In 2 days I will be on foreign soils! To say I am excited and
apprehensive in equal measures is an understatement!
For months, years even, I have been thinking, it was about time
I get out my comfort zone. I started with small steps, an excursion to an artist’s
retreat in Scotland was perhaps my very first experience of being a lone
traveller, a visit to Cornwall camping earlier this year was another And then
later on in the Summer, a camping trip to Alderney for a week, where I met
someone equally as eager to experience more of what the world has to offer. His
passion for travel rubbed off on me and when I came home I kept that zest for
life alive in me through painting and dreaming, until one day 2 months ago, I
decided to take the plunge by taking my dreams one step further by making them happen.
I haven’t mastered the art of Astra-travelling and so booking
flights was essential to turning these dreams into a reality. It also means I
have to leave my familiar surroundings that I am so comfortable in, I have to
say goodbye to my beloved pets and go forth into a country unknown to me other
than through books and the internet. I will be entering a culture alien to mine
and I am doing it on my own, with the exception of Whinnie! I have been abroad, I have even been outside of
Europe, but never alone, this concept is rather scary to me, I have no one to
rely on but myself, that means I should have more faith than I currently give
myself credit for!
To all you seasoned travellers out there, this may not sound like a big
deal. But to me, these turn of events in my life are fairly daunting ones as
well as very very exiting! I have signed myself up to volunteering in an
Orphanage in Peru for a week, where I hope to meet new people and perhaps make
new friends. From there, I hope to do some walking and exploring. I have no expectations,
I’m not one for grand plans, I prefer to go along with the flow. That way it
also avoids bitter disappointments.
And when I return 3 weeks later, I hope to have achieved not
just a tick off a 'bucket list’. Not at all. This trip goes far deeper than
that. I hope to have learnt new things, I hope to have gained a deeper respect
and understanding for a country and its people I have no connections with
whilst sitting here at home. I hope to learn new things about myself to stretch my boundries, I also hope to not only see a new culture and new
scenery, but to experience it as well. And more than anything I hope to give
them something back in return, a part of me, a piece of my heart.
And last but not least, maybe I hope to have just perhaps inspired
anyone else reading this, who maybe, like me never thought they were brave
enough to take that leap of faith and take a trip somewhere unknown to them.
Sometimes, we just have to do things that scare us to make us
feel alive. Fear is like falling in love. As well as happiness, Sometimes it can leave us feeling dissapointed or overwhelmed or sad, but it also makes us feel alive so we keep on doing it anyway. so just like love, by embracing our fears we gain new experiences and learn new lessons and our lives become all the more richer and colourful for it. I know that whatever happens while Im in peru, I will come back richer than when I left.
