The Journey Begins!

                                 

“That’s the thing about trains, it doesn’t matter where its going, what matters is that you get on”- Polar Express

The bags have been packed, the goodbyes have been said, and after countless amount of tears, This is it. Here I am about 10 hours into my big move around the world located some where over the Pacific Ocean. Finally, I’m beginning to feel at ease, already made some new friends. Shout out to Brad, who we met in line for security at JFK, instantly clicking when asked if “After we get through security do you want to go get a drink?” He will be living in Hong Kong for 3 years for work and also will photo blogging, all the people he meets. Nick and I will be his first entry.

So what am I doing exactly?

Well, in about 14 hours I will be landing in Phenom Penn, the capitol of Cambodia. Here, my boyfriend Nick and I will reside for approximately 4 weeks. This is where the training school is located, and where we will get a TESOL certification to teach English that will never expire, and be able to be used anywhere in the world. Here we will me about 15 other people with the same goal, luckily the company we are going through already made a Facebook group for all of us so we have had some time to properly get acquainted, which basically means we have had plenty of time to stalk each other.  It was very exciting to see that there were other people out there with similar interests.  During our time in Cambodia we will get to explore and go on excursions to some of the oldest temples in the world. After our 4 weeks is up we have will then go on another excursion, this time on our way to the “main attraction” Thailand, also known as The Land of Smiles. This is where we will do one more week of observation hours and after that we are on our own.

F.A.Q.

I’ve gotten many different reactions to what I am doing, many questions as to why in the world I would want to do something like this? Over the past couple of months I have felt like I could just carry around an answering machine to give my response… So I figured I would post the 5 frequently asked questions, as I’m sure they are on your mind as well.

1.     “How did you find out about something like this?” 

Mainly by word of mouth, I have some friends who have done this before, most people teach English in South Korea, China, Japan etc. I have always wanted to travel after college, and told myself that I never wanted to be one of those people with who said they wanted to do it, I wanted to be the one who did. So with the help of my best friend Brittany Wilkerson, and boyfriend Nick Watt, we finally decided on moving to Greece for a year.  Well after much research and hassling each other we realized that unless we wanted to be illegal immigrants or nanny Europe just would not work. Luckily for Brittany, she was in touch with a friend who already was a Au Pair in Switzerland, Ms. Jen Cowan and hooked her up with the opportunity of a life time! Where she is now an Au Pair to 3 beautiful children and living in Zug Switzerland.  The problem for me was I didn’t want to baby sit, and no offense to Brittany or Jen, I wanted to do something different, so Asia it was.

2. “Do you know how to speak Thai? How are you going to teach English to people if you don’t know their native language? “

Well, so far I know how to say the staples, “hello, goodbye, please, thank you, Stop Thief!” (haha) But the only way I can explain this one is to use the example of when I was in college. I took two semesters of sign language, and my teacher was completely deaf. It forces you to learn the language in order to communicate with each other, And English isn’t going to be a foreign concept to them, they are taught it from the beginning of their schooling. Kinda like how in America we take Spanish classes growing up. So hopefully we will not be starting with a blank slate!

3.”How long are you going for?”

         1 year.

 4.”Do you have a place to stay, and a Job lined up?”

            For the 1^st 5 weeks, yes. And as of right now, No job lined up!! Scary to some, but excited for me… I have absolutely NO idea where I will be or what I will be doing 1 month from now!

5. “Why would you want to do something like this?”

       Unfortunately my answer is always simply, “Why Not?”

I shall call this next section, “Shout Outs”- and apologize ahead of time for the length of this first blog entry as I know it is a essay, but give me time to get the hang of this whole blogging thing. These are just some things I need to get off my chest!

