I think the title of this post says it all: this is the end of the road for me as a travel blogger. Blogging is no longer serving me, growing me or making me happy.
Anyone who has been following me for the last year shouldn’t be surprised by this decision. I wrote back in March about having a never ending case of writer’s block and that I wouldn’t write again until I really felt like it. I did manage to get a couple blog posts up about my experience running the Great Wall Marathon and volunteering with pandas in China, but other than those, I have spent the last few months with a constant, nagging feeling of “I should really write a blog post.”
I have made lists of blog post ideas to write. I even start drafting them in my head while I’m out walking around or going for a run. I was going to write about how I did on my 14 Things Before 40 List. I was going to write about things I learned in my thirties as I get ready to turn 40. I even have one more post about China sitting half-written that I just can’t get around to finishing. But I just can’t put pen to paper (or, in this case, fingers to keyboard). For a while, I thought it was just that I was so busy traveling for work after I got back from China. But now that I have spent the last three weeks in D.C. with pretty much nothing else to do and still haven’t been able to bring myself to write, I know it’s time to call it quits.
When I first started this blog, I couldn’t stop working on it. I spent hours figuring out what plug-ins to add and what fonts to use and how to size my photos and, of course, writing – hours and hours of writing. I absolutely loved it.
And now, I just don’t. Writing a blog post or editing photos are items on my to-do list that I have no desire to check off.
On top of my massive writer’s block, my lust for travel is waning. Yes, I leave on Thursday for Russia and the Kamchatka Peninsula (ticking off a huge bucket list item), but after that, I have nothing else planned beyond several work trips around the U.S. It’s been a long time since I haven’t had a major trip to look forward to and I am okay with that. There is nowhere I am dying to go next and I really want to spend more time getting to know D.C. and being around enough to build relationships here. My priorities have shifted and while travel is still important, it is no longer at the top of the list.
So all of this brings me to the end of this blog.
I have pre-paid for another year of hosting and my domain name, so it will be up for at least that long for anyone who wants to peruse the archives.
When I get back from Russia the first week of September, I will turn off comments for the whole site, but please feel free to continue to email me with travel-related questions and I will respond as quickly as I can. At that time, I will also end my FeedBlitz subscription so the RSS feed will go away for anyone who has subscribed that way.
I will continue to be active on social media, so I hope you’ll follow me on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and/or Snapchat (@katieaune on all platforms).
Whether you’ve been following for one year or five years, thank you sooooo much for your friendship and support – your comments and emails have meant so much and have made this whole journey incredibly worthwhile. Thank you!!
p.s. Although my desire to write has waned, I would still love to find opportunities (i.e., conferences, etc.) to speak to people about travel, so if anyone has any leads or ideas, please let me know!
