One Less Item on the To-Do List

Set up blog for my life-changing trip around the world. Check. This is my first entry, in case the bare blog doesn't give that away already. I love to journal but it's always been something personal and private. So private, I don't even think my own roommate or family knows I keep one. But now, I'm ready and willing to turn myself and my thoughts pretty much inside-out so as to recreate this experience for you all as I go. I realize how fortunate I am to have this opportunity to see the world in such a unique way. Really, to see the world period. So many people don't find the chance to get out and see the world and all its beauty. That is why it is my mission, through this blog, to bring the world to all of you. This spring 2011 semester I will be traveling one full lap around the world aboard a refurbished cruise line named the M.V. Explorer and stopping in 10 different countries (Dominica, Brazil, Ghana, South Africa, Mauritius, India, Singapore, Vietnam, China, Japan and a stop in Hawaii). The set up is: no class while in port but hit the books hard between destinations. The average length of stay in each port is 5-7 days, the exceptions being the smaller islands like Dominica and Mauritius. It's been so hard to restrain myself from trying to plan the whole trip out before it's even begun. I truly want my first (and definitely not my last) taste of the world to be as unpredictable and unplanned as possible. I believe that is how I will the gain the most from this experience. Already, I've gained so much. The whole idea for this semester was born fall of my freshman year when I overheard a few people discussing the program. I was instantly hooked, googled it the second I found a computer, and the rest is history. Here I am watching a dream come true. It's unbelievable and it's proven to me that all things are possible. When I saw the price tag, I nearly gave up on the spot but there was just something about this voyage that seemed so right for me, something I couldn't just simply let go of. I have the travel bug and it's only cure (I think) is to get out there and travel. I'm one who really appreciates nature and other cultures. Honestly, I am just fascinated by it all. I drink it up any chance I get. Recently, I spent two hours in the half-aisle travel writing section at Borders skimming the books that filled the shelves. One of my favorite channels on television is The Travel Channel. International students, beware because I will suck as much information out of you as I can until I feel like I'm breathing the air of your home country.  I want a sample of everything! I'm obsessed. haha. Call me greedy, but I promise there is something good that can come out of this madness. An experience like Semester at Sea will shape me into an even better world citizen. This is going to be to be the trip that launches my future. I hope to not only better understand the world and the people in it, but I also hope to better understand myself. This is a growing experience. I know absolutely no one going on this trip nor any previous travelers but that is just the way I want it. This little detail adds to the adventure. I want to stretch and tug and pull my comfort zone to new borders. I've seen what that sort of discomfort can create. Last May, I spent a week in Haiti and my eyes were opened to the strength of the human spirit despite the most devastating of circumstances. It really put life into perspective and further fueled my desire to get out there and experience all that the world has to offer, all of the lessons it has to teach. In just a week, I felt transformed. I can't even imagine what a semester and 104 days in 10 different countries will do to me. Watch out world! I'm planning on doing my part in this world, whatever it takes, wherever it takes me. This trip should clarify or at least get me moving in the direction of finding my place in the world, my purpose here. I'm so excited to sail away on this adventure. Now it's time to start strategically squeezing a semester's worth of my life into two suitcases and a backpack.  hmmm....