For many of us being left at the altar would lead to Netflix chick-flick marathons and copious amounts of ice cream but for 30-year-old Katie Colins it was a turning point in her life that brought her adventure and financial rewards.
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Colins packed up her belongings, sold her house and left her home in Edgeley, Stockport, to travel the world — and she’s still not returned home.
What happened to Colins was heartbreaking: weeks before her big day her fiancé decided to call it quits and she decided that the best medicine was a change of scenery. Speaking to Manchester Evening News, Colins revealed how much her life has changed since that fateful day four years ago.
“At the time I felt heartbroken, confused and a little disillusioned about what I was going to do with my life,” she said.
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“But I just decided I wanted to go travelling. I quit my job in PR, sold my house and car. Literally anything that wouldn’t fit into a suitcase.”
What makes her story so remarkable is that she decided to travel the world alone and so far she has visited countless countries including India, France, Brazil, Argentina, Thailand, Nepal and Dubai. Soon she’ll travel to the Phillipines.
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“Everyone did think I was a little mad especially as I’d never travelled anywhere by myself before but it just felt right,” she added. To keep in touch with family and friends she created a travel blog — which has become a huge success and inspired others to pursue their dreams.
“People who weren’t related to me started reading my blog and sending me emails, telling me how brave I was to quit it all and go,” said Colins. “I received messages from other newly single men and women who said they read my blog [Not Wed or Dead] as an inspiration that just because you’ve been dumped it doesn’t mean you have to listen to bad power anthems and devour ice-cream. You can use this as a catalyst for something much bigger and better.”
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To share her journey Colins began writing a book loosely based on her travels and she now has a three-book deal from Carina UK. Pretty impressive.
She may never have had the chance to wear the wedding dress she had picked out but she has experienced so many more exhilarating and eye-opening life experiences, which include sleeping in a Thai jungle, skydiving in France, climbing an “active volcano in Chile” and getting “covered in Holi paint in India.” We’d say that’s a pretty sweet alternative.
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If you’re interested in Colins’ book, Destination Thailand, you can check it out on Amazon.
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