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We are back in Toronto. It’s May and it’s still chilly – but its home. We’ve been back for about 4 days now, catching up with family and steadily making our way around to many of you. The best part about it is that we can honestly say it feels good to be back. Eight months is quite a long time to be living out of a backpack and now we are home. We are constantly reminded at what we have missed whilst being away. Contrary to many of the places that we have visited, you can drink tap water here (it sure won’t kill you), and indeed, if you run the hot one, it actually turns out hot water. We marvel at how drivers still stop and let you cross the road rather than trying to mow you down. We can’t get over at how quiet it is at night without the car horns of India and Asia ringing in our ears. We forget how spacious Toronto is and how we don’t need to push and shove our way to walk along the streets. We are absolutely astonished at the luxurious feeling of owning and driving your own car in comparison to taking the public transport. Many things that we had taken for granted before our trip have suddenly taken on a whole new significance.

It was just 3 days ago that we were waiting at the London Heathrow airport for our connecting flight to Toronto. It was a weird feeling that we were back where we started. We remembered when we were first at the London Heathrow airport, with excitement and anticipation of our first adventure in a new city. Since then we’ve crossed 4 continents, traveling through 15 countries, and 36 cities (not including all of our other side trips). We can tell you that we are proud of ourselves for having lived our dream for more than half a year and having fulfilled a burning ambition while we still had the chance. We are thrilled at returning safely, with all of our limbs and most possessions intact, and with our minds filled with happy memories rather than regrets.

Perhaps the best part for us is that we have completed this journey together. We have spent more time together in the last couple of months than we probably will in the next five. We've grown as friends and our relationship has flourished as we've shared the moments, the emotions and the miles together. We'll be able to share and relive this journey and many more ahead, dropping in a "Do you remember when we were in ... " long after we've bored everyone else to tears.

But for now, the enormity of what we have firstly accomplished and have secondly left behind is still dawning on us. Will we ever see a sight so emotionally choking as the Taj Mahal? Are we ever likely to experience anything as haunting as being robbed at Placa de Cataluyna in Barcelona and trying to chase after the thieves? Or the chaotic, near death driving experience in Cairo? Will we ever again feel as hot and swarmed with flies as we did during the summer in Australia, or the bone chilling experience we had in Tokyo?

Had we undertaken this trip ten years ago, we would have felt far more isolated from family and friends. However, in this day and age, we never felt far away at all. We received phone calls, emails, website messages and texts in almost every corner of every country and for that, we owe you all a big thank you. Every message we received, by who ever, and by whatever means, genuinely made us feel that little bit closer to home.

Now that we are back in Toronto, we begin the next chapter of our lives. It's time to stow away our backpacks, get the suit and tie back out of the wardrobe and get on with relative normality. We need to find a job, and then a place to live. But that's okay... a new beginning is an exciting prospect. Even an office job in Toronto now seems like a breeze compared to the hardships we've witnessed others enduring. Can’t wait to see you all soon!!!