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Entry tags:
pre-travel
So, what were my thoughts, desires, expectations before I left, while I was planning?
When I first started my planning for a road trip, it was country-wide. This was in part because I wanted to see the country I live in, in a relaxed, exploring kind of way. I also wanted to meet the people who live around the country, learn who they are. I had also had some hope of meeting people I knew only online in various parts of the country. I wanted to see the various environments around the country, the beauty, the variety, the strangeness. I wanted to have seen the various things I hear about as being in the USA but had never actually been to. I wanted to feel like I am really part of this country, rather than just the North East where I have spent most of my time (indeed, mostly in New England). At this point, it was largely a theoretical exercise, if a very engaging one.
I wanted to explore on my own to show that I could, and with other people to have someone to share things with. I wanted to remember who I am when I'm not stuck in a pattern of working every day at the same job. I wanted to break out of that as thoroughly as I could, to get a break between working and school, to have few or no expectations or requirements to deal with (internal and external). The 'break between work and school' reason has been the reason that I have given when asked, as it's most easily understood. However, I think the 'remembering who I am' is probably the biggest reason.
I find that I need to travel regularly, perhaps in part because that was what we _did_ growing up. There were numerous driving trips down the east coast, where there were various places we stopped along the way, and I didn't really have much of a sense of being in a rush. I think these tended to be approximately yearly, which is also about how often I start feeling unhappy if I have not traveled recently.
When it became clear that I did not have the funds, and it was not worth the stress of staying in my job long enough to get the funds to do the entire country, I focused on the parts of the country which have a stronger pull.
The Southwest has, for as long as I have been aware of its mix of sun and heat and native tribes and beautiful surroundings, called to me. For the immense amounts of open space, for the national parks, monuments, and similar. For the native peoples who survived the invasion of Europeans, and still have large amounts of their culture remaining. It was simply somewhere that I _had_ to visit. I can't really explain it more than that.
Florida was in part because my parents live there, but also because the Everglades fascinate me. As do the Keys, but that is for a future trip.
Honduras was actually not part of the trip until very late, when my mom mentioned that I could probably get my scuba certification for about the same price as in Orlando at a much more pleasant location. After investigation, Honduras was it.
I've wanted to learn to scuba for as long as I can remember being aware of the possibility, in large part because it seems like I could get as close as is possible to flying under my own power.
When I first started my planning for a road trip, it was country-wide. This was in part because I wanted to see the country I live in, in a relaxed, exploring kind of way. I also wanted to meet the people who live around the country, learn who they are. I had also had some hope of meeting people I knew only online in various parts of the country. I wanted to see the various environments around the country, the beauty, the variety, the strangeness. I wanted to have seen the various things I hear about as being in the USA but had never actually been to. I wanted to feel like I am really part of this country, rather than just the North East where I have spent most of my time (indeed, mostly in New England). At this point, it was largely a theoretical exercise, if a very engaging one.
I wanted to explore on my own to show that I could, and with other people to have someone to share things with. I wanted to remember who I am when I'm not stuck in a pattern of working every day at the same job. I wanted to break out of that as thoroughly as I could, to get a break between working and school, to have few or no expectations or requirements to deal with (internal and external). The 'break between work and school' reason has been the reason that I have given when asked, as it's most easily understood. However, I think the 'remembering who I am' is probably the biggest reason.
I find that I need to travel regularly, perhaps in part because that was what we _did_ growing up. There were numerous driving trips down the east coast, where there were various places we stopped along the way, and I didn't really have much of a sense of being in a rush. I think these tended to be approximately yearly, which is also about how often I start feeling unhappy if I have not traveled recently.
When it became clear that I did not have the funds, and it was not worth the stress of staying in my job long enough to get the funds to do the entire country, I focused on the parts of the country which have a stronger pull.
The Southwest has, for as long as I have been aware of its mix of sun and heat and native tribes and beautiful surroundings, called to me. For the immense amounts of open space, for the national parks, monuments, and similar. For the native peoples who survived the invasion of Europeans, and still have large amounts of their culture remaining. It was simply somewhere that I _had_ to visit. I can't really explain it more than that.
Florida was in part because my parents live there, but also because the Everglades fascinate me. As do the Keys, but that is for a future trip.
Honduras was actually not part of the trip until very late, when my mom mentioned that I could probably get my scuba certification for about the same price as in Orlando at a much more pleasant location. After investigation, Honduras was it.
I've wanted to learn to scuba for as long as I can remember being aware of the possibility, in large part because it seems like I could get as close as is possible to flying under my own power.