The Snaking Line

I've been back in Georgia for almost two weeks now spending time with family and taking some time to relax and get stuff done before we set off. In my mind I'd like to think of this process of planning, buying tickets/miscellaneous trip related items, and getting prepared to be on the road for 9 months as the snaking line you have to stand in before getting on a roller-coaster. Thinking of snaking around and around while the anticipation, fear, and excitement build before getting on the ride and screaming your face off is a pretty good simile for what I am feeling right now... We have been waiting and saving and planning for what feels like forever, and now we are next in line to get on the ride. I am excited to get on and experience what this trip has to offer, but nervous to leave everything that is comfortable and familiar to me behind.. My goal this trip is to not be tied down by what is "normal" in our culture and to live in each moment, accepting what it has to give, and learn from it. I laugh when people say "well you guys are going on a long vacation, aren't you?".... I'd like to think of it as an educational experience. I want to come back with more knowledge of the world around me and become a better person from it.  Oh and to do yoga everyday. I want to be a yoga badass by the time we return in 9 months :)

The past 3 days I have packed and unpacked my pack more times than I can count, minimizing the amount of clothes each time I pack it up again. This has been the hardest part... Thinking of what I need and what can stay. I've tried to narrow it down to 4 pairs of shoes, 5 bottoms, 7 tops, 3 jackets, 7 pairs of underwear, 3 pairs of socks, and a bathing suit. I like to have options, so this has been tough. I am trying to remind myself that I can buy stuff as we go along, but I'm so used to not buying stuff just for the purpose of shopping that it's going to be hard for me. I think I've conditioned myself out of compulsive shopping.... That's a good thing!

My next post will be from close to the Arctic Circle, in Iceland. I cannot wait to see the glaciers, black sand beach, volcanic rock, and beautiful scenery. By that time I will have reached the end of the snaking line and will be on my way to one amazing ride. I'll be screaming my face off inside, with feelings of excitement and anxiousness for what's around the bend. I hope you will join me as we see amazing things, eat amazing food, and meet amazing people. Prepare to be amazed! I know I am almost prepared... :)

Yesterday was a wake-up to reality.. Our kind friends, Paul and Kerrie, threw a joint Birthday/Bon Voyage party for my hubs Paul and I last night. It was so much fun, and we both enjoyed seeing all the people we care about before we leave Jacksonville.. Which is in 13 days. The question I kept getting was: "Are you excited?" to which is a simple reply, "Yes!". Next was "Are you nervous"... "....Yes....".. Then came "Are you ready? Are all your things packed up?" And that's when it hit me... My anxiety kicked in and I went into a panic. We leave in less than 2 weeks and I've only packed a few boxes. The garage sale stuff is a MESS. We have no place to stay in our first stop. How am I going to get the sofa out of the door? What if the POD does not fit all of our stuff? What the heck am I bringing in my bag? All these questions have flown around my brain since I got in bed last night.

Today I picked out the clothes I'm thinking of bringing. Checked out AirBnB (WHICH IS AWESOME) and booked a place for the first night in Reykjavik, and booked this little gem for the other nights in Vik, where "Holocene" is filmed. (See previous posts if you don't know what I'm taking about)

http://booking.com/4b8df9cf5443eHótel Dyrhólaeyhttp://booking.com/4b8df9cf5443e

I also organized most of the garage sale stuff. Sold our table and chairs, arranged for our TV and sofa to get picked up and paid for. So, now I am left with the issue of getting the sofa out the door....I guess I will have to wait and see how that ends up!

To go with the latest post.. can't get this song out of my head right now! Fitting, I know.

http://youtu.be/4B-t-WDRuXQ

The. End.

Today officially wraps up my life as I know it as a teacher. I have forever left the school where I worked for 4 1/2 years. I do not know what to feel, fear or happiness? To be honest, I just feel tired right now... this year wore me out!

I had a wild ride at my school, with ups and downs, but the people and kids I worked with there made every day worthwhile. Now I am in travel-limbo for almost a year. Thankfully I have a solid "everything will be okay" attitude and don't feel the anxiety I thought I would experience. It helps to be a "do-er" and I definitely know that I am a "do-er". If I say I am going to do something, I do it. I put my mind to it, find a strategy, and just do it. I think that's one of my good qualities if I do say so myself. ;) It helps take the stress out of situations (i.e. leaving a career and travel the world with a backpack) because I know that in the end, if I need/want to do something, it will get done.

On another note, summer camp starts up (for me..it started for everyone else Monday but I was at postplanning) tomorrow so I will be hitting the ground running! Then 10 weeks until we start prepping for our big move out in August, and set off to Atlanta to be with family until we dash off into the wild blue yonder. It's all happening very fast.

For now, I will focus on having fun with the kids and camp and try to survive the hot Florida summer!

