Sailing Away from Safe Harbors

The blog post I wrote 2 weeks ago...before actually leaving for Brazil.  But better late than never, right? :)

I did it.  I jumped on the bandwagon and started a blog. 

I actually need a blog for my experiences in Brazil (need as in I'm required to do blog posts for one of my classes there), but I also really just wanted to start one.  So far in my life I have lived in the US, Tonga, and China; and two weeks from now, I will be in Brazil.  It's a little bit crazy to think about; sometimes I sign up for things so impulsively...but then they really happen!  Like now.  But the point is, I didn't do a great job documenting or journal-ing about my experiences in all those places, and I really want to do better.  I want to remember all the cool stuff I do!  Typing is so much faster than handwriting, and if I think that people are reading it, I just might find the incentive to keep it up. :)

This blog will mostly be to document adventures---since I plan to have a lot to share---but I will probably also post unrelated stuff every now and then.  Is it weird that it took me forever to come up with a good name for my blog?  I wanted it to capture the spirit of travel, but not necessarily feel limited to JUST travels.  Then I found this quote by Mark Twain:

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do.  So throw off the bowlines.  Sail away from the safe harbor.  Catch the trade winds in your sails.  Explore.  Dream.  Discover."

I love that.  I tell people that travel is addicting, and it is.  I love it.  But it also scares me.  It's not easy to pack up and leave everything familiar and take off to a new place.  I've been home from China for just under 6 months, and I'm taking off again...for 6 more months.

There isn't a word to describe how I feel right now.  I am terrified.  I feel so inadequate.  My Portuguese is not nearly as good as I wish it were.  I'm sad to think of all the things I will miss while I'm away.  But more than all that, I am excited.  I am thrilled at the thought of meeting so many new people, exploring a new country, trying new foods, and trying to soak in as much of Brazil as I possibly can in 6 months.

Utah, 10 more days.  Then I'm leaving the safe harbors...and heading to Brazil.

I can't wait! :)