For the longest time, I didn't think I was very lucky. Sure, I was grateful to live in Australia, where most of us can take our food security, public education and relative safety for granted. But as a child, I saw people around us with far more than we had, and I wondered why life was so unfair.
The older and more worldly I got, the more I realised how having access to even the most basic things in life makes me far luckier than I ever realised. Travelling to a handful of poor countries in South East Asia in my early twenties was both heart-warming and heartbreaking at the same time.
I got to see how alike I am to my brothers and sisters of other cultures. But I also got to see that, while I've never been rich by Australian standards, I really had so much more than billions of people in other parts of the world.
This was the lens I was looking through when my partner, 
With a heart full of courage, a head full of plans and our feet firmly planted on the ground, we set off on our multi-state trip. Over 49 days, we did more things than we usually do in an entire year. And that's saying a lot because we both love to travel, a lot!
In that time, I managed to see:
- my Mum (twice),
- my sister, her fiancé, and their daughter,
- my brother, his wife and their two young sons,
- one of my (many) cousins, her Mum (my aunt) and my cousin's now-adult son,
- Brad's only female cousin in Australia and her husband,
- his only male cousin in Australia and his wife,
- three of my dearest friends whom I rarely see in person,
- two of my friends/peers from my EFT tapping professional circles, and
- our fellow Hivers: riverflows, holozOr, ctrpch, minismallholding, mattclarke and fletcherclarke.
I love people, so seeing so many people I care about, as well as getting to see online contacts in real life, was enough to make this road trip the best one of my life to date.
But people were just one part of what made this trip so exceptional. There were three other parts that made this road trip better than anything I'd previously done.
The second was visiting new places, for the actual place itself. Stunning landscapes, sweeping vistas, dramatic cliffs, pristine beaches, interesting country towns, unexpected city gardens, and trees so big they made me feel tiny. I love getting to see how diverse our environment is here in Australia.
The third aspect that made this trip incredible was the animals we saw. I thought I'd try to count, but it was ridiculous - there were so, so, so many different birds, mammals, insects, reptiles. It was astonishing. Again, the diversity we have in Australia, in this respect, is truly amazing.
The fourth and final thing (that I can think of) that made this trip phenomenal is that I got to attend a multi-day training related to my line of work. While I looooooooooooooooooooove travelling, at some point, if I'm not learning something deep, and/or teaching or serving or supporting someone to make lasting change in their life, I get bored! Even if I'm in the most magically beautiful place on earth.
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So, was this recent trip that saw us traverse through New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory the best road trip I've ever taken?
Yes. Yes, I think it was.
Have you ever taken a road trip that you thought was pretty special? Do you want to tell us about it?
This weekend, in the Weekend Experiences Community, Galen shared his weekly set of prompts that community members can answer in a post. He asked half a dozen questions. You can answer any one of them you like. The one I chose to write a response to was this one:
What's the best road trip you've taken, where did you go and why was it so enjoyable?
If you'd like to write about a road trip you did, I'd love to read about it! Check out this post for the countdown timer, as well as a link to the rules for this particular community initiative.
(All photos are my own. All words, as usual, are my own.)