Well, so much for my travel blog.
I am over two months into my trip and am making my first entry. There isn't much in the way of an excuse, other than that we've just been incredibly busy. My internet time is spent uploading pictures, banking, and emailing my Mom.
Why now?
Better late than never. And perhaps hindsight will make for an interesting narrative. Anyway, where to start ...
Maybe I should explain why I am in a completely different area of the world from where I had originally planned to go. My boyfriend and I had coordinated our departures for around the same day. He was leaving for his home, Taiwan, to see his family and serve his mandatory military service. I was leaving for the Middle East.
I was budgeting and re-budgeting what I would have left over for school when I got back from my trip. It started looking like I needed to choose between the trip and school. Having sacrificed a good deal of time and sanity to my crap serving job in order to scrape together what I did have, I was naturally leaning toward the self- gratuitous option. My boyfriend suggested, not for the first time, that I go with him instead. Free accomodation, handsome tourguide and translator included. Tempting. So that's what I picked. Not exempt of much inner turmoil and deliberating.
Realistically you could probably chalk it up to love, sentimentality, and a desperation to avoid saying goodbye. But I would like to think of myself as a more objective and rational person, so lets pretend it was about money.
Rebook my flight. Give away furniture. Pack up my stuff, the last boxes being taped in a fury as the movers are prying them away. Subway and beer picnic on the floor. Sleep on the floor. 24 hours of dazed cleaning, complete with epic fighting. Move out inspection, a bottle of champagne served in plastic flutes and we're off.
I'm glad I came here, this country has exceeded all of my expectations. There is some regret for my change of plans, but they're not cancelled - just delayed. I can't help but be somewhat relieved that I'm not in the thick of Kurdish bombs, Israeli tourist kidnappings, and fucked up connecting flights due to volcanic ash. It's been a crazy spring over there.
I hereby solemnly swear to make another entry in the near future.
