Chapter 34, I make my way from Greece to Berlin, Germany, with a sailing trip around Croatia on the way. This was the turning point of my whole recovery as my mindset and perception of my own abilities did a backflip. With a brain injury, sometimes, the simplest of tasks become challenging and now I was on my way to Germany to get a working holiday visa... ON MY OWN. This was going to be a challenge!

Day 1: I was chilled out and all relaxed because it was going to be “easy”. It wasn’t! I spent the day wasting time and paid the consequences. 

Day 2: No one from the foreign registration office understood what I was trying to get. I didn’t even know so I spent the day running around in circles chasing butterflies in my brain.

Day 3: The office was closed so I relaxed... if you could call it that.

Day 4: D-day! My last opportunity to get what I came for. After running all around Berlin, here there and everywhere and back, I made it. I walked out of the office a free man. I finally got what I had come for. Literally in the last 30 minutes! The last time I felt this kind of relief was when I finished a 3 minute speech in grade 2 about my pet rabbit minty! 

From this moment on my perception of my capabilities had changed forever.

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Episode 33 is about the connection I made with Jasmine. After meeting Jas, I traveled to the western end of the long island of Crete to a little town called Chania (Pronounced Hania). The most magnificent place I‘ve been to in the world. The sun and the situation made this an absolute dream to be in. 

After we parted ways I left for the south for a few days before we met back up on another island called Naxos before we traveled to Paros to finish our trip. 3 weeks in total and this put me in the most relaxed state I’d been in for months.

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In EP.32 I make my way to the Greek Islands, better known as paradise. Before I go there, I was lucky enough to have a few days relaxing with Kelly and her family in a suburb of Athens called Irakleio. This was where Kelly and her family lived, and I was welcomed there with both arms wide. It made my time in Athens, amazing. Here’s a photo of Kelly, Mary and myself one night they took me out on the town. 

I stayed there for a couple of days before I left, which was good because Kelly was able to help me put together a plan of attack. I then managed to miss my ferry to my first Island, Ios, which really made my adventure stressful. With another group that also missed the ferry, I lead the way to the other side of the country to catch another one. That was my start to what was about to be an amazing 5 weeks. I wasn’t aware of how much fun I was about to have!

My first stop was Ios where I spent 5 days, having TOO MUCH fun until my world came crashing down. With my lifeline (my iPhone) drowned, it was time to make a move to sort it out. Onto to Santorini then Crete. Both islands were amazing, and I am very grateful that I was able to be there.

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In this episode, we go through the shortest chapter of the book (so far). Chapter 18 is literally one event, for one night… that’s it! I fly from Amsterdam, the Netherlands to Athens, Greece and come up against some trouble. This was the first encounter I have with the European authorities that had me kicked off a bus in the middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere, in a country that is going through a lot of financial turmoil. 

I sat back and looked at my surroundings and fell in love with the adventure I’d been longing for. When I finally made it to the city of Athens, I then had to find my way to the hostel I’d had booked for me. A few questions and I was on my way. I finally made it to my next checkpoint and was able to relax. The whole time with a grin from ear to ear… THIS IS TRAVELING!

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EP.30 is the reading of chapter 17 of my book, Crashing Into Potential: Living with my injured brain. The chapter is called, FREEDOM AT LAST. After getting off a tour around Scandinavia and Russia, I stuck around in Berlin for a week and just hung out. This week is exactly what I imagined traveling around the world would be like. This was the moment I realised that I didn't like to be confined and restricted by a tour and that I liked the freedom while traveling to do what I wasn't when I want.

I met up with a girl from the tour I did around Turkey and Egypt and we had arranged to travel to a few places together. One place was Krakow Poland, to visit Auschwitz, a Nazi concentration camp. The most grueling, horrific, haunting concentrating camp of them all. What went on behind those walls has changed the course of history. Even though I knew this and could see it with my own two eyes, the disconnect was still there and I didn't get as much out of it as one would hope. I took some pretty good photos instead to make up for it.

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In EP.29, I got my first real taste of Europe solo. I spent 5-6 days in Prague, Czech Republic, and this was the first time traveling on my own when I had no plans. This was both a blessing and a curse because my planning skills at this point were still falling behind the 8-ball. I probably spent 2 days more than I needed as these were my “fluffing around” days. Luckily, I had the time or else I would have missed some great opportunities to see some amazing sites. Instead, I got out of the city on 2 occasions to see a cute little town down south called Český Krumlov and a church made of 40,000 human bones. Quite a sight!

After my time in Prague, I initiated, planned and executed my journey to my next checkpoint… all on my own. How proud I felt to be able to do this was incredible. Berlin here we come!

Click HERE to see my time in Prague. 

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