Here we go again..

So here I am..in another country. Figuring everything out. Getting situated. Learning my surroundings. Dealing with daily hassles. Meeting new people. Experiencing new things.

It should feel different, but I think by this time I’ve become indifferent. Maybe its because I’ve been to Costa Rica before. Maybe its because traveling doesn’t phase me anymore. The unknown is now my normalcy.

I guess writing that makes me seem ungrateful. On the contrary. I think when it was all new and in my face I was a little less grateful because I was so preoccupied with experiencing all the newness.

Now, I can sit back and revel in the newness while appreciating it all the more. Its only my second day here…but I can’t help but feel completely in the groove of things.

The friends I had here before are arriving from other countries by the end of the month – I think that will make things a little more exciting..

I guess I’m just feeling a little… blah — I think that has to do with a certain someone in Mexico City. I’ve never felt this way before.. I’ve always jumped at the chance to have new experience by myself.. its always just been me and the open road…

That road seems a little pointless when I know there is someone I want to walk it with me. I can’t help but feel that this continually sounds whiney and unappreciative…so please don’t take me wrong.. I’m very happy to have this opportunity and experience.. I mean, how many people get to come to a beautiful place not once, but twice..? And with the amazing people I know here… ppff.. Life has been more than good to me..

I guess I need to stop being so sappy… but I miss him.. I don’t want to travel alone anymore… I want my partner.. my friend.. my love.. My Zyon…

All in due time… ❤

Its about that time

Life is running wild. 

Volunteering. Working. Meeting friends. Visiting with family. End-of-the-Semester projects. Preparing for study abroad.

About now is the time I get stir crazy. I want to get up and go. Feel my feet rise from the ground, knowing the next time they touch down will be in a foreign land.

I don’t know why my soul works this way – I used to think it was habit. This was my comfort zone. This is what I knew.. but its so much more than that.

I think I’ve come to a point where I’ve stopped trying to understand it. 

Its the most overwhelming, all-consuming feeling…GO! … Just GO! 

My dreams are becoming more and more vivid of lands once visited. My heart is drifting and my feet are itching.

Its about that time.

Wanderlust

I often get into conversations with people about my travels. On one hand, I want to share my experiences and people are interested to hear about my life. On the other hand, I don’t want to seem like I’m bragging and I feel like people get annoyed if I go on too long.

Wanderlust invokes a lot of mixed feelings.

Today I’m feeling conflicted.

I love my home- my studies- my family- my friends- and my overall path in life right now….

But there is this part of me that refuses to silence. I don’t feel like it should be silenced…but it makes being content with life, difficult. Being content in the present moment is something I strive for at all times. Life is too short to feel otherwise.

For those of you who don’t have the bug– feel lucky. 

I want to establish my career, I want to build my future, I want to create a life for myself with meaningful work..

But there it is.. nagging me to put on a backpack and go. Explore new things, meet new people, have lazy days in hostels, make memories while in transit..For some reason going to class doesn’t make me feel like I’m doing anything with my life, even though I’m doing something very huge. 

Living at home has become the new adventurous challenge– Home has now become the great unknown — and I’m embracing that for now.

Wanderlust.. 

Its a bitch….. but its my bitch. So, I’ll tuck her away until the time comes when its time to go again…and then I will fly. 

A Year Gone By

Its been almost a year since my last entry. I can say–as I’m sure in all of your lives–that A LOT has happened. 

I was living in Nepal- Living the good life. I had finally ”settled.” I had friends, work, and a house! I had started accumulating ”stuff” and I was involved in a society that was not my own. Along the way, I made amazing friends, had wonderful/crazy/happy/joyful times and learned A LOT about myself and the culture in which I was living.

In May I took a quick trip home for my cousin’s wedding. The entire vibe of home just felt comfortable. For once in my life I wasn’t running away from normalcy, but rather embracing it with both arms. Nothing felt better than being around family, familiarity, and 24 hour electricity and water 🙂 

I decided to stay the summer. 

As summer winded down–I still hadn’t had enough of home. I was content. Happy even. So I decided to put down temporary roots again and restart my education. Thankfully, 3 years ago, I made one of the best decisions I had ever made– I finished my Associates Degree. Luckily for me, I could start right where I left off and be on my way to a career I’ve wanted since I worked at an orphanage for children who are disabled in Thailand all those years ago. 

So here I am, half way through my first semester (3 and 1/2 more to go!! 🙂 ) — starting something I’ve long since missed… WRITING! I don’t know why I didn’t keep up a blog while in Nepal/India. It would have been interesting- that’s for sure. I know people asked me to, but I just didn’t feel it at the time.

