5 Years of Twenty-Something Travel (!!!)

Yeah I really can’t believe it either.

In July 2009, I sat down at my computer and started the website that would completely change my life. I bought a domain, because I thought it would make me look more serious, and chose the name Twenty-Something Travel because I wanted to convince other people my age that extensive long term travel was a viable option.

Never in a million years did I think I would still be here at age 29, writing away (if I did, I probably would have thought harder about the name). This is by far the longest I’ve ever stuck with anything.

Since 2009, a few things have happened:

• I quit my job, and traveled extensively through Asia, Australia, South America, Europe and North America. My adventures have been too numerous to name.
• I met Michael at a travel blogger convention, we traveled the world, got engaged in the Rocky Mountains, and married on the National Mall last year. Yes, I have this blog to thank for leading me to the love of my life, how crazy is that?
• I managed to carve out a new career for myself, as a self-employed freelance writer. 2014 will be the first year I come close to making the salary I had at my old job.
• I launched an ebook, helped start a media company, became a founding member of the PTBA, met Santa Claus and probably did some other stuff I’m too modest (forgetful) to talk about.

Twenty-Something Travel has grown exponentially too. From just a domain name and a free theme, TST, we (and I say we, because you guys helped build this site too) have come a long way:

• Traffic: in July 2009, TST had 29 views (thanks Mom and Dad). In 2012, there were 67,000 page views. Today, about 2/3 of the way through July 2014 there have been over 150,000 page views and counting.
• Social Media: TST now has active Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest pages.
• Content: This is the 968^th published post on Twenty-Something Travel. Just think about THAT. Of course quite a few of those posts are Friday Postcards, but even so, that’s a lot of damn travel writing.
• In the past year I’ve hired two new writers for TST, to bring new perspectives to the site. Personally, I think they are doing a great job.

So much has changed in the past few years, but this blog has been the one constant in my life, the narrative string that ties it all together. It’s hard for me to put into words exactly what writing this blog has meant to me, or the many things it has given back to me. It hasn’t always been easy or enjoyable, but it’s been so so worth it.

I know I’m lucky, and that most blogs don’t make it to this point. For that I thank you, dear readers. I really can’t do it without you and I’m so thankful. I hope I can continue to be a source of information, inspiration, or at the very least entertainment for you for a long time.

As for what happens next… well I’ll be announcing more on that next week.

For the rest of the week the writers and I will be counting down 5 things that travel has taught us. Hope you enjoy!

You can also check out past anniversary posts here:

Twenty-Something Travel is Four!

What I’ve Learned From 3 Years of Travel Blogging

Twenty-Something Highlights from 2 Years of Travel Blogging

Twenty-Something Travel Turns One!

Twenty-Something Travel is 6 Months Old! (<-oddly, 6 months old starts with the same sentence as this 5 year post)