It's time to navigate away from Indiana again. The school year is starting, and I'm about to move to a country I've never visited. Come Tuesday, I will have some new students, new co-workers, a new home with someone else's furniture, and a new culture to study...thankfully in a language I'm already comfortable with. Last year's school locations of Ecuador, Thailand, and Germany look to be replaced by some diverse locales, all brought to you by the letter "B".
Wrapping it Up at Home
The Lager of the Netherlands washes the fresh-made guacamole down my hungry trap as a Hoosier sunset falls on my face one last time. I embark tomorrow at noon thirty for the coolest experience of my life. Soon, I'll see my brother and his wife one last time pre-parenthood and make one last attempt to get fit with my trainer. Meanwhile I shove my face with tortilla chips and sit on my rear-end typing to you.
What have I been doing this week?
Finishing the Big Journey blogs
According to my blog coverage from last year, I am still traveling back in time from Tokyo to Hawaii, crossing the International Date Line on November 17th. Yes, according to my flight times on that trip, I arrived in my destination before I boarded the plane! Trippy, huh.
Well, I'm making sure I don't forget any of those rare and exciting moments by forgetting to document them thanks to the WTI commencement. I hope some day to make those stories into a full-fledged book, so I can't afford to miss the last destination out of redirected priorities. Tonight, my friends, will be the last time I blog about the Big Journey. And then I will be ready for the next step.
Giving Away Clothes
For some reason, I gather this minimalist mindset either before or after I travel. I adore the idea that when I get home, I'll have nothing but what I hauled across the world, all salted with sweat and grit from my adventures. This week, I took a massive bag to my closet and gave away many prized possessions. I have one pair of pants hanging on the racks in there. Rut row...but it just feels so darn good.
Shopping
Got me a sleep sack to stay all clean and warm! Got me some water filtration tabs so I don't get intestinal parasites again! Got me a swimsuit that actually constitutes as a two piece (I've worn tankinis for a decade, but the way I wear them, they ain't no two pieces!). I'm rarin' to go.
Being a Kitty Mama
After "mothballing" car insurance and warning banks about my globe-trotting, I thought I'd give my lady feline a little check-up before I head outta here. She checked out all fine and dandy, and I had a whale of a good time carrying her in there like an African mother (with a sarong strapped around my back). Frankly, I was a bit surprised she had no issues, because she's been bringing live chipmunks to the door for three days in a row. Not so odd when you realize this coincides with her strict diet.
Where yat? My house, that's where
I have some really cool friends that I'm going to miss (family, too). So, I invited them all over last night for a small soiree infiltrated with the smells and tastes of my favorite restaurant, Yat's. It was a hit, even for those who had already eaten upon arrival. I made it a point to serve all the foods and drinks I miss on the road. Guacamole was a must. As were an assortment of Mexican lagers. And then there was the consensus to pull out the Clark family videos. I tell ya, we know how to live that Vida Loca. They sent me off to see the world with laughs and a slightly stronger liver. Thanks, friends. I'll see ya when I see ya.
There's an incredibly strong chance I won't sleep tonight. And who really could. I'm meeting a being called Chris Danner tomorrow at Dallas/Ft. Worth Airport, whom will be my ultimate travel companion for two and a half months. Let's do this.
Pack that Back Up
The poll's closing at 5pm EST today, one which determines my packing philosophy for this summer adventure. Vote one last time or comment on my packing list thus far! I want you to be a part of the STA intern experience, which is the only thing compelling me to leave such important decisions in your hands. Some other advice I've gotten for this pre-departure crunch time via my friends on Twitter:
jliamquinn @nomadderwhere TIP: Scan a copy of your passport and email it to yourself and a family member. This way you have a copy if you loose it!
feleciacruz @nomadderwhere just read this...mostly obvious, but some diffs... http://www.travelblogs.com/articles/18-things-you-dont-need-on-your-packing-list
jliamquinn @nomadderwhere TIP: International ATM's often offer the best conversion rates and with little or no fee's. (see your bank for details)
jliamquinn @nomadderwhere Be sure to alert your bank about traveling abroad.
Boy-o-boy, I leave tomorrow. Gimme some advice before I go! I'm much obliged…
Two Weeks to Go!
Guacamole of Holiness! We're leaving in the wink of a moment for the World Traveler Internship. I keep thinking back to the big phone call and that visceral awareness I had of this imminent journey. Today, it's but an idea that I cannot grasp. I keep saying this, but it's impossible to fathom how cool this experience really is! So two weeks until departure...What have I been up to?
