a very wise friend asked me how I thought I would deal with life on the road. you know, without all the "creature comforts" to which I've grown accustom.
at the time I kind of just brushed off the question. how hard could it be, I thought to myself. i'll be seeing the world! if I can't live with wavy, kinky, frizzy hair for a year then I have alot of growing to do!
well... I've gotten over the curly hair thing...it's really only annoying on super hot days when my fresh from the shower hair takes 4 hours to dry and it remains sticky and damp, clinging to the back of my neck. nope...the hair is not the problem. a ponytail fixes all...
Jason is not the problem either. we've worked out a pretty good system for staying off each others nerves (except today which I'll blame on the hot & tireds). if anything he is too patient and too understanding and gives into my pleas for a foot massage more than anyone in their right mind should!
none of the blogs I read while dreaming of this trip mentioned a word about how hard it is to travel longterm. or maybe some did but I just dismissed them as being wimps. but I suspect that the people like me, that find life on the road a bit overwelming, are afraid to talk about it.
like...how lame is that to complain about traveling around the world for a year. boohoo. pity party for Corina...
well, for those of you with a sympathetic ear for a homesick girl...sometimes traveling sucks. it sucks when it's a travel day AGAIN and you have to pack up the meager belongings you carry around with you from place to place and it's 28 degrees and you get lost on the way to the hostel and you haven't eaten in 6 hours. it sucks when you get a sore throat that never goes away no matter how much 'downtime' you had in San Sebastian. it sucks when you really want to spend every day exploring Barcelona and your body says 'holy crap, you are almost 40! did you really think you could do ALL that in one day?'
so how am I adjusting to life on the road?not as well as I'd hoped but probably as well as my wise friend would have predicted. if I'm completely honest with you...the phrase "what the 'h, e, double hockey sticks' was I thinking" has run through my head on more than one occasion.
but then I'll spend the afternoon in Barcelona, hanging out with Jay and our Bordeaux host, Berenise, at Gaudi's absolutely, awe-inspiring Sagrada Familia and all the pain is forgotten. if only for a moment...
adios,
corina
4 comments:
Hang in there! Travel can be a lot of work which is why I've slowed it right down. I can't stand being on the move a lot and have no idea how people move every three days or sometimes less. It's hard work and being sick and lost sucks.
Long term travel has plenty of bad days but the good part about being away for so long is that it gives you time for all the great times ahead! Remember to take a holiday from your hliday from time to time whether it be renting a room in one place you really like for a week or two and just hanging out or lying on the beach. Don't forget to relax.
I think I get the homesick thing. I can imagine myself being in a similar place if I were you. Do you want me to fly out and meet you and give you a massage? Maybe I could write it off as a work expense. Hmmm, should have thought of that before you left :)
Here's to hoping that the travel blues turn around for you soon.
um, what can I say?
You haven't said anything about the pillows you have been given to sleep on. Did you pack your own?
I am sure that said wise friend wishes she was wrong (and I'm sure she was!)...yet still might want to say, "I told you so".
said friend is for eating sugar with...not for sugar coating...and she misses you lots!
fries & a movie with Emily and a massage by Kara and I'd be set for another month of travel :D
oh well...will have to lounge on a beach somewhere in Italy instead.
Kirsty we are trying to slow it down but part of my exhaustion comes from the inability to stop thinking about what is around the corner. it takes me weeks to read a book because my mind wanders back to the never ending questions of where we will be sleeping and how we will be getting there and how can we do that and stay within our budget...
hoping it will get to be old hat soon enough!
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