I am ecstatic to announce that I will soon be departing on a jetplane. I will once again be leaving behind this familiar Cape Breton soil, in pursuit of discovering some additional far off places--- Fiji, Vanuatu & Australia (for starters).
At this stage of my life, my ultimate goal remains to discover and explore as much territory as time permits me before I fall victim to my mother` s belief system, (deathgrip) that I must respectably settle down and pursue a "real" career (because apparently this is what society dictates that I should be doing...)
Many of my childhood friends are getting married (ick) and having kids (ickier), but really, travel is my child. Like a parent adores and idealizes their children despite their imperfections, I delight in travel despite the headaches that it may bring along with it. The truth of the matter is--- travel (like a parent`s own child) can crap, pee, spit, and puke all over me--- and I would still find myself in love with every single minute of it! (I admit- a part of this idea was stolen from one of my favorite books, "Eat, Pray, Love")
Honestly, I have absolutely no desire at this point in my life to get married, have children, or settle down with the same career that I will be stuck with for the next 35 years of my life. I feel as though life is about learning and growing as an individual--- and there is only so much learning and growing to be attained when surrounded each day by the SAME people and routines. It`s like Mohammed says (and which inspires me):
" Don`t tell me how educated you are. Tell me how much you have travelled."
The way I see it--- when I am 80 years old living in a nursing home, am I going to be recounting to everyone around me the time I went for my one millionth coffee at Tim Hortons on my way to yet another shift at the office? OR am I going to be recounting for them my adventures of scuba diving the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, eating Kimchi in South Korea with chopsticks, hiking an active volcano in Vanuatu, and picking up homeless children in the middle of the night in Ecuador?
Enough said.
At suppertime on December 11th, 2007, my next journey will begin. My original plans were to venture directly to Sydney, but my research led me to discover that a stopover in Fiji on my way to Australia would be cheaper. Then, I just got greedy and fell in love with the idea of spending some time in Vanuatu. So the plan is as follows: 12 days in Fiji/ 9 days in Vanuatu/ and then on to Australia where I plan to work and travel for 6-9 months (where I will meet up with some friends that I met in Banff this past summer).
A lot of people find it difficult to understand why anybody would want to tackle something like this all alone, but what they don`t (and can`t) understand (because they`ve never attempted something of its sort) is how wonderful, fulfilling, and rewarding it is!
Aristotle`s thoughts on why people travel alone even though they know they will feel lonely at times:
"People are adaptable. We secretly like and need to go through cycles of pain to then fully appreciate the intensity of the good times. Sometimes you need to wallow in misery. Do it until you are purged and then move on. Move up. "Happiness is more than momentary bliss." Aristotle
AND THEREFORE I TRAVEL!
At this stage of my life, my ultimate goal remains to discover and explore as much territory as time permits me before I fall victim to my mother` s belief system, (deathgrip) that I must respectably settle down and pursue a "real" career (because apparently this is what society dictates that I should be doing...)
Many of my childhood friends are getting married (ick) and having kids (ickier), but really, travel is my child. Like a parent adores and idealizes their children despite their imperfections, I delight in travel despite the headaches that it may bring along with it. The truth of the matter is--- travel (like a parent`s own child) can crap, pee, spit, and puke all over me--- and I would still find myself in love with every single minute of it! (I admit- a part of this idea was stolen from one of my favorite books, "Eat, Pray, Love")
Honestly, I have absolutely no desire at this point in my life to get married, have children, or settle down with the same career that I will be stuck with for the next 35 years of my life. I feel as though life is about learning and growing as an individual--- and there is only so much learning and growing to be attained when surrounded each day by the SAME people and routines. It`s like Mohammed says (and which inspires me):
" Don`t tell me how educated you are. Tell me how much you have travelled."
The way I see it--- when I am 80 years old living in a nursing home, am I going to be recounting to everyone around me the time I went for my one millionth coffee at Tim Hortons on my way to yet another shift at the office? OR am I going to be recounting for them my adventures of scuba diving the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, eating Kimchi in South Korea with chopsticks, hiking an active volcano in Vanuatu, and picking up homeless children in the middle of the night in Ecuador?
Enough said.
At suppertime on December 11th, 2007, my next journey will begin. My original plans were to venture directly to Sydney, but my research led me to discover that a stopover in Fiji on my way to Australia would be cheaper. Then, I just got greedy and fell in love with the idea of spending some time in Vanuatu. So the plan is as follows: 12 days in Fiji/ 9 days in Vanuatu/ and then on to Australia where I plan to work and travel for 6-9 months (where I will meet up with some friends that I met in Banff this past summer).
A lot of people find it difficult to understand why anybody would want to tackle something like this all alone, but what they don`t (and can`t) understand (because they`ve never attempted something of its sort) is how wonderful, fulfilling, and rewarding it is!
Aristotle`s thoughts on why people travel alone even though they know they will feel lonely at times:
"People are adaptable. We secretly like and need to go through cycles of pain to then fully appreciate the intensity of the good times. Sometimes you need to wallow in misery. Do it until you are purged and then move on. Move up. "Happiness is more than momentary bliss." Aristotle
AND THEREFORE I TRAVEL!
