26 April 2019
30 Plus already, where did the time go??
It was just yesterday when I celebrated my #Nerdy30 birthday, flooding ALL my social media platforms with multiple pictures. Perhaps I went a bit overboard with the number of pictures I posted which became a cause for concern for some of my friends because data doesn’t come cheap guys!
But it is not every day that you turn 30 years old, right?
For years, I have gone on solo missions to celebrate my birthday, spending it among people I had never met before or met a few days before my birthday. For the most part, I loved it while it lasted. I have so many fun memories from my Euro tour in 2016 and some of the most breathtaking views while in Thailand in 2017. Did I mention the buzz and vibrancy of New York City in 2018? (Check out my previous posts about these experiences).
While the solo travelling chapter was necessary and fun, allowing me the space to discover who I am, I believe I found what it is I was searching for (well to some extent).
There is something that changes when you turn 30 years old.
For me, it was learning to truly appreciate the special people in my life. The colleagues, friends and family who put a smile on my face. Turning 30 years old also also helped me to start seeing things from many different perspectives. For example being more understanding, tolerant and forgiving of people , even those who hurt me while being open to letting go of toxic relationships. This season of my life allowed me to flip over a new page and embracing the idea of spending my “30 Plus” birthday with a few friends in the beautiful city of Cape Town.
For purposes of this blog post, I won’t dwell much on the financial aspects of the trip (the status of my bank account is not favourable at the moment, lol), but rather on the lessons learnt.
Lessons of a 30+ Bachelor
#Embrace differences
Bringing together a group of people from different backgrounds to spend a weekend is not easy, especially when they haven’t met before. There are so many variables that could go wrong for example, personality clashes, different living habits and the dynamics of group travelling. I was VERY anxious planning this trip, but my dearest and talented events planner, Lineo Koro, had things under control. You should book her for your next event, she is BRILLIANT!
We arrived in Cape Town on Friday the 26th of April and surprisingly things went fairly well for day 1. There were no delays at the airport, albeit a missing passport/ID. Introductions were done, dinner had, check-ins finalised and we were ready for a night out. It was my ACTUAL birthday after all.
Travelling as a group of 10, you would expect arguments about where to go or flaring tempers about what to eat, but to my surprise this was not the case. I loved how diverse our interests were and how open the group was to embracing diversity. We split into two groups, each on a mission to paint the Mother City red, and boy we did.
#Step out of your comfort zone
This was the mood throughout the entire weekend, leading to the second lesson learnt during the trip which is break out of your comfort zone. On Saturday at the beautiful Cavali Wine Estate in Stellenbosch, I loved how new relationships blossomed. People I never thought would click, connected. People broke out of their shells, made career connections and had meaningful conversations. I would also like to mention how well-mannered, respectful and courteous we were to waiters and Uber drivers throughout the weekend. It’s not a lot of people who have good manners.
#It is not about you
The third and best lesson learnt, was never making things about you. We sometimes tend to get carried away and make everything about us, our careers etc. I loved how everyone consciously put their issues aside and focused on making the weekend amazing. I’ve been guilty of this mistake during my twenties, always wanting to be celebrated. Fortunately I’m older and wiser now and I have learnt not to make everything about me, even when it is my birthday.
I will admit that being 31 years old feels very weird and I am not sure what to expect from it; but if 2019 is anything to go by then I’m ready to embrace the amazing opportunities and dreams materialising. I am a lot more daring, very confident and appreciative of my friends.
So, to ALL my friends, thank you for making me a better person and looking forward to many more amazing sessions with you as we navigate our #Dirty30s.
