I have 4 weeks of vacation time beginning this Friday. I narrowed my options down to three choices: America, Cape Town S. Africa, or traveling around Southeast Asia. After considering how damn HOT Indonesia is, I pretty much knocked out the States and Asia of the running. So what if I went to Cape Town in December for a month? I absolutely love it there! However, this time will be much cooler, with a high temperature of around 70 degrees… but still warm enough for the beach. I think the cooler weather is just what I need to regain some vigor. Blue skies, hiking, going to the beach…

What is it about traveling that fascinates most people? Is it the escape from something, the adventure of a new place, or just the attraction of exotic cultures? It’s strange that even though I’m living on Java, I still feel the need to explore new places. I’d say my top 5 places right now would have to be:

1. Cape Town, South Africa
2. Sydney, Australia
3. Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia
4. Argentina and S. America
5. Rome

I think I’ll be able to see the first three sometime in the next year, but the bottom two will definitely have to wait.

I love boarding the first plane of a series of hops to a new country. I love strolling through Kuala Lumpur at 1am waiting for the next flight. The wonderment of where all the people you pass are coming from, and where their beat red, sunburned faces are going next. I love the nervous excitement of arriving at your destination before you exit the airport. I love hearing the strange languages, and understanding the ones that aren’t foreign to my ears.

Traveling has gotten into my blood. I’ve always loved it, but thought that after a year of this living overseas stuff, that I’d be tired of it, and would wish to return home. It’s actually completely opposite – I can’t wait to see what else lies out here, and have no desire to return to the States. The rest of the world is fascinating to me, and I feel like a wide-eyed child, absorbing every detail, perspective, and experience presented before me.