I would not be able to do what I’m doing without the love and support of all of my amazing friends and family and would like to take this opportunity to thank all of them. The first and fore most person being my sister Kathryn, when she heard of our plan to move she supported me from the very beginning. Reassuring me that it was okay to follow my dreams no matter how big they are. She took days off from work to fly down to Jacksonville to help me move, and that was no easy task as our home in Jacksonville had been through about 8 years of college students, half of which left all of their unwanted belongings behind. Over Christmas break she left D.C to stay at home with me and get some quality time in, where we partied, cuddled, and cried! So thank you Kathryn, for being my fan, and the best big sister anyone could ask for. I am forever grateful to have you and your amazing boyfriend Eric in my life, who over the years has become the big brother I’ve never had. 

T.J. Layne, this goodbye was one of the harder ones. We have been together since junior year of high school, we have grown to almost think as one, the ying to each other’s yang. My soul mate.  I think up until the day we left each other we were just ignoring the fact that we wouldn’t be seeing each other for a year. We have been through it all together, and I know that we have both influenced each others lives for the better.. and I would not be the person I am today if he wasent in my life. I feel horrible for leaving you but I keep reassuring myself that it is only a year, and just because we will be living on separate sides of the world, doesn’t mean that we can’t be there for each other! I’m just going to miss his hugs.

Gotta give a shout out to my Girl Brittany or “B”, I’ve never really been one for girlfriends, but you have been the exception! Lol and distance has not stopped our friendship, with our weekly skype sessions! You helped plant the seed of travel and adventure in me and I will forever be greatful for you to that.

My Jacksonville boys, Ben, Kugs, Seavey, Brandon, Joe. I have never had a more diverse group of friends who were so similar. We never judged, we never questions we just did. And we are the most amazing group of badasses I’ve come to know. A big shout out to all my amazing Zeta Tau Alpha Sisters, my little Becky her mother Carla and the Incredibly handsome men of Sigma Chi, who made my college years amazing, and set the stage for my life!

Spring Hill crew, Amber,Ramos, Salvato, Derrick and the recently reacquainted Leavell, and Urso. Thanks for hanging, thanks for helping turn me into the person I am from the beginning. Its like that quote, “ Your college friends know who you are, but your high school friends know why you are that way.”  Thanks for the friendship and encouragement over the years.

My Mother and Father and their lovely significant others Frank and Terri, who over the last month allowed me to come into their lives, mix it up and leave the mess behind! Dad, you have influenced me in ways you couldn’t imagine, and I am so thankful you came to NY, to see me off, and be a part of yet one more going away party where almost all were in attendance, which is no easy task. One that my Aunt Maria, and Uncle Frankie took head on. Spending my last night in America with my family was a dream come true to me! It was all I could have asked for, a great Italian dinner with my aunts, uncles, crazy cousins and a new episode of The Jersey Shore! Mom, saying good bye to you sucked, and in the middle of packing, it hit me I wouldn’t see you for a year! How would I live with out you?! I went in your room to wake u up cause I just needed a hug, and some reassurance and the first words out of ur mouth as u jumped up were “Oh Shit! Is it time?!” Thank you for helping me both financially and emotionally. This new and exciting journey would just be a pipe dream with out you and your family, I love you and I know there will be hard days, but we will make it out on top!

I hope this first entry gives you a little incite as to the person I am, and the people who helped get me here. Leaving home was the hardest part for me so far. Leaving behind everyone I love, all the comforts of home to pursue my dream to travel, and see the world. Now all that is left is Me and Nick, and the wonderful people we will meet on this Journey we are embarking on. I promise not to be a sap in every entry, but I had to recognize the people in my life before I went any further! My game plan is to post every 3 days, we shall see how that goes! For now, I will turn to my 300 movie and television selection on the plane to keep my self entertained till we reach Hong Kong, in about 6 hours, where I will transfer planes and head to Bangkok, Thailand, then transfer airlines and finally reach my destination of Phenom Penn, Cambodia. Let’s just pray, all my luggage makes this journey with us!

We shall see if all works out as planned, based on my previous flying experience, with this many connecting flights, I fear it wont go down that easily. 

 

At this point, when I look out the window, I see Japan.