278, 279 days ... ready or not here I come !

Some of you may remember, but I was supposed to head to Australia June 2009, however, due to my decision (and now I realize it was the most appropriate decision) I had to postpone school for the following semester. Since April 15th, 2009 there has been 279 days which went by so fast, I am still in disbelief that I am heading down under. (mind you, I am writing this message form the Vancouver airport, yet my future still does not feel real)

To give you a little insight into how much I am in disbelief, here is a story about the night before departure. My plane to Vancouver departs at 9am, which means I have to be at the airport in Toronto 2 hours before departure, and I am still packing, at 4am on Tuesday 19th, 2009.

Now, some of you know me as a perfectionist and some know that I am very organized, usually much in advance, but I have been taking on a new form. No checklist, only a mental note on what I have to get done before my departure. I did not officially start getting ready till after the holidays, but tried to get somethings done here and there.

I now recognize that 2 weeks to prepare for a year of adventures might not be the ideal time line, especially when you are trying to box up your life entirely. So frantic and in overdrive mode, I kept packing, uploading my new computer, and re-organizing my room all day Monday. I still had loads of running around to do Monday morning, so I did not technically start my packing till about 4pm. Ha, I am looking back now thinking what was I thinking and "hope I did not forget anything!" (but I did: my travel mug!)

The only thing I did not get around to doing is write a thoughtful note on my blog. I wanted to share what I was feeling the night before I am heading off to an unknown yet super popular and fun place. I remember having some juicy ideas I was going to write about, but to be honest, I have lost them all while I was trying to finish up my last minute tasks. I was so exhausted from Mondays events, that I slept through a 4h flight to Vancouver.

My plane to Hong Kong is delayed an extra 2 hours, and I am trying to think hard on what I was going to share here but I feel useless :-)

Maybe after my 14h flight, or even on it, I will get my creative juices flowing.

I did want to mention here that I fell very luck to have such an amazing and supportive family and friends! You all know who you are and know that I am so grateful to have you in my life.

I have always been an independent soul (following my dreams), but over the past year I have realized how wonderful life is when you can celebrate, together with those who care for you. At times when I had the faintest doubt of what the future holds, your support gave me a chance to re-think and keep on the path assigned to me. So thank you everyone! And I know that this trip is only a tiny experience of the big picture :-)

What I found strange through this experience: now that I am comfortable in a place and surrounded by wonderful people, it is much more challenging to maintain focus on what my goals were in the past. I always felt that traveling was my calling, but all last week I found myself questioning why am I leaving all these wonderful people. And the only answer I can find is what my brother pointed out to me: Leaving people on a good note makes it a pleasure to come home!

Thank you all for an unforgettable year and I will make it my goal to keep you all in the loop throughout my travels and be a witness as I conquer my dreams :-)

Ok, and if I have to tell you one thing that makes me nervous (still): thinking about the size of these spiders who are all waiting for me to land!!! Why did I even bother packing closed toed shoes.

xoxo
R :-)