Home!

Well, I spent my official last night of the trip in London with Tim and Pascale. It was really good fun. We went out for a beer at a pub on the Thames and then dinner near Tower bridge. They're both doing quite well, working and enjoying London life. It was fantastic talking to Tim again about all of the adventures we all shared (with Matt of course) through Nepal, Tibet, India, Switzerland, and Germany. He remembered things I had forgotten and vice versa. It would have been awesome if Matt had been there to complete the crew, hopefully all three of us can meet up someday soon. Right now Matt's in South America, and from all reports, it sounds like he's having an excellent time.

Enjoy some of the last views of the trip.

Tim, Pascale, and I. In London.


Tower Bridge, London.


the wharf area, Thames river, London.


Tower Bridge and Thames River, London.


Night London.

A couple of odd signs on the walk by the river:

steaming X's? hmm. And what exactly makes it anti-climb paint?
it wasn't slippery...

I slept well on my last night and had a quick breakfast the next morning, said farewell to Tim. I took the Tube to Heathrow and boarded my last plane of the journey.


It was great; my flight home was the most comfortable of the trip. Nice new airbus, Virgin Atlantic tricked it out with bigger seats, huge flat screens for all, a great entertainment system with 20+ movies, tv shows, video games, music, live flight maps with satellite imagery, and great food. With all that in economy, I can't imagine what's in First Class. Because of all the toys, I didn't sleep at all.


First sight of America below, it had been quite a while.

I'm roughly estimating 38,000 miles covered, The vast majority of those on 18 separate flights, but substantial miles were covered on various buses, trains, taxis, matatus, tuk-tuks, boda-bodas, bicycles, and footsteps. 20 countries visited, passport filled, new pages added, all in a little less than 9 months. 254 days, not that I was counting.

So, right, I'm back home. Safe and sound. Trip Done. Over. Finished. Feels weird. But so great to see friends and family again.

My folks met me at Washington/Dulles with a sign which read "MOLONEY," I picked them out of the crowd instantly. It was great, hugs all around and lots to talk about. There was also a nice "welcome back Pat" banner on the house. I'm extremely lucky to have such understanding and supportive parents, family, and friends. Thanks again for giving me the confidence to reach high, always knowing there's a big net to catch me if I fall. Luckily, this time, I didn't fall.

Sure, I left some skin in a few places, on a road in India, and on a bike trail in South Africa. Spilled a little blood, swallowed my pride, learned to be patient, learned when shut up, and more importantly when to speak up. Got sick a few times, went liquid, never trusted a fart, barfed until I couldn't barf anymore. Made new friends and no enemies, fell in love, fell out of love. Was sometimes freezing cold, boiling hot, incredibly tired, exhausted, frustrated, scared; but I wouldn't have changed a thing. I was pick pocketed, lost some things, but ended up gaining so much more. Spent money, but earned experience.

So what's next? Good question. I'll let you know when I find the answer.

London Layover

The weather was pretty cold and rainy in Kaapstad (Cape Town) for my last few days, but since having mostly fine weather on my first visit, I couldn't complain. Still had one last nice afternoon for a run around the city and some outside market souvenir shopping. I also caught up with the lovely and gracious Sara and friends who are studying abroad at the University of Cape Town. I had met them a few weeks before at a hostel in Plett Bay and again in Storms River. We sank some pitchers of Sangria at a waterfront Mexican place the night I got back from Durban and then we all went out to the bars near UCT. It was a really fun night, and a good time spent with a good group of Americans. I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone back home, still can't believe it's tomorrow.

I also bumped into Toya from Buccs and we went out to some live music on Long street. Then on my last night, I went out for a really nice sushi dinner with Sara and Liz at a cool seafood place and some good times at a few bars afterwards. After that fun last night in Africa, it was goodbye. I packed up for the long flight to London and took off. British Airways made the ride comfortable and easy and I had some interesting company on that trip too.

So yeah, back in London now. I was in Africa for quite a while, and a few things jumped out at me when I got here. First, there's so many white people. Obvious I know, just not used to it yet. And what's with everyone so dressed up, clean, and in such a rush? When the train into the city stopped briefly, someone made an announcement as to why the train stopped and when it would start again, amazing. It's almost as if time and schedules are important here. I'm afraid this will take some getting used to.

I met up with Tim at his new apartment, uh, 'flat' and am now touring around the city. We're going out tonight, then I'm heading home tomorrow. I will talk to you all soon, and in person.

I'd like say a very sincere thank you to you and everyone else who's followed, enjoyed, commented, contributed, sponsored, joined up, and whom I've met during this trip. It's been an absolutely fantastic journey and adventure, which you've all contributed to in some way. All of you have enhanced this experience and motivated me to share it with you as much as I could, and I wish I could have done more. Thank you all and I'll make a more official farewell post sometime after I get home.

Just so you know, this whole trip started as a brief conversation with Matt while in my car on I-270 a few years ago. He had just come from Africa and was saying how much he'd love to go back and climb Kili. I said if he ever did that I'd like to join him; and look what happened. We certainly climbed Kili and did a whole lot more. Big things start small.