My 2012 in numbers

2012. What a year. Sure, many people will go on to equate it with the Olympics, or the Diamond Jubilee, or the Jimmy Saville scandal. For me, it will always be the year I graduated, and my life really began.

1 degree completed
2 trips abroad
3 placements undertaken equaling 8 weeks of unpaid work
4 part time jobs held
5 "unusual" animals befriended- Penguins, lions, cheetahs, giraffes, elephants
6 months of graduate life completed

Far be it from me to become all sentimental, but looking back at this time last year, I'd say I've come pretty far. 12 months ago, I still had the long hard slog of the final few months at university to get through. Two solid months of 12 hour days in the library. This was inevitably followed by the jubilation of freedom. For the first time in about 16 years, I was out of education. It was about a week after this that I had what I consider to be one of the best days of my life so far; A spontaneous trip to Blackpool to see a friend. I was free of exams, the weather was perfect, and despite a near miss with some quicksand, I was the free-est and happiest I had been in a long time.

2012 also saw me step down as Lifestyle Editor of The Yorker, a position I loved and although I enjoyed every minute of it, I know my baby is safe in the hands of the wonderful Farrah Kelly. I have taken up the position of Travel Editor at Kettle Magazine instead, allowing me to channel my energies into one particular area of interest.

Couple all of this with my first solo travel experience - which allowed me to make many great friends from all over the world, and I think 2012 will always be the year that I started living my life to the full. Here's hoping 2013 is even better!