Traveling by myself is still a pretty new thing to me. The first trip that I really count as traveling alone as an adult was a trip to Marathon in the Keys in 2012 to be recognized for my first Aylesworth scholarship. Though I met up with the other scholarship winners and the attendees at the awards ceremony, I was on my own for much of the time. I remember sitting on the dock of Banana Bay Resort late at night, wanting to see the stars through the clouds, and feeling absolutely joyful. I had a feeling of so much possibility that I hadn’t felt in a long time.
Since then, I’ve had the opportunity to travel alone a few different times. On one trip I challenged myself a tad too far past the edges of my comfort zone (perhaps a story for another post some day), and I cut that trip short. Otherwise I’ve had really awesome trips to Savannah, San Francisco, and the Netherlands.
Even though I’ve traveled pretty extensively whether alone or not, I still get nervous before a big trip. I got nervous before my recent Puerto Rico trip, and now I’m getting nervous before leaving for France. Mostly it’s that good kind of nervous, but some fears are definitely mingled in there. I’m a little nervous about getting around and getting lost, even though I know the metro is fantastic in Paris. I’m also nervous about leaving Willow and Rusty behind, even though I know they’ll be in good hands.
Other than being a bit paranoid, I’m excited about the adventures I’ll get myself into. I’m looking forward to meeting new people, dancing tango on the Seine, eating delicious French food, drinking French beer and wine, experiencing Mont St-Michel, etc…
I guess big trips will always challenge my comfort zone, and that’s part of the reason I like traveling. If you are doing it right, you don’t know exactly what you’ll find when you get there.
Oh, one other quick thought: It’s been 364 days since I started my blog. I started it when I did so that I could blog about my trip to the Netherlands. The fact that I’m leaving for France essentially on the anniversary of the start of Living Darinly is something nice to think about.
Je m’excite pour ma grande aventure!
