Lauren Juliff:

Over the past 12 months, I travelled across eighteen countries; seven of them new. I spent time in 62 cities and slept in 35 beds. I took 15 flights and travelled 24,613 miles. I spent $20,417.83.

You could say it’s been the best year of my life; I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have received so many amazing opportunities. I wrote a book! It sold out its first print run in three months! The vast majority of the reviews have been positive! I’m a published author and it still feels incredible. This year, I lived in Spain for several months. I ran my first 5k race. I visited the Baltics, a brand new region of Europe for me. I explored Cornwall and saw for myself that there’s more to England than my London bubble. I stayed in an Italian village with a permanent population of two. I took a ferry to Finland on a whim. I spent several nights floating on a river in the jungles of Cambodia. I ate everything in Taiwan. And Vietnam. And Spain. And Italy.

And at the same time, I can’t deny this year has included some of the biggest challenges I’ve ever faced. Mental breakdowns. Panic attacks. Self-doubt. Cancelled trips. Bedbugs. Allergic reactions. Letting down friends. Losing my passport. Forgetting to apply for visas. I started the year in one of the darkest periods of my life, but end it at one of my strongest. Those terrible experiences were necessary for me to reassess my life and make the changes I’d been putting off for a while.

If you’re into traveling, or just want to read about someone who is, give Lauren’s blog a shot. She has the most insane adventures.

Even though her 2015 wasn’t quite as crazy as the previous escapades, it was pretty good. You can read about her earlier and more insane travels in her book [iBooks]. I wrote a little about it here.