I have lists within lists and prioritised priorities! I am stumbling over the critical paths and whizzing towards the drop-dead dates! Time is not on my side! The only "reasonable" contingency is to accumulate bags under my eyes in the vain hope that this will buy me time.
Of course, there is always the possibility of descoping! But what can I drop? Spending quality time with friends and family? My leaving drinks scheduled on 18 Sept? The renting out of my flat? The tax returns? The renewals (in advance) of various permits, licences and policies? Appointments with the dentist / doctor / optician / solicitors / blah..blah...blah!
None of the above! Well, bags under the eyes it is then!
Anyway, I'm guessing you didn't log on to this blog to hear about my pre-adventure planning! What you really came here to read is what shape my coming year is going to take. It's looking something like this:
29 Aug 2008 - last day at work! It's been a tough decision to leave and I don't expect this last week is going to be easy. I've grown fond of the place and the people! As much as I am excited about the adventures ahead, it's gonna be tough. All I can hope for is that Neil doesn't get any air-time to humiliate me! Is that really a lot to ask? Needless to say, he has collected enough ammunition over time to shoot me down through quite a few reincarnations (uummh..)!
18 Sept 2008 - leaving drinks - venue tbc. The last big bash before I leave! You'd better all be there...I'm counting on it!
3 Oct - 23 Dec 2008 - Namibia - Desert Elephant Conservation Project. Yes, I know they are a bit far away in this picture, but I'm hoping to get a little closer!
27 Dec 2008 - 16 Jan 2009 - India - The holiday that was booked well before this mad idea of a year out took hold of my brain cells!
16 Jan - 29 Jan 2009 - London - unpacking, washing, last-minute purchases, packing, re-packing, packing again, etc. And, of course, meeting up with family and friends (yes, that means YOU)!
29 Jan (ish) to Nov (ish) 2009 - Central/South America - roughly a 6-month project teaching /working with the indigenous children and communities, interspersed with some travels of my own!
I am going to spend a substantial portion (9 months) of my year as a volunteer on projects that I feel passionate about and through which I hope to make a difference towards greater things. Future blogs will contain more information on these projects.
Of course, I also look forward to experiencing as much as I can of these far off lands....perhaps learning more about the tribes of Namibia, becoming a little more fluent in Spanish and getting fit enough to take on the challenges of the daunting Andean mountain range. I'm also predicting that salsa will shamelessly feature somewhere along the line!
I hope this gives you a flavour of the year ahead - a flavour of apple crumble perhaps? (see later)
Back to the list.....
"Create travel blog site" - tick;
"Let everyone know key dates" - tick;
"Make a cup of tea"..... sorry guys, gotta go....
xxx
PS - I took the photographs on this page (including the one heading up the site) when I was in Namibia a couple of months ago. You can see why I have to spend some more time there, right? And, here is another good reason:
<---- you get the best apple crumble in the world there.
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