Indulgence

unknown grounds, unknown paths

Texted to me by my Dad
Success is getting what you want... Happiness is wanting what you get.

I have a plan. In the past 3 to 4 weeks, I've been struck by a strong sense of wanderlust. All of a sudden, I want to see the world. I want to experience it, feel it at the very sinews and bones of my body. I want to absorb everything that I can. I want my feet to travel on unknown ground, unknown paths.

In 2 years, I want to leave. I want to get a storage space and put all my things there. Then, I'm just going to up and leave. Take a flight to whatever country that suits my fancy and stay at the city there. Get a cheap place to live, like really cheap. I'll find work and just stay there for 2 to 3 weeks. Travel around and see the sights. Talk to people, learn the rudimentary phrases and some important sentences in the native language. I want to see all the sights I can, try to catch a show or maybe a fiesta or celebration. Take day trips to nearby cities or villages and see everything I can. When I've exhausted my wanderlust for that particular place, I go off and get on a plane to the next city in another country and do the same thing.

I want to go all over Asia. Go to Bangkok, Phuket and one more Thai city/village before moving on to Malaysia, then Vietnam, Indonesia, whatever is safe to visit in Myanmar and Laos. I'd love to see India, China, Korea and Japan. I have no plans of staying at a place for longer than 3 months. Some places would probably only last for 3 weeks at the most. And then, if the wanderlust is still there; go to Egypt, Africa, especially South Africa and visit Johannesburg and Cape Town. And then, I'd follow it up with Morocco and whatever part of Europe I'll be allowed entry to.

Yeah, I want to go back-packing for a couple of years. I want to see the world.

I want to write about my experience and take an unbelievable amount of pictures. I want to see so many things and learn so many important phrases and sentences from other languages. I want to be familiar with the different cultures of the world and find out what are universal and what are specific. I want to be a true child of the Earth; not bound by borders or citizenship.

For that, in my two year plan as preparation for this true wanderlust, I need to do several things. First of, is to acquire some skills that will help me land easy jobs where I am not required to actually stay long. The first thing I thought of was bartending. There will always be a bar or a restaurant in every city I go to. I don't plan on becoming rich; the money is just to help support me in my stay. And a job as a bartender or waiter will allow me to meet a lot of people because people always go out, people always eat, people always goes out to have fun.

An advice of a friend is also to learn how to zip. Zips are these wonderfully lovely things that you dance with. They are these long lovely ribbons attached to a handle and if you know how to use them, they look particularly lovely when in fluid, constant motion. Apparently, my friends who do zip are always asked to appear in events and stuff and get paid rather well for it. They can be the life of a party, really. And if you become really good at it, you can even be a fire zipper. Pictures of this can be found at my friend's Cat's blog - Calamansi. Check out the links section at the left side of my blog. Also, check out planetzips.com where you can order or find more information about it.

My cousin adviced me also to offer English language tutoring to people who live nearby where I am staying and the like. I can do it on a tutorial basis so it doesn't really require me to have any sort of Education degree and the pay should be really good. And a lot of countries are very open to learning English. Not a bad idea.

If worse comes to worse, menial jobs are always available. The point is, now, is to make myself more flexible as a person. Who knows what kind of jobs are open to me when I get there, right?

I know tons of people who have done this, the whole back-packing lifestyle. But this is a big thing for me. I'm someone who truly enjoys being at his comfort zones. Taking any step away from them is a huge thing for me. But I want this. I want to see the world. I want to have this huge world view. This is what I want. I'm going to do this.

It will change me and make me a better person. Who wouldn't want that, right?

posted by wanggo @ 6:40 PM