October 30, 2011

Here I sit blurry eyed in Calgary awaiting the first of 3 flights. I am heading to San Francisco, Tokyo, and finally Bangkok. In total I will be in transit 25 hours and that is assuming that all goes well. I didn’t sleep much last night – in bed at 1:30 and up 3 hours later. It was a very light sleep.

I am looking forward to the trip, although yesterday I was a bit of an emotional mess. I thing the emotionality comes from the prospect of being so far away, travelling solo, being away for a long period, and away from familiarity and the peeps that I love.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve travelled far before, but this will be different from a cultural, language and poverty perspective. I anticipate great, meaningful experiences!

Despite the emotionality, what I know about myself is that I am resourceful. My humor, social intelligence, and ability to go with the flow will be great companions. I look forward to sharing my journey.

Stay tuned!

Tick tock, tick tock, the countdown is on. I have 1 week until my departure to SE Asia. I am both excited and have a bit of anxiety to head out on my own. It has been a long time since my last backpacking trip. I’m confident that I will do fine and know that the anxiety is temporary until I find my rhythm.

I am abundantly grateful for the opportunities of this year off. Along with the adventure, I know that great people and meaningful experiences. I look forward to it all!

My friend Larry bequeathed his Chinese cookie fortune to me “Fate loves the fearless”. I hope a great fate awaits me.