Today I found out some wonderful news, that sparked my interest to write again. I got the final acceptance for an internship abroad in Costa Rica. I will be starting in January and working in San Jose. Luckily for me, I’ve already lived there and have some amazing friends that I’m excited to see again. Granted, I won’t have my partner in crime with me this time–My lovely sister Kara… But alas, it will be yet another beautiful adventure–

And you’ll all be along for the ride. 

Hater or Advocater

Anyone who knows me knows I don’t have hate in my soul–So for someone to say that sparked something in me. “Hater” — What a harsh word for someone who sees themselves as an open, loving person. I spread love and light whenever possible–not that dreaded, ugly word: Hate. The world has enough of it, why would I ever add to it by even uttering the word?

My mom always said, as a kid, “You don’t hate anything! Don’t say Hate” — How right you were Mother..Thanks for the life lesson early on–I truly don’t hate anything. How powerful. I disagree with a lot, my emotions take over and I get angry more than I should, impatience is a weakness–but hate is not in my vocabulary.

Let me start again..I was called a “Hater” because I continually post things on social media sites stating my contempt for the way the United States, my motherland, affects other countries with its immoral hidden agendas for power, wealth, and sustainability (of themselves).

I don’t Hate America. I’m thankful for my passport and the easy access I have into other countries. I’m thankful for the lax attitude for women, so I can travel, be independent, and forge my own path without my ”society” thinking poorly of me–and the fact that I was raised in a society not to give a S*** about what other people think (if you’re happy and doing nothing destructive to others)–I’m thankful for my education, health care facilities, freedoms, and rights all provided by the US of A..so why then do I continually post things that would lead someone to call me a Hater..?

Well that’s simple. When I started traveling, I, like most Americans, was proud to be an American. I defended our land to the death when the topic came up–and mind you this was during the George W. Administration (Not easy to defend!) Slowly, years of programing that America is the best, America is the strongest, America is the caretaker of the world–melted away.

I saw the motives for helping poor indigenous people with roads, schools, and nutritional aid–So we could rape their fruit and other crops while paying them meager wages–They owed us though. And I saw why we helped throw out that dictator in the Middle East so all those poor innocents could be spared–and gain access to their oil field at a very low rate–They owed us after all. And I also saw why we send billions in aid to Africa–so people read about that and not the mineral/natural resources we’ve been enslaving people to take from the Earth at alarmingly harmful rates–I mean, we did give them a lot of aid, no?

So, do I Hate my country? No. They are actually quite clever–and even more so for making almost an entire nation buy into it. But I got out–and it is my job–as well as other Americans and other powerhouse country citizens–to put these truths out there. People have to know not WHAT is going on in the world..but WHY.

Don’t Hate- ADVOCATE!

Ode to my Mother

My mother asked me to start writing again as it makes her happy–Who am I to say no to a woman who has given me life, love, comfort, advice, courage, and respect?

This is an ode to my mother–The strongest woman I know.

After a difficult pregnancy and being continually told she was having a boy, I came into the world a healthy baby girl on December 5th, 1989.

I changed her world.

I cried myself to sleep wrapped up in her green tattered robe, smelling of Oil of Olay and that comforting smell all Moms have, on the nights she worked late–resting easy only when she came in and tucked me in, said my prayers, and kissed my cheek.

She was my world.

We fought endlessly, struggled to get to school on time, went to softball games, cheerleading events, gymnastics meets, dance recitals, choir concerts, awards banquets, parent meetings..and did I mention fought endlessly?

She didn’t understand my world.

I grew wings, left home, and started my own life in foreign lands.

I turned her world upside down.

She called me that day to tell me the tragic news–I wanted to believe she was lying, tricking me, and I wanted to hate her for it even though I knew it was true. I came home to take care of her.

Our world collapsed–and together we rebuilt it.

She supported me as I again moved to foreign lands in search of dreams and more.

Her world brightened with mine.

She sings the song of beloved mother, friend, confidant. She’ll never know how sweet that tune is to my heart. Across oceans and continents, it warms my soul.

She is my world.

Living with a Travel Bug

The days have been passing faster and faster–I guess is what your parents mean when you’re a kid. Time used to stand still and now, before I know it, its Friday again–Back to Funky Buddha–then Saturday chores- Laundry, Cleaning, Groceries–then the work week starts all over again.

