Next destination: Asia... somewhere

When I resigned from work I already had sort of a plan. Well, not really a plan. I knew 2 things: where I wanted to go and for how long I wanted to "be away".

Asia was my choice (as you may have guessed from this post title).
Why?
Because I had never been to Asia. Because it was supposed to be cheap. Because it was supposed to be relatively safe especially regarding female solo travels. Because you could visit a good number of countries without needing a plane.
These were probably the main reasons why I chose Asia in the first place. And this information I gathered from travel books I read in the past, from travel blogs, from magazines/newspapers. Basically any kind of source that could provide me information about travel as an activity per se.

Then I bought a book, a travel guide, about Southeast Asia and found out a number of other reasons to visit this part of the globe: the culture, the people, the wildlife, the beaches, the mountains, the food... There were just so many new things I could experience in "one" place. So the destination was chosen.

Next question, for how long would I travel? This was easy to answer. I wanted to be back home for Christmas and I could only leave my job by May, so that would leave me around 6/7 months to travel which was exactly what I did (6 months and 21 days to be precise).

Now I was left with a few months (3/4 months) to prepare and plan my backpacking trip.
I would say I begun to travel when I started planning my trip: during these months the excitement was huge and the feeling of happiness and freedom was constant.

And I thought the day to finally get on my plane to Asia would never come...

To travel you only need to exist 
(by Fernando Pessoa)

The book after so many travels...

New York City Marathon

"The New York City Marathon is an annual marathon (42.195 km or 26.219 mi) that courses through the five boroughs of New York City. It is the largest marathon in the world. It is among the pre-eminent long-distance annual running events in the United States and is one of the World Marathon Majors." - from Wikipedia.

It's been a while since I had this desire to run a marathon. I have nerver done it (clearly I don't know what that implies!) and I think I have never run more than 5K in on go but I have faith in myself. I do enjoy running and I believe if I prepare myself properly I could be up for the challenge.

And I want to run an important famous marathon like the ones in New York or London (I know there are more!). Obviously I can run when and where I want. But I don't want to be a silly runner. If I'm going to suffer than it should be in a proper event and not just in borough I live. Spending one morning circling my neighbourhood to run the 26 mi where no one will clap me it's not the same as running through Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn where there will be many people supporting me, there will be a medal and a snack when I finish (in the NYC Marathon athletes are offered pasta the night before).

The problem is getting a place at one of these marathons. There are too many people interested therefore the places are limited. After the registration period there will be a drawing where the places will be given.

I have tried my luck for the London Marathon but I haven't succeed so far. Yesterday I checked what was the procedure to register for the NYC Marathon, one of the best in the world I heard. After registering we wait for the drawing that takes place in the beginning of March. If we are lucky (or not) to get a place for the marathon our credit card is automatically billed for the entry fee: $358 (for non US residents, for residents it's between $255 and $295).

😲😲😲😲😲😲😲😲😲😲

Hmm... that's probably too much money for a medal and some pasta... In that case let me just cancelled my registration and watch the How I Met Your Mother episode where Marshall runs the famous marathon. It's way cheaper and my legs prefer it that way.

In the meantime I'll keep trying my luck for the London Marathon...

A year ago

It's a year today that I handed in my resignation letter.

I've decided to leave and pursue a dream: a solo trip backapacking... wandering around the world (or just around a part of it).

For that to become a reality I had to leave my job, hand in my notice. It was the first time I ahd to do it. So far I had only had temporary contracts therefore I knew when I owuld leave the job before I even started it. But this time was different. This time I was the one deciding when to leave. And after 4 years at the same job and company I was ready (phsycological and financially) to leave.

I can't really say it was a hard decision. I was dying to go. But a year ago I was feeling a bit nervous and anxious to hand in my notice.

What a silliness. I couldn't have imagine a better reaction from my managers and fellow collegues. I believe some where more excited with my trip and my courage (they said it) than me. It was interesting to realize there were so many people carrying the same dream as me. I've heard so many times: "I wish I could do that too", "if I had a different age I would go too without looking back", "I wish I had your corage!". Their words inspired me and gave me an extra motivation!

A year ago I was so happy.

Happy and a bit scared at the same time. Now that I've handed in my notice this dream was becoming a reality. I really have to go... Will I be able to?? I have to. Now I really have to and there's no looking back.

I wanted to celebrate. I needed to celebrate it. But I had no one to celebrate it with. A year ago this was still a "secret". My boss knew about it but it hadn't been communicated to the rest of the company yet. I couldn't share my happiness yet. So, preparing myself for my solo backpacking trip I bought some pints and celebrate it with myself, cheers to me and to my next adventure!

         🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺

New Year's Eve

This year, for the first time, there was Summer for New Year's Eve.

Not in Lisbon, obviously. It seems there was sun in Lisbon too but the temperatures were way too low to be pleasant.

This time, New Year's Eve was in Brazil. In the happy and cheerful hot city of Rio de Janeiro. Oh yes, it was very cheerful! "Caipirinhas" (the famous Brazilian drink) are for real in there. There's a Brazilian theme that says "drink, fall and get up" which could easily describe this drink although I'm not so sure about getting up. 

There's a strange feeling among us when we find ourselves on December 27th sitting on the beach under an umbrella to protect us from the sun. It's nearly impossible to sit on the beach without an umbrella. On December 27th we should be wering at least 3 layers of clothes, a scarf, a good winter coat and a pair of gloves!

However, the strange feeling quickly disappears and we get very confortable with our easy happy lives: