A Year of This Writing Thing!
- stemeillon
- 2 days ago
- 7 min read
Hey dears!
It has been roughly a year of this writing thing, aka since I embarked on my journey, and I want to thank everyone that has followed along at any point. The process ignited in me a desire to tell stories through writing, which I hope to continue regardless of the direction in which my life decides to go. It's crazy to think where I was a year ago, everywhere I've been since, and that life goes on.
The Year in Rear View
Last August, I left Denver to satisfy a craving to learn more about the world. My journey began on a farm in Mongolia, where I was first introduced to rural Mongolian life. Minjee and numerous other volunteers taught me about all sorts of things, laughed a lot, and made some good (and sometimes less good) food.
From there, I went with another volunteer named Louisa to the north for four days of horse trekking around a lake called Khuvsgul. We stayed with nomadic yak herding families along the way and learned about the start of winter in Mongolia.
After a 40+ hour journey, we arrived in the western city of Olgii, just in time for the Golden Eagle Festival. For a few days we were immersed in Kazakh-Mongolian culture and learned about their eagle-centric sport and cultural practices.
At this point, it'd been a long time since I was alone and I began to devise a plan to go trekking for a few days in the Altai Mountains. With the help of a new friend Karel and a guesthouse host, I embarked on my first solo trek, which lasted three nights and three days, and taught me about independence and the reality of fear and silence.
Karel joined me to go to another work exchange, this time in the ancient capital of Kharkhorin. There we helped Agata and Tamir, a Mongolian calligrapher, design and build a fence around their UNESCO-recognized calligraphy center. Lovely people came and went, and eventually it was my time as well.
My three months in Mongolia ended in the capital, Ulaanbaatar, where I relished being in a city, surrounded by people, cafes, restaurants, and hot water.
For the next chapter of my journey, I met up with my dad, sister, and her friend in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. After a couple of days solo in the city, I joined up with them to go trekking in the northeastern jungle near Ban Lung. We spent three days guided by wonderful jungle natives who showed us the ins and outs of the jungle life.
We continued to Preah Vihear, a temple whose origins are disputed by Thailand and Cambodia, although for now it remains on the Cambodian side of the border. Recently, Thailand has attacked Cambodia around that very temple, displacing more than 100,000 people and causing much suffering.
After the temple we descended to Svay Leu, where we spent four days on a farm helping Mr. Bunnet Kim with his projects. He hopes to build an English school, and is attempting to finance it through farming endeavors that have had mixed levels of success. An update from the future: he has paused his own fundraiser to bring in money for refugees of the recent fighting, and has been able to send me updates on the families he is directly helping based on the donations you all provided. Thank you, thank you, and if you are so inclined please share the donation further! Even $5 donations have gone a long way.
We said goodbye to Bunnet and his friends, and made our way to Siem Reap, renowned for the Angkor Wat temples. I stayed there a little longer than my family, accompanied by a wonderful new friend named Lao, and then it came time for me to leave.
After a turbulent arrival in Jaipur, I quickly started up a mini-apprenticeship with traditional block carver Veer. He showed me the ins and outs of block carving, which then gets used to print fabric and is part of the famous traditional Indian textile business. After ten days of learning, I went to see an old friend from African Dance in Colorado, and then made my way north via very-long-bus to Nepal.
I was warmly welcomed in Nepal by my friend Flore, whom I met in Mongolia, and prepared to go study micro-grid solar design for two weeks. However, upon arrival at the hotel, I found out it was canceled without my knowledge months before. While shattered, I quickly bounced back and went trekking in Langtang with Flore through the winter holidays. When we came back, I decided to stick around for the next offered program dates in May.
In the meantime, I went to work for a remarkable and unlikely couple in Nagarkot, closer to the mountains but still in proximity to Kathmandu. I quickly was informed that the program was canceled for May as well, but had already committed my mind to staying in Nepal for six months total.
For three of those months, with random weekends in the city, I volunteered alongside a Nepali worker, Karsang, who became a close friend. He taught me Nepali and I taught him English, all the while doing construction work for Greg and Aparna involving plastering, painting, landscaping, etc. He showed me much about Nepali culture, even inviting me to a Tamang wedding.
With the impending high-tourist season of April coming up, Flore and I devised a way to visit the Dolpa region without all the required, very expensive, permits and guide. Together we spent two weeks hiking, although we had to modify our route due to closed passes. Flore left to see other things, and I stayed in a village called Tokyu, nestled at 4200 m in the valley of Dho Tarap. Sam, a friend from Kathmandu, helped me connect with his friend Dawa who lived in that village, and I ended up staying for three weeks with Dawa and his family.
After a crazy journey, weighing a lot less than when I started, I found myself in the city of Pokhara. There, I met some wonderful backpackers and embraced the chill lakeside life before heading up for a few days to stay with my friend Elise at her boyfriend's hotel in Manang, a village on the Annapurna circuit. I did nothing but eat my weight back and lay around and soak in the sun.
For my last six weeks I stayed in Kathmandu and focused on maintaining the friendships I had there. I also spent three days learning how to blacksmith traditional khukuri knives. Leaving Nepal, I think I had my first panic attack and ended up in the hospital. I was so ready to be home and see my people there, but felt like I was only just getting started in Nepal at the same time. Quite turbulent.
Colorado
Despite the last-minute hospital visit and some messed up flight itineraries, I made it home to see my mama and my sister. I spent a month at home, mostly catching up with friends, helping my mom with house stuff, and especially training karate back at the dojo. It felt great to be home, but I also knew it wasn't going to be for long.
Iowa
I also spent a quick few days in Iowa for the fourth of July, reuniting our family there one last time before my grandparents moved out of their house of 60+ years. It was a bittersweet couple of days; we were thrilled to all see each other, but lots of emotions flew around as we said goodbye to the house.
My month at home flew by faster than I'd anticipated, and I left with my ma for a wedding in the northwest of France. We wandered around together for a quick two weeks, and then I ended up in Toulouse to see my dad's side of the family. It was lovely to see everyone, and there too the time sprinted.
Everything comes full circle though, because I managed to join Flore (from Mongolia and Nepal) with her family in the southern French region Le Vaucluse. We did lots of walking and hiking, and then I spent another week with them in their home outside of Paris. Thank you to them for the wonderful welcome!
Now it's been three weeks that I've been in Paris, essentially house-sitting for a random encounter while he's been away. Tomorrow I leave for the grape harvest, where I'll meet up with a French friend from Nepal and pick grapes for three weeks. Then I'll be back in Paris to find a job.
I can't imagine what the next year holds! But I look forward to all the learning and experiencing it will bring. My current goal is to do a masters in engineering/sustainability starting in fall 2026... given how much my plans tend to "evolve" I'm not gonna etch that in stone just yet, but I'm getting too gosh dang excited just from looking at all the options out there.
I want to extend a very heartfelt thank you to all of those who have written comments, sent me messages, or even just read the posts. Every time someone told me they related to what I was writing, or liked my story-telling process, or told me that their grandma reads my blog, it warmed me up inside and inspired me to continue writing.
I've learned that our thoughts and experiences are not our own, rather an amalgamation of every person or thing we've ever crossed paths with, and thus nothing we do is particularly unique. However I think our specific amalgamations are what make us different, and so I want to recognize every person I've met that has rubbed off on me, taught me something, inspired me, or showed me what kindness, generosity, and hospitality can be. My goal is to hand off those qualities to other people I meet as I continue on, and leave room for more layers on this big ol' paper maché blob of human being I call me. Cheers to hopefully a lot more to write about.
The harvest awaits!
Lots of love,
Stella
Love when one of these finds my inbox! it is so cool to read about the world and see pictures from your travels and perspective. Cheering you on in whatever life path you make for yourself next!
Dear Stella, I have absolutely relished and loved every post written - and thank you for sharing your experiences of the last year so generously. You are a remarkable writer - and human being; and your approach and sensitivity to people, places and environments has consistently shone through with each paragraph and picture posted. That everyone could approach their travels like you, the world would be a much more truly connected and peaceful place. You're an example and mentor! I know London doesn't sound all that exciting to someone who has done all you've done this year - but we have a comfortable and centrally located guest-room that is all yours should you ever get this way!
PS - WHAT…
I am proud of you Stella!! Keep at it.