Limbo

I'm one of those people who don't really get too excited about anything until it's actually happening. Although I leave in less than 48 hours for a 5-week trek around Eastern Europe, I don't think the reality of the situation has set in yet. It was like this when I left to study abroad in Rome, too. I watched the animated progress of our flight path on the video screen with a sense of detachment, almost like it was just a video game, not even real. Only when we were hovering somewhere above the Atlantic did I think about what I was getting into.

Fortunately, I didn't have to think much, because at that time in my life Europe was just a name in my mind, a fuzzy continent on the other side of the globe. Rome was just a place where they used to speak Latin, unarguably the most unnecessarily confusing language of all time. In fact, the main reason I wanted to study abroad was to avoid another grueling semester of computer science classes, and travel was just a means of escape rather than a worthy goal in itself.

Things are different now. Although I am still woefully ignorant of world affairs, I've at least made an effort to read up on the histories and cultures of the places I am visiting, which should ultimately make my travels more satisfying. Far from being an escape, travel has become a lifestyle I want to continue.