I'm positively twitching with excitement and trying very hard to resist the temptation to buy a mountain of stuff, book a flight to London and pay off my OzBus balance...trying to get this relaxed attitude started off now so I don't drive Loonie loony with preparation talks. I was bold and started picking up some stuff for the camping side of things in the States in October - but only because it was so much cheaper than buying them here..so I've got my Thermarest self-inflating camping mattress inflated and stored under the bed, my maglite and head torch stored sans battery along with my mosquito net and Swiss Army knife (sorry for ruining your Crimbo pressie idea Lolly).
Word is out in work that I'm heading off...a relief to have that known so I can talk about the plans openly. There's been a steady increase in the number of "are you mad..you want to sit on a bus for 13 weeks..have you lost it?" questions that have been coming to me...but then that's to be expected, it's not really your typical holiday is it? One interesting question was as to whether the trip was for charity...hrmm....maybe I should consider a 'send Emma to Oz' charity ;)
Over the past couple of weeks I've been reading up on my Rough Guide to travelling around the world..they've got some interesting stuff in there and then some fairly out there ideas too. When I look at the mountain of laundry that builds up here in a week I can't help but wonder how I'm going to survive with a single rucksack and day pack's worth of stuff for 13 weeks. I have a tendency to over pack so I've been reading up on suggested packing lists...holy moly there are some people out there who can travel very, very, very lightly...like the one list that suggests a single t-shirt..and for the day that you're washing it you use your swimsuit as your t-shirt...ehhhhh no..no thanks! I've got some idea of what I'll need to bring along..but I reckon it means a bit of shopping before the trip to get some gear that's more suitable to quick wash/dry and anti wrinkle than my current clothing...something that excites and terrifies me. If you've done a backpack excursion with limited bag space and have a swear by packing list please share it!
With all the excitement there is of course a bit of nervousness creeping in...
- What am I thinking signing up to spend 13 weeks on a bus? (I hate buses - I spent many years as a kid getting travel sick - how do I plan on making it through 13 weeks with occasional hangovers aboard a bus in countries without proper roads)
- How am I going to deal with being away from home and the friends and family who keep my days bright and make me smile? (Current theory is to put an album of photos onto my iPod to bring with me rather than having to carry more weight in the form of a paper album so I can look at ye and have a smile whenever I feel a bit low)
- What will I do without daily internet access...if I can't see Facebook how will I know what people are up to? (This will be a struggle because I'm always online...but I need to get a break from computers
I see computers..they're everywhere ) - How many travel vaccinations am I going to have to get - how sick are they going to make me?
- Once I get going am I going to be so bitten by the travel bug that I won't want to come back..or will I be gone a week and wanting to pack it all in to come back home?
Something that I saw on a blog a while back for someone who had done OzBus before was the top three things they'd miss about home..and the top three they wouldn't..I'm still working on my list..it will follow in time.
Posts
Is the Oz bus just for Oz? Or is it what ye're travelling on while going through Oz?
ReplyDeleteAnd I think you should focus more on the good parts about seeing the world, as you've always wanted to, and be excited about that.
At the end of the day, you're only going to be away for a couple of months, and the time will fly as you'll be so busy seeing new things.
The people that you love will still be there and still be the same when you get home. Don't worry. And everywhere has internet cafes, so you'll be grand.
Be a Tigger, not an Eyore!
Ann
xx
I tend to have some momentary freak attacks amid the excitement where I start to wonder if maybe I am gone a little bonkers...but you said it..I've always wanted to travel and this is the opportunity of a lifetime. I'll see more in those 13 weeks than I can even begin to imagine :)
ReplyDeleteOzBus is the coach that we get on in London and travel across the world in (or at least the countries we get to go through). Check out their website www.oz-bus.com. We're scheduled to take in 20 countries along the way..and from my research the coach is pretty much like your average Bus Eireann bus but with a toilet and long range petrol tank etc. Not converted to the same extent as some of other companies that do the trip in a longer time. It'll be basic...but that's all part of the adventure :)
Tigger is super duper whoop di whooper...but Eeyore is still my guy. Love that donkey!