Although this trip was spontaneously conceived and planned
in a matter of days, I did have some defined goals in going on such an adventure.
I had placed myself in the “I only want to travel with
friends” category, and I wanted to know if that was just me being shy, or
whether I really felt that way. In going to Europe, I planned a solo trip, but
buffered it with a Scrabble tournament, as well as a few days with a friend. I
wanted to take trains and buses, to stay in hostels, and to try CouchSurfing.
Boy am I ever glad I took this trip!
Because I traveled alone, I had to cope with any
difficulties that came my way on my own. Getting sick as soon as I arrived in
Vienna made the transition difficult, and I even had to change my arrangements
in Prague. The Sleazy-Jet scandal was also quick thinking – a situation in
which I would have failed miserably even a year before. It was extremely encouraging
to see that I could persevere and troubleshoot obstacles in my path –
intimating that perhaps I’d be OK moving abroad somewhere in the future, too.
Hosteling and CouchSurfing, while completely different
experiences, were both totally awesome in their own ways. Hosteling in a party
city like Prague was great because the MadHouse was designed for young, solo
travelers. It was like a little utopia, in a way. I know not all hostels are
this amazing, but I’m lucky to have found this one this time around. And if the
World Scrabble Championships are ever in Prague…awesome..
Through Couchsurfing, I really got to throw myself out
there. I had to plan and organize my arrangements in both Vienna and Zurich. I
want to say that I am lucky to have had such amazing hosts, but I think they
are fairly representative of the kindness the community as a whole offers. I
look forward to hosting travelers one day when I’m not house-sitting everyday
already!
The bottom line is, I got to meet a lot of really cool
people, and learn so much about myself, of what I really am capable of when I
force myself to push my risk-aversive nature aside, and just live.
I did learn that while I do enjoy traveling solo, I don’t
enjoy being by myself. By that, I mean visiting tourist attractions by myself,
eating by myself, etc. I’m more than happy to travel solo and meet people to be
touristy with, eat with, drink with. That’s all great, and I wanted to prove
that true or false to myself this trip. And I think I proved it true, though
when I do travel solo again, I will need to consider how much stuff I am
willing to do on my own, because that did get tiring.
That said, if I had my choice, I’d prefer to travel with a
friend or two. At the end of the day, my long-term close friends mean everything
to me, and I love sharing experiences with people that I will be talking to a
month down the road. I’m all for brief encounters with people around the world,
but ultimately, my close friends are everything.
One other helpful nugget I picked up is that central Europe
is not somewhere I will be living. While I greatly enjoyed every city I
visited, I don’t think I’d thrive in the winter weather, and I prefer the, as
Jesse Day calls it, the “making it up as I go along” ethos of Asia. It’s no
wonder the only cty in the USA I really want to move to is Portland, which is
the closest the US comes to that ethos. Good to know, though I won’t count
Western Europe out without visiting it first (whenever that is…)
So, what’s next?
Well, it’s been a month since I got home, and my brain is
churning. I still have a good chunk of money saved up, and no real desire to go
out and get a full time job I don’t want when I can go out and see the world.
I have a couple of friends who seem very ready to hit the
road. I would like to go back to Asia, next. I definitely didn’t get to see all
of Southeast Asia by any stretch of the imagination, and maybe I could visit
some other parts of Asia, too.
But this is all speculation, as I work out a couple of other
life details, and see f my friends are ready to go all-in. Give me another
month. Though I can hardly wait…
I have aspirations of maybe moving abroad later in 2013, or
maybe traveling to South America in 2014 for the World Cup and another
backpacking odyssey (Jesses, I’m looking at you). I’d lke to go to the World
Scrabble Championships at the end of 2013, the Godswill African Championships
in Nigeria one year not too far in the future, and to travel or even get a work
visa in Australia/New Zealand.
But hey, there’s time, and I’ve got some money. If there’s
anything this trip taught me, it’s that the world is out there, and I am
determined to see as much of it as I can, especially before I have to get a day
job.
But for now, it’s time for a mini-journey. I’m on a plane to
New Orleans right now (yeah OK I didn't post this for a couple more weeks). Although I quashed my anxiety issues with my future in
the last third of 2012, those anxiety demons are still getting the best of me
in my Scrabble pursuits, and this is my chance to start exorcising them. That,
plus amazing food and drink I got a taste of last year.
So yeah, time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight that
is going to be 2013. Thanks for reading this blog, and I hope to share a travel
experience with you one day – always feel free to ask if you have any
questions, or any plans you want to share. Or if, you know, you wanna team up for an adventure. :)
Love always,
dacrON
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