From Layoff to 7 Continents Week 6: I Got Laid Off. Less Than a Year Later, I Was in Egypt
I Got Laid Off. Less Than a Year Later, I Was in Egypt.
Three years ago, I was laid off.
If you've been there, you know the particular quiet of that moment.
The badge.
The boxes.
The sudden blank space where your Monday used to be.
Thankfully, within a month, I received three job offers.
The first offer came one week after the layoff.
I know that isn't everyone's experience, and I don't say it lightly.
Plenty of people search far longer than a month, through no fault of their own.
But the part I actually want to talk about had nothing to do with the offers.
Less than a year after the layoff, I got on a plane for my first international trip.
Egypt.
Then the UK.
Then France.
Standing in front of the Pyramids at Giza, I wasn't thinking about the job I'd lost.
I was thinking: I made this happen.
I had set a goal that sat well outside what my life looked like a few months earlier, and I was standing inside it.
That feeling is hard to manufacture at a desk.
It's why I've come to believe that travel after a layoff isn't an indulgence or an escape.
It's evidence.
Blessed to receive three job offers one month after being laid Blessed to receive three job offers one month after being laid Blessed to receive three job offers one month after being laid
Why Egypt, the UK, and France
People assume a first international trip should be somewhere easy.
Somewhere that speaks your language and takes your credit cards without a second thought.
I went to Egypt.
Before getting laid off, I had three back to back dreams about traveling to Egypt.
It was significant.
Never in my life have I ever had three consecutive dreams about the same thing.
After the dreams, it became priority for me to visit Egypt as soon as possible.
When I was laid off, I definitely wasn't thinking about Egypt.
I was in survival mode.
Hustle mode.
After receiving the job offers, and I started working again, I saved as much as possible to go to Egypt.
I researched local, vetted tour operators in Egypt and flights to determine budget I needed to save.
Once I saved enough, I booked a tour package that include accommodations, activities, meals and domestic transportation with extra to spare.
The UK came into the picture because of a layover I had at Heathrow Airport on my way to Egypt.
I thought, "Why don't I spend some time in London after Egypt."
Looked up London accommodations, fights, activities, etc.
Booked it.
After finalizing Egypt and UK, I was talking to my father about visiting London and Egypt.
He mentioned, " Why don't you spend some time in Paris?"
I thought, "Why not?"
With a couple of weeks left before leaving for Egypt, I added Paris to my itinerary.
My first international trip: Egypt, the UK and France, months after getting laid off.
Looking back, the order mattered more than I realized.
Egypt was the one I was determined to go to against all odds.
It changed me.
The UK and France were the softer landing after.
Standing in front of the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt, with a gilded ancient Egypt On the London Eye with Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament behind her, alongside a Standing outside the Louvre Museum pyramid in Paris, with a photo of the Arc de Triomphe
What surprised me, including the hard parts
I want to be honest about this stretch, because the triumphant version isn't the whole version.
I decided, for my first international trip, I wanted to travel solo.
I thought, "I've worked hard for this. I want to do things on my terms."
It was overwhelming researching about international travel.
How do I stay safe?
What travel insurance to get?
Do I need visas?
Which airlines are reliable?
Should I use a tour operator or plan my itinerary on my own?
How will I get to my accommodation from the airport?
What kind of clothes do locals wear?
Gastronomy recommendations?
Hmm, need to learn a few basic words of Arabic and French.
So many questions went through my mind the months of planning.
Several people were worried about me traveling to the Middle East due to conflicts at that time.
I said, "I had three back to back dreams about going to Egypt, nothing is going to stop me."
There were people who thought I was crazy.
Heck, I have to say I agreed with them.
I was confident I could handle myself and use common sense while in foreign places.
That confidence carried me.
I had overcome so much.
If I can endure getting laid off, being a single parent, I can handle making this dream reality.
It was affirmed during this trip.
When I stepped foot onto Egypt ground, an indescribable feeling washed over me.
My. Dream. Was. Real.
Literally.
What travel after a layoff actually gave me
Three things came out of that trip that I still carry.
Proof of my own capability. Planning an international trip is logistics, budgeting, problem-solving, and adapting when things go sideways. Those are the same muscles a career transition demands. Using them somewhere joyful reminded me they still worked.
Distance from the story. For a while after my layoff, the loss was my narrative. It followed into every room. Several time zones away, it became one chapter instead of the entire book.
A bigger goal. Somewhere between Cairo and Paris, "I'd love to see the world someday" turned into an actual target: all seven continents.
If you're considering a trip during your own transition
A few things I'd tell you, based on what I got right and what I'd do differently.
Start with your goal, not the destination. The point isn't the place. It's proving to yourself that you can still set something in motion and follow it through. A destination you genuinely want, not what someone else says, makes that easier to finish.
Be honest about the money before you book. I was determined not to have any debt from this trip. It took sacrifice to make it happen. I stopped spending money on several things I used to spend money on. It feels good to sacrifice trivial things to make your dreams reality.
Don't wait until you feel ready. Take action every day. A dream with no action is just a wish.
Let it be for you. Not for content, not for others, not for a comeback story. The trip became all of those on its own right.
Countdown in place: the last two continents
I leave soon for South America and Antarctica.
The final two.
Seven continents, starting from a layoff I didn't choose.
Over the next several weeks, I'll be counting down here and across my channels: the in-between years nobody sees, the practical prep for a trip like this, the hero who taught me what courage looks like, and a birthday that lands before I go.
If you're in the middle of your own transition right now, you don't need a plane ticket to Egypt.
You need one goal that's yours, that nobody assigned to you, that proves what you're still capable of.
Mine happened to have a boarding pass attached.
Follow the From Layoff to 7 Continents countdown for a new post every week.
Where would you go first?
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