I collected some simple data from my trip, now presented in the style of Harper's index:
Length of trip in days: 89
Days spent in transit: 35
Nights of accommodation paid for: 46
Nights stayed with parents: 20
Nights stayed with friends: 14
Nights slept on planes: 4
Nights voluntarily slept at airports: 3
Nights involuntarily slept in car: 1
Total number of flights: 24
Hours flown: 93
Airlines flown: 9
Airports used: 19
Separate occasions using Hong Kong International Airport: 6
Upgrades to business class: 0
Boarding passes disposed of before deciding to save them all: 2
Countries visited: 10
Countries newly visited: 7
Friends seen: 35 Triangular coin types encountered: 1
You can view the full tracking spreadsheet here (minus friends' names, for privacy) and export to .csv for your own data analysis if you like.
And now some closure. The ample solitude and lack of responsibility presented me with an uncommon opportunity to reflect and take stock of my life... which I didn't do. In a way that's odd, since I'm in a state of great uncertainty, bordering on confusion, and faced with some immediate decisions, or lack thereof, that will impact my life in significant ways for years to come. In another way it's not odd at all: this was a trip whose simple purposes were to take advantage of flexible logistics and see places I probably won't be able to conveniently visit for a while, and being too preoccupied with home was a surefire way to make sure I didn't enjoy those places while away. It's evident by my ramblings here I only succeeded in deferring that contemplation, not avoiding it. I hope you enjoyed being a part of my therapy session, please give your $10 copay to the receptionist.
