 Kicking off my muddy hiking boots, I laid by the river and looked up at the trees. I could hardly believe I was there, right in the Amazon rainforest. Adventures like these have become the new normal for my husband, Marcus, and I after we quit our jobs two years ago to travel the world. Still though, I have to pinch myself that this is actually my life – aged 35. I've always wanted to travel. I remember walking into a travel agency as a teenager and enquiring about a round the world ticket (you can't buy these now). The price was £1,200 and I felt disheartened that I'd never be able to afford it. At the time, I was working in retail, and decided to go to university where I met Marcus – we got together in 2016. Three months in, we moved into a flat in London costing us £1,300 a month – approximately 60% of our salaries. I was trying to build a PR agency and Marcus was in a full time job as a marketing manager at a record label, so we never had the money or the freedom to travel. We started saving around five years ago, putting roughly £1,000-1,500 away each month between us, increasing the amount as the business grew over time. We opened high interest accounts and invested in stocks. Life was a constant cycle of eat (when I remembered), sleep, work, repeat. My physical and mental health suffered, and I constantly felt drained. Giving it all up was the most terrifying, and best thing I have ever done (Picture: Hayley Knight) I was overworked, and spending more time on Zoom than I was sleeping. I wasn't making time for myself, or anyone else. I was miserable. Marcus would constantly feel like he was second best, and I was always too tired and stressed to make time for him. By the end of the second lockdown, I was engulfed in burnout. However, my nan's passing in 2021 from Alzheimer's made me realise the preciousness of life. I was close to my grandparents, so her death affected me deeply and){kind=link}
NEWS… BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT
Kicking off my muddy hiking boots, I laid by the river and looked up at the trees.
I could hardly believe I was there, right in the Amazon rainforest.
Adventures like these have become the new normal for my husband, Marcus, and I after we quit our jobs two years ago to travel the world.
Still though, I have to pinch myself that this is actually my life – aged 35.