In the Beginning...

“Once you have traveled, the voyage never ends, but is played out over and over again in the quietest chambers. The mind can never break off from the journey.” – Pat Conroy

There have been so many great moments in the past 5 months, but some of the best moments for me were those that were completely unexpected.  They came from situations that were spontaneous and not something that was in the plans.  The most meaningful memories were not what I would have guessed them to be; not climbing to the top of a mountain and seeing a brilliant, ancient Buddha effigy standing amidst the clouds, or riding an elephant through the jungle for the first time (although those were both incredible experiences!).  Ultimately, my favorite moments were less thrilling in a sense, but the most moving and certainly the moments I'll remember when I'm seventy.  The kind you wish you could freeze and replay over and over again.  I hope to capture some of these moments in writing, because they are worth remembering, and because writing them down makes them seem real.  Some of these experiences felt so surreal that even in the moment I had to stop and question "Is this real life?!"  Some stories I'll leave untold because I couldn't do them justice if I tried.  Others are very personal and the meaningfulness behind them might be lost on others.  Those I will keep to myself; precious moments stored as little private treasures inside of my mind and my heart.  

So for my first story...where to even begin?  Well, for the sake of indecision, I'll start at the start.  Typical, I know.

I was standing in the terminal at the Bahrain airport waiting for my connecting flight to Bangkok.  I was two flights in and very much over the monotony of planes and airports,  just wishing to magically teleport to my final destination.  Anyone who has flown internationally can most likely sympathize - unless you are one of those weird people who likes 8 hour plane rides - which I don't get (but to each his own, right?).  It was my first time flying overseas alone, and I didn't know a soul on the other side of my journey east.  Being the calm and collected travel-junkie-wannabe that I am, I would never admit it, but I was scared.  Like freaking-out-inside-my-head-lets-get-this-over-with kind of scared.  Not knowing what to expect in a given situation is my Achilles' heel.  Who would I be working with?  Would we get along?  Would Thailand be like what I imaged it to be?  Would the job itself be stressful? And on, and on, and on, and...

So I was leaning against a large column in this terminal.  The call to prayer was bouncing between the walls around me and echoing from the high ceiling above me as I watched robed men and women shuffle past.  I happened to glance behind me and saw what appeared to be an American man leaning against the same column.  For those of you who haven't had the opportunity to travel, let me explain something.  Seeing another white (or any color for that matter), English speaking person is one of the most exciting things that could happen to you when you are tired, hungry, and lonely in a foreign place.  With that being said, I was excited.  The man was wearing a button-down cotton shirt, khaki pants, and leaning against a massive, obnoxiously bright yellow backpack.  He had "I'm flying to Thailand to work for a teen travel company" written all over him!  Because of my excitement and my sudden desperation to speak English, I overcame my usual shyness and asked the most obvious, rhetorical-sounding question I could have possibly asked: (as we are waiting for our connecting flight to BANGKOK) "So you're going to Bangkok?" He very nicely replied to my stupid question.  My next question was slightly less dumb. "What will you be doing in Thailand?"  He answered by telling me that he would be leading teens through Thailand on service and adventure trips.  My mouth probably dropped open before I asked him if he was working with Rustic Pathways.  He said yes.  I was astounded that out of the hundreds of people surrounding me, this man that I had already assumed in my head to be a fellow employee, actually was a fellow employee.  Whoa.  Jet lag at its finest.  And so we were friends from then on.  After staff training, I only worked with him for a week or so, but that last plane ride was somehow more comforting because he was there.

I've come along way since that day in Bahrain.  I've now taken many flights, buses, minivans, and song taos alone.  I've stayed in hotels alone, walked around new cities alone, and I've found that sometimes it's really nice to just be alone.  I cherish and love the memories I share with my new friends, but there's something about the independence of traveling solo that's empowering.  It makes you really observe your surroundings, and gives you the opportunity to view things that are common place in America, in a new light.  Experiences that you take for granted.  Like ordering a meal.  Buying a Coke.  Tucking yourself into bed for the night.  These are the situations we are in all of the time, but now the perspective has completely changed!  You're doing the same things you usually do, however it's in a new context.  You are forced to reevaluate your "normal" way of interacting with this situation and react accordingly on the fly.  It's exciting!  And it's come to be one of the most meaningful aspects of traveling for me. 

I know this was a simple, relatively unexciting story.  But it was one of those moments, that in hindsight, really stood out to me.  Why?  Because it's a story that shows growth; it highlights the importance of the journey as opposed to the destination while traveling.  So thanks to Zach for being my travel buddy those scary first days in Thailand, and for teaching me the concept of "Sabai sabai" during my moments of panic and anxiety.  During my time in Thailand, I have definitely taken that expression (which essentially means no worries; everything's good) to heart and have become a much less anxious and stressed out person because of it! 

xoxo Chrissy