I’ve never been more appreciative of the 5-Day Western work week. Working 6 days a week is draining to say the least. I feel less productive actually. For those of you who don’t know, I work at a travel agency that specializes in treks throughout Nepal, Tibet, and Bhutan. I do online marketing and oversee the local advertising for this company. It’s a great job and I’m learning a lot in the ways of online marketing..and soon to learn more on Search Engine Optimization.

I find I’m becoming more Nepali, in the business sense anyways–in that I have my hand in a lot of different pots. It’s not uncommon to meet someone who owns a restaurant, a guesthouse, a fabric shop, and coffee plantation. People have so many different businesses here in completely different fields–but I guess its smart, so if one market goes down, you still have the others.

I’m not sure if this is exactly what I want to do for the rest of my life, but I am gaining experience and learning valuable skills for my future. The only problem is–per usual–my travel bug is starting to kick in.

I’ve been in Nepal for 9 months now–the longest I’ve stayed anywhere, ever, is 10 months..and now I know why–at that time–I start wanting to get out and do my own thing. This job is great–but its even more great because I can do it online. I wish I could move solely to online work–and perhaps I will after my 2 month break in Goa.

I need freedom and space or I’m just not motivated–This gypsy has been locked into the 9-5–or more like the 9-7!! — and she’s about to burst. If it wasn’t for this trip to Goa, I might do something rash like previous times in my life–quit everything, pack my bag, and move on to the next–

But I must say–I do love having a house to go home to and a place where I can leave my things safely..I know I can make both lifestyles work–the Universe is constantly working in my favor–I just have to go with the flow and all will be right =)

I’m back..

Both times I’ve come to this part of the world (India/Nepal) I get absolutely swept away. I never update my blog, I find it hard to keep in contact with people, and everything but my immediate world ceases to exist. I guess there is a very calm vibe about this place and a self-centeredness that goes with being a laid back traveler.

Almost 3 months have passed since I came to Nepal for the 2nd time. I’ve volunteered in an orphanage, met up with old friends, made new ones, attended a psy-trance festival, had a fire photo shoot with professional photographers, been in the newspaper numerous times, had a belly dance gig, enrolled in school, started learning Nepali, and got 2 jobs.

Phew..its been a crazy few months but I’ve finally decided to put down roots for a bit. I’ll be here until December (95%) for sure, October 100% sure. I’m going to try to keep up with my everyday life via blog again.

 

Enjoy ~

Here I go again..

I find myself on yet another eve of a great adventure. Like before, I’m sitting with a good friend, awesome family, wine in hand, still half packed with loads left to do..enjoying the comforts of home down to the very last hour.

It amazes me at how I get here. I don’t plan it..I stress it, I google it, I ponder it, I flip a coin over it..and wa-lah! I find myself sitting in my basement, doing the same thing I always do the night before departure.

I’ve said my goodbyes, I’ve seen the tears, cried the tears, and thanked the tears.I have no idea what the next stage of my life entails or where it will take me but I sense something great.

Guess we’ll literally see if the grass is greener on the other side..

~Lost in the East~

Westerns have talked for ages about the exotic, far off eastern lands. They’ve always captured our attention for their rich spices, vibrant colours, sacred traditions, ancient healing methods, and sheer wonder at how a world so beautiful and exotic can even exist.

For most, its nothing more than a though at the back of one’s mind..a culture or blip on the radar seen on the news or the latest holiday flick..For others, its a holiday filled with trips to the doctor, annoying cabbies & merchants, and an endless array of dirty towns that looked nothing like the brochures or pictures on Google Images.

For the select few..the East becomes home.. a sense of spirituality lives here..the culture gets into your veins..no matter how annoying it can become at times. The people, again, no matter how annoying at times, melt into your hearts. The sights, the food, the language, the traditions..all seem to weave themselves into the fabric of the eastern traveler.

My last entry was 2 months ago, before I found myself smack in the middle of this beautiful world. First Nepal, a wonder beyond all wonders..where the traveling community is strong, beautiful, and bright..Then India..Oh, beautiful India.

Nothing gets to me more than the sheer variety here. Beautiful colored saris, lovely women, garbage piles, atrocious men, hospitality, smells, food, spices, temples, Goa, police, parties, politics, corruption, over population, beautiful children, homeless children, the richest of the rich..The varying degrees of everything here are covered..from one end of the spectrum to the next.

India is a whirlwind..Nepal the calmer version of such. My little house in middle America will forever be my place of Origin..but for now, the East is my home. It’s in my heart..my soul..and after 2 months, I will return and make my life here for however long the cosmos shall allow me.

Namaste beautiful people..Namaste~