The Beginning

I am going into this completely blind. Don't really know what to expect, but I guess thats all part of the fun. I know I'll be living in Perth, Australia for the next 5 months, I know we are traveling to Indonesia, and I know I'm going to become very comfortable with a surfboard. Annnd thats about all. 

I know I should expect the unknown since I decided to do this only about three weeks ago. But not having expectations is what excites me the most. Expectations only make life less interesting. I believe they are also, a recipe for disappointment. Our expectations never live up to what we have created in our mind, making them all the more dissatisfying. You don't want to look back on something that had so much potential to be an incredible experience and have it ruined by images and predictions you created in your head. Where's the living in that? Living is experimenting with the unfamiliar. I think my dad's motto for this trip is, "it's all an adventure". And it truly is for me. And I've not only applied that to this trip, but also to this life. 

My first adventure in The Great Perhaps didn't even happen in Australia. It happened in Dallas, Texas (a place I want to one day call home), where my connecting flight to Sydney, Australia was canceled due to mechanical problems. But before we get into that, this plane was awesome. Double decker, greeted as I walked on the plane with lemonade, salmon on the menu, a cabin with two aisles and most importantly and surprisingly, a row all to myself. I texted my friends saying that one of the coolest and most accomplished moments of my life was right then and there, just sitting on a plane. And at the beginning, I was impressed. 

So we were supposed to take off at 8:10 P.M., but instead found ourselves sitting, waiting for about two hours. The pilot announced how sorry he was for the delay, that the engineers were taking care of it and that he would update us in twenty minutes. So twenty minutes went by and the pilot announced how even more sorry he was for the delay, that the engineers were still looking at the problem and that he would update us in another twenty to twenty-five minutes. So twenty to twenty-five minutes went by and the pilot came back on the intercom and again said how deeply, truly sorry he was for the delay and that he would, yes, again, update us in twenty to thirty minutes. At this point I've already missed my connecting flight to Perth from Sydney. I texted my dad a little worried and maybe a tad panicked, expecting a reply about how he was going to figure it all out for me, and of course, what did he say? "It's all part of the adventure!". Around 10:42 P.M. the pilot announced that we would not be taking off, and instead leaving at 10 A.M. the next morning. Grrreat. Traveling all day since 9 A.M. to sleep in Dallas for the night. He apologized for the inconvenience, gave us vouchers for a hotel and told us to exit the plane. He then told us we will be responsible for getting our own luggage. Well, I have 175 pounds of luggage. The first thing that popped into my head is, "wow, I'm going to look like such an idiot". But, keeping my dads motto in mind, didn't complain and honestly just laughed at the situation. I got to the baggage carousel only to see that all the Rent-a-Cart carts are gone. Haha another "grrreat" moment. I stacked all my bags on top of one another, put two backpacks on either shoulder and began dragging these two huge duffel bags behind me, knees bent, wearing shorts (because I was expecting 100 degree weather), and looking like what I predicted; an idiot. I honestly didn't know what I was doing. I just followed everyone I thought was on my flight who seemed to know what they were doing, while I continued to to look like I knew what I was doing. I put my bags on the airport hotel shuttle bus and found a spot. I sat down feeling pretty accomplished that I was doing this all on my own. We got to the hotel, I grabbed my bags and repeated the same behavior, dragging my bags behind me, knees bent, and slightly falling over. Waited in line to check into the hotel and got to the ticket counter to give them my voucher. Wrong hotel, wrong bus. SO, got back onto the bus back to the airport, got on the right bus, went to the right hotel, and unloaded my bags. The line to check in went out the door. And of course I was at the very end, outside, in shorts, with four huge heavy bags of luggage. It was now 1:43 A.M. and I was freezing, annoyed and sleepy. 

A couple minutes later, a man came up to me and in a thick Australian accent said, "which bags are yours?" I pointed. He began picking them up. A little shy and nervous I looked at him and he said, "we have to get you out of the cold!" He brought my bags all the way up to where he and his family were standing in line about five people from the check in counter. What a kind moment. I began talking with him and his family about why they were going to Australia, what they were doing in America and simply just what adventure they themselves were on. They were some of the kindest people I have ever met. And I realized how kind everyone else on my flight, dealing with the exact same thing I was dealing with, were to me. Even the little lady who worked for the hotel that helped carry my bags to the 28th floor was so genuine, and someone who within just five minutes of chatting with her, was one of the most gentle and lighthearted people I have come into contact with. The next day I sat next to a man named Alexi on the bus who instantly started talking to me about just anything. I told him all I was doing and why I was here and we talked for a while about why he was in America and all that stuff. As we pulled up to the hotel he told me to be safe, and then offered me an extra pass he had to the Frequent Flyers club because it was going to go to waste if he didn't give it to someone. It was just another kind moment. 

This experience isn't just about traveling to Australia. And I guess it's not so much about experience as it is about discovery. Discovering that kindness, happiness, depth and all thats real in the world. Meeting new people, trying new things, learning things about myself I never knew I was capable of, looking at things from a different perspective, being thankful and simply just being a part of something much bigger than myself. 

I've already learned a lot. It is so much easier to be kind and so much more rewarding to have a good attitude than it is to complain about the things we cannot change. I expected to be in Sydney Australia by now, but expectations and life in general are never guaranteed. We just have to go along for the ride, and delight in every minute of it. It really is all just an adventure.