Two Paths, Two Different Stories

Man. I'm on a bus again. 30 hours with a 3 hour layover in Rio Gallegos. Unfortunately we wasted an hour of the layover with the bus running late and another with an unneccessary coche cambio/bus change in Trelew. However IF I catch my connection, in about 23 hours I'll be in Ushuaia. The southernmost city in the world. Not exactly the warmest place to be but I thought it'd be fitting to spend my birthday at the end of the world. Ushuaia is a bit off the beaten path, with the most notable things being that no other city in the world is farther south or closer to Antarctica, but also the fact that it's so far from home, and lastly it was  an easy plan to create to go there but a much harder decision to follow through on.

Two people who followed through on their decisions

I've gotten to a point in life where I have this itch in my side, filled to the brim with wunderlust, adventure and a fat head bursting with recklessness. I'm solo on this adventure, without a home, without a job, responsibility-less and the world is somewhat literally at my doorstep. I don't know where I made the decision that affected my life so drastically but it snowballed into who I am today instead of who I might have been. Here are my two stories. One might be slightly more interesting than another. Probably the first. Because if you're not first you're nothing.. Obviously.

My itch caused me to make it across Canada. Somewhere in New Brunswick

What Could've Happened

Normal Childhood..ish. Decided to stay at my local highschool Enver Creek. Got fairly average grades throughout. Went to Uni/College with no real ambition. Just like the majority of students. Stumbled through four years of University with no real goal and passion setting the pace. Just like the majority of my imaginary classmates. End up working a job not even remotely connected to my studies. Just like everyone else. Hopefully a Wife. Kids. Mortgage. Two week vacations to mexico. Retirement. 

Sound like anyone you know? A comfortable life for sure. 

And my decision to not be like everybody else reflects below. 

Not like everyone else. Mudder nation tho

My Reality

Normal childhood..ish. Decided to go to a different highschool for grade 8 for football. Came back to the local highschool for my friends. Switch schools again to learn about cooking. Turns out I can cook pretty well (not rice though.. never rice). Hawksworth if I get a job, University if I don't get it. Got the job at the best restaurant in Vancouver! Promptly and thoroughly got myself destroyed completely day in and day out for two years. Walked in as a kid who knew nothing. Walked out as a kid who can roll gnocchi with the best of them. End up with 11 days before I need to move out to my parents with nothing planned to do. Looks like i'll pack my bag in the morning and leave to hitchhike across Canada! 6119km later and I'm in Halifax. Take a photo. Turn around satisfiesd. Come back just in time to finish moving out and head to Arise that night. Start motorcycle lessons. Roast a Porchetta over a wood fire in Hope. Compete in Tough Mudder with The Five Guys (minus josh.. Miss you bud). Fly to New York the next day to start this part of the adventure. World Cup. Brazil. Uruguay. Now Argentina. Tommorow hopefully Ushuaia. Then Chile. Easter Island. Bolivia. Peru. Ecuador. Galapagos Islanda. Colombia. Ywam Boarders in Denver. Job interview/stage at Eleven Madison Park in The Big Apple. Then.. who knows? 

Sunset from Peninsula Valdes

But I definitely won't be sitting on my bum counting my days to retirement. 

Just like Euan here. Legend

I have no idea if I even explained myself at all. But I want to spend my 20th in Ushuaia, in this end of the world type of city because it represents where I am in life. Too adventurous for my own good, in a place where not too many people wander to, not really knowing what lays ahead after this city, and I'm in freaking PATAGONIA! Forests! Green lakes! Southern Ocean! Glacier trekking! Torres del Paine! Snowboarding! Big Rock clinbing! This is the type of dreamland/playground/heaven that I could wander around in indefinitely. 

Epic Ferry

Just another attempt to make myself different from everyone else. Except for the guy I met last night who is taking a BICYCLE to get to Ushuaia from Brazil. Speechless

P.s I no longer feel like I can string together a proper blog post. And I like it. So expect all the tangents. :)

Channy

Ig/Twitter - itsnathanchan

August 23/24 ¡¿Donde Nathan?! Not quite at the end of the world, Argentina