Teaching is done! School is out! On to bigger and better things.

G'Day, Australia.

Well today's Tuesday, and as some well know, it's the cheapest day of the week to book a ticket. So I took advantage of this beautiful Tuesday here in Jacksonville, Florida and decided to check out some prices. Sure enough, there was a good deal and we will be bound for Australia on April 7, 2014. I hope all our Aussie friends are ready, because we will be there with bells on! So, that's all our major flights done and booked. Now we need to check out how we will get from Australia to somewhere in South America.... But that can wait a little while.
Now I will begin really looking around my house and see what I don't particularly "need" anymore and start listing that stuff on eBay. I also plan on having a huge "moving" sale sometime this summer. When you know you will be out on the road for an extended period of time, you begin to realize all that stuff that has accumulated over the years is really ridiculous and extremely unnecessary... Hopefully SOMEONE out there will buy my crap! And the clothes I've accumulated..wow. I know I can only stuff so many articles of clothing in my bag, so some of those old clothes I haven't worn in years have gotta go.. I'm going to eBay my little heart out! 

Passport has arrived!

Well, as said in the previous post yesterday, I had a feeling it would be coming! Almost a month to the day from sending it, my UK passport has arrived. I feel like James Bond or something. I can pick and choose which citizenship I want to take whenever and wherever I want. I have a pretty odd British accent though...... I also got this sweet keyboard for my iPad because I am awful at tying on the screen... Mywordsusuallylooklikethis because I seem to neglect the space bar somehow. Thank you Groupon Goods! For Dinner tonight we will be having Heinz baked beans in honor of my new citizenship (half, officially). And it's pouring rain. How fitting!!!!

Happy May Day! Booked another flight segment!

In honor of May Day, I have another flight purchased for Paul and me! I'm not really sure what the significance of May Day is, but I figured we are month closer to our departure so I should get serious about looking at flights and booking up.So here's what we have coming up.. We head to India after a few other stops on January 8th. My wonderful Uncle Ian and Aunt Celia from England will be in Goa the same time we are there! We will be in India from the January 8th to February 4th. From there we will fly to Thailand and stay for two weeks (+\-), head on over to Vietnam for a little over a month, and then our next stop is Taipei, Taiwan. 

Eventually we will end up in Australia, around April. Haven't gotten that far yet... And if we are lucky, we will be able to use Buddy Passes for our Aus - South America leg. What a wonderful offer from our dear family friend and longtime Delta flight attendant, Martina. OMG if we could manage to get a pass on that flight, it would be awesome. Who cares if I'm in an airport for 48 hours, as long as we get to where we want to go.

September will be here before we know it! Good thing I have a summer job lined up and we are really serious about saving. Also got an e-mail today informing me that my UK passport I have applied for will be making its way to my home via DHL. Now, I'm not sure if it just the passport documents I had to submit or the passport itself. That will be another celebratory post for another time. :)

Can I Ashram You a Question?

Okay, so I was watching a show last night on BBC America with Gordon Ramsay, and he went to an Ashram in India.. and it made me think.. I love yoga, and veganism, and cooking... I need to go to an Ashram. Anyone know anything about these mysterious places? I need a guru... I've heard they are around $6/night for simple accommodations, food, and YOGA classes.. That is right up my alley. I guess I now have another thing to research! I'm learning so much about all these places we are going to far, that's the cool thing about travel. It's almost like a research project that you actually get to experience, rather than research, report, and turn in. Hence why travel is the best education. Take that, 4 year degree.

It's real, folks.

Two major things have happened lately.. Yesterday I turned in my official notice that I am resigning from my school district. Today my British passport application officially arrived in Washington, DC at the UK Embassy. I guess this means it is officially official. I (and my brave husband) am seriously quitting my job to travel for 9 months and live like a gypsy. The only upside is I do have a home to come back to, I am not perpetually on the road. I have also calculated how much vaccinations will be to visit the other places on itinerary where I may catch some crazy disease, and have decided to wait until I leave this country where medical care is ridiculously priced... And this advice is coming from a health professional at the state health department! I just want to thank Barbara at the UF Health Center in Jacksonville for the advice to wait to get to a country where they have universal healthcare. Gotta love it. I would much rather do that than spend around 1300 on vaccinations when all is said and done. Redic.

We have just had Spring Break here, which means we only have 9 weeks left of school after this week... After that I have 10 weeks of YMCA Summer Camp and then a month-ish to prepare before heading home and shipping off from Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. ATL Here we come. I feel a bit overwhelmed, but I know with hard work and meticulous saving this will all work out. A UK passport may come in handy, too. So I hope those kind folks at the Embassy give me the a-o.k. and I get that maroon passport to match my blue one. All I can think in my mind is, "eeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!" with anticipation and nervousness for this all to be officially real. That day is sure to come sooner than I know.