✉️ A Note on the Voyage Journal
The Voyage Journal is a collection of personal reflections written throughout my travels—capturing raw moments, transitions, and experiences as they happened. These entries are less about guides and more about the human side of the journey. This voyage journal reflects my thoughts and plans during mid-2020, when global travel restrictions and uncertainty were reshaping nearly everyone’s path.
A Trip that Could Have Been
July 8, 2020 would have been the day I set off on my next extended Pacific voyage, bound eventually for Australia. By the time of writing this in mid-July, I would have already been exploring Tutuila or possibly the outer islands in American Samoa, with a route onward through Samoa, Tokelau, and a select number of Pacific islands before heading to Australia for my working holiday visa. But that changed. Thanks to the global pandemic and the ongoing resurgence of infections, this trip simply was not happening.
July 8, 2020 would have been the day I set off on my next extended Pacific voyage, bound eventually for Australia. By the time of writing this in mid-July, I would have already been exploring Tutuila or possibly the outer islands in American Samoa, with a route onward through Samoa, Tokelau, and a select number of Pacific islands before heading to Australia for my working holiday visa. But that changed. Thanks to the global pandemic and the ongoing resurgence of infections, this trip simply was not happening.
When Hope Started Fading
If I’m being completely honest, I held onto hope for longer than I should have. I kept thinking maybe I could still make the trip happen, even if it meant masks, sanitizer, and a very different kind of movement. But I wasn’t being realistic with myself. People were still getting sick, businesses were closed, flights were limited or nonexistent, and nobody was really in the position to welcome a traveler. Even something like Couchsurfing or staying in a hostel felt completely out of step with the moment.
As that hope faded going into July, I found myself dealing with real sadness and even depression. I’m saying that plainly because I know I wasn’t the only one. This was affecting all of us in different ways. But like every hard turn I’ve faced in travel and in life, I knew there had to be some kind of brighter side hidden in it too.
BUT alike all trials I’ve faced in my travels, there is always a bright side. Hell, ask all well traveled voyagers out there who have experienced strife while traveling, how they managed hard falls on the road. It’s not so much about what happens, but about how you deal with it and find a way to make your situation better which allows for a better path down the line.
Creating New Plans to Be Excited For
One thing travel has taught me is that hard pivots do not always mean the end of something good. Sometimes they force a better version of the plan. It’s never just about what happens to you, but how you respond and what you create from it. That became the whole challenge for me here: not just mourning the trip that wasn’t happening, but figuring out what this delay might still make possible.
Travel within Your Means
While we often take for granted what surrounds us, this was the perfect time to lean into it. I live in Hawaiʻi, and while that may sound like an extreme example, it still took a conscious effort for me to use this time to connect more deeply with what was right in front of me. I went on more hikes, spent more time at the beach, took drives around the island, visited my favorite Hawaiian museum again, and enjoyed simple picnics with mountain views. I even got my Open Water scuba certification, which felt like a pretty incredible way to prepare for future travel once the world reopened.
This also became a time for me to give back more intentionally to the place I was living. I started making Hawaiian culture, history, and language a bigger priority in my life, including taking online Hawaiian lessons and looking into joining a hālau hula when the time was right.
Rethinking the Bigger Path
While long-distance travel was off the table, the extra time gave me the chance to rethink my route and my content in a deeper way. I’ve had enough experiences in life to know that sudden changes can sometimes lead to something better than the original plan. Back in 2017, my Achilles injury completely changed my first Pacific plan and, in the end, helped lead me into a stronger New Zealand chapter and a more meaningful island journey afterward. This felt like one of those moments again.
So instead of forcing movement at the wrong time, I started thinking more seriously about sustainability, content quality, and the kind of gear and projects that could level me up for the next chapter. The path itself still looked similar in spirit, but I could already sense that if I used this time right, the eventual trip might turn out even better than the one that had just been delayed.
A Note for Whoever Needs This
I’m writing all of this because I know I’m not the only one who had to rethink and rework plans because of that time. I just hope this can serve as a small example that even in sadness, delay, and disappointment, something good can still be built. Maybe even something better than what you first imagined.
It was a rough stretch emotionally and psychologically, no doubt. But I do hope the imagery, memories, and words here can offer some small bit of encouragement to whoever reads this. If you ever need to reach out, feel free to message me through social media or comment below. I always appreciate the chance to connect.
Aloha,
A.P.
