On the brink
I was just reading my best friend's brothers blog where he detailed his six month plan that includes a hell of a lot of travel and I thought to myself, "why am I writing about how I can't go to sleep at night when I'm about to turn my life topsy turvy and flee the country?" Point being - things are about to get exciting for me.
I have 12 full days of work left. I am more or less done on the 26th, but then I take a wee "vacation" and come back the 14th/15th of February to clean out my office and tie up any loose ends with my replacement. The time period between the 26th and the 18th of March is somewhat up in the air - but I do know this:
1) There will be some skiing which will coincide with a trip to Colorado and Texas
2) There will be the most surfing yet (unless global warming results in Cali being struck by monsoons)
3) There will be even more soul searching
4) There will be a lot of organizing - from my email account where I forward every future possibility or contact with whom I need to follow up with re: career moves, to my room and potentially preparing to move.
5) There will be preparing for South Africa - for which I depart on March 18th and return June 8th.
What have I done so far? Well I have a stack of African literature by my bed, I have zulu CDs to listen to on my way to the beach next month. I have a list of items to purchase (a nalgene and water purification tablets being near the top). I have an appointment to get a small dose of yellow fever and an updated tetanus shot tomorrow. I have a new digital camera on the way from the folks at Amazon. I have an appointment to call the nuns I will be staying with in Nkandla this weekend. I am researching a self defense class that my dear friend Lia insists I take before I go.
What do I still need to do? Plan my trip! I have done some basic planning and I have a detailed map of the country on the way from Amazon as well. I have a list of contacts and organizations I may want to meet up with - and a few potential traveler partners that may come to explore with me in April (speak now, or forever hold your peace!). I also need to line up travel insurance, order medications etc. in advance, get my budget and bills in order, etc. etc. And of course - start a trip-specific blog so I don't have to subject everyone and their mother to this here piece of work. I'm also trying to decide if I should get a new lap top (a small one) to take with. I know I'm going to want to write while I'm there and I much prefer typing - but I don't know logistically if a lap top is going to be a good travel companion for this trip.
Either way - it's so damn exciting I can barely contain myself. I think I've been waiting to write about it until it became more real - and it occurred to me - time's up. It's on the horizon - it's coming, whether I'm 100% ready or not. In just a little over two months I'll be on a dusty road, sitting alongside a nun, driving into a little village in Kwa Zulu Natal and attempting to take it all in.
I have 12 full days of work left. I am more or less done on the 26th, but then I take a wee "vacation" and come back the 14th/15th of February to clean out my office and tie up any loose ends with my replacement. The time period between the 26th and the 18th of March is somewhat up in the air - but I do know this:
1) There will be some skiing which will coincide with a trip to Colorado and Texas
2) There will be the most surfing yet (unless global warming results in Cali being struck by monsoons)
3) There will be even more soul searching
4) There will be a lot of organizing - from my email account where I forward every future possibility or contact with whom I need to follow up with re: career moves, to my room and potentially preparing to move.
5) There will be preparing for South Africa - for which I depart on March 18th and return June 8th.
What have I done so far? Well I have a stack of African literature by my bed, I have zulu CDs to listen to on my way to the beach next month. I have a list of items to purchase (a nalgene and water purification tablets being near the top). I have an appointment to get a small dose of yellow fever and an updated tetanus shot tomorrow. I have a new digital camera on the way from the folks at Amazon. I have an appointment to call the nuns I will be staying with in Nkandla this weekend. I am researching a self defense class that my dear friend Lia insists I take before I go.
What do I still need to do? Plan my trip! I have done some basic planning and I have a detailed map of the country on the way from Amazon as well. I have a list of contacts and organizations I may want to meet up with - and a few potential traveler partners that may come to explore with me in April (speak now, or forever hold your peace!). I also need to line up travel insurance, order medications etc. in advance, get my budget and bills in order, etc. etc. And of course - start a trip-specific blog so I don't have to subject everyone and their mother to this here piece of work. I'm also trying to decide if I should get a new lap top (a small one) to take with. I know I'm going to want to write while I'm there and I much prefer typing - but I don't know logistically if a lap top is going to be a good travel companion for this trip.
Either way - it's so damn exciting I can barely contain myself. I think I've been waiting to write about it until it became more real - and it occurred to me - time's up. It's on the horizon - it's coming, whether I'm 100% ready or not. In just a little over two months I'll be on a dusty road, sitting alongside a nun, driving into a little village in Kwa Zulu Natal and attempting to take it all in.
posted by Mood Indigo at 3:23 PM
12 Comments:
Great goings...will keep tuned in for more, all the best to you!
Wow. I am literally excited for you.
That's so exciting! If you decide to make a new blog for your travels, give me the url!
This is so exciting! Who cares if you can't sleep, you can sleep on the plane!
What is it you plan on doing in Africa anyway? I must admit that I'm not up to speed with the purpose (or anything else for that matter) of your future travels.
Good luck and God's speed!
Random Guy
Woohoo! What an amazing experience it's going to be.
And for selfish reasons, I think you should go with a laptop, even though I'm sure it will be a pain to schlep around.
South Africa will be amazing. I was lucky enough to go there in '99 on a rugby tour and the memories and experiences remain to this day. I don't know about the lap top thing... Perhaps go back to basics and pen and paper it... lend themselves more to spontanious moments.
Oh yeah, forgot to mentioned that I totally agree with Eve on the laptop. I've made peace with the fact that it's for selfish reasons. ;)
I am so incredibly excited for you (with a pinch of jealousy thrown in for good measure)! I truly can't wait to read all about your travels. Is it totally cheesy to tell a stranger that I'm proud of her for doing this? Screw it, let the cheese flow!
Thanks everyone! I am excited (and sometimes terrified) but mostly excited! I'll share more about why I'm going and what I hope to do in the coming months and let you know what I decide on the lap top front :) Regardless - I definitely plan on writing while I'm there - just need to figure out the logistics.
And Megan - I love cheese - thanks!
OOOHHH African Literature! I must say Bessie Head's A Quesiton of Power is one of my favorite books ever. She was born in South Africa but fld to Botswana. If you haven't read her and have time (hahaha)you should.
you are going to have a great time!
Post a Comment
<< Home