I've been brushing up on my dance moves, perfecting such moves as the Jerri Blank, the robot, unspeakable gyrating, and much more, hopefully all culturally accepted in our future destinations.
During said dance break, I began my work on dealing with uncomfortable situations by "dealing" with the dead chipmunk my cat dragged to the threshold of the downstairs patio. Troubleshooting involved first using my tripod legs like I was Inspector Gadget to remove the dead rodent and second, successfully, with the bottoms of my flip-flops. Bucky is still lying outside my window in the garden, legs frozen in pre-spring tension (sorry for the grotesqueness, PETA).
Flexibility is key in travel, so when I had to take a detour in my plans with "bush" camping, thanks to a mild monsoon, I dealt with these changes like a pro...and regretfully returned to my "comfortable, safe, convenient" bed inside. Darn.
Had some fun with time lapse photography and a mock packing exercise. I'm still waiting to know what I'm packing...it's all up to the poll!
Since I'm still an owner of a PC (please don't giggle), STA sent me the MacBook to allow adequate familiarity with the world of Macs. Did you all know it's possible to compose your own music on something called GarageBand? And do you know how swiftly these things run? How intuitively? My mind has been iRocked.
If you pay attention to this blog at all, you've realized surely by now that I'm all about recording every moment of this pre-departure experience. Now that you've seen what I am able to produce, I'd love some feedback on what you like to hear...AND SEE! After all, I am putting myself through this rigorous experience all for the benefit of hopeful travelers like yourselves. Oh, what a burden I must bear. Ha!
WTI Basic Training: Day One
I'm sleeping in my backyard. Why? Because I've been a nancy for months. Last year I slept in bus stations hunched over my bags with 100 other women and kids. Exercise was sought by running for trains and trekking in inappropriate sports wear at 16,000 feet. Where did that grit and toughness go? This week, I'm breaking out of the suburban mold for my future this summer as a travelin' intern. This is my attempt to roughen up like my days in the African bush...minus the wild buffalo staring contests...add the potential for coyote encounters...multiply the opportunities to use proper facilities...divide the free time to be distributed either pumping iron at the club or nannying down the street. Wild, huh.
Last night, I rolled into my beautiful Coleman with three thick sleeping bags from Grandma's closet and an oversize stuffed dog for a pillow...just like the sleeping accommodations on safari. I brought out all my essentials on that long hike to my tent: my travel book, the biggest jacket I could find, and one of my most trusted travel tools...MELATONIN.
This is serious. If I were to bring just a few things on the road, that short list would include this natural sleep enhancer for its amazing ability to induce authentic and fulfilling sleep against the odds of bush sounds, jetlag, and snoring hostel dorm sleepers. Maletonin, go getcha some.
Anyway, after throwing on my George Costanza Gore-tex and fluffy down socks, I snuggled up with my Bryson, knowing fully well there was nothing "rough" about this experience, other than hearing barking dogs and lawn mowers before the alarm goes off in the morning. And with a quick brushing of the teeth, without water mind you...and spitting in my Mom's flowers, I was fresh and revitalized from an evening amidst nature.
It was an interesting experiment. Made me want to take backyard "bush" camping to new levels.
And so I will tonight on day two. This time I'm covering some interesting topics, such as cooking in the "bush" and maybe more.
Insert Pun using word "May" here
And then there's May - the beautiful month of blooming things and excitement for the freedom of months ahead. So how does one prepare for the STA World Traveler Intern in the final stretch?
Baggy-Eyed in the US of A
It is 1:40 a.m. in Indianapolis, Indiana. I have so few hours left in this house, in this state, and on this side of the globe. It's unfathomable, the intensity of these last few hours. I'm hardly nervous or even realizing what's going on.
Mom is asleep beside me, curled up like a cold little orphan girl...couldn't make it to her bed...couldn't last these last grueling hours awake before I need to be on my plane.
I said goodbye to the most darling of all feline creatures. I have no fear about her quality of life in the following seven months; I will miss dearly the fur on her nose and the feeling of her body flop onto my leg in the middle of the night. She's a big girl...she leaves quite an impression.
I feel sort of dead inside, completely emotionally exhausted from graduation day, but luckily meticulous planning for the last 18 months for this trip has provided me countless checklists, sorted piles, and firm ideas of what I need to do before the main event.
Eleven books are weighing down my day bag, a larger number than I'm even bringing in clothing options. Needless to say, I'm quite curious of where this "Big Journey" will take me.
Enjoy all of your summers and lovely fall seasons. I am off on a quest. See you in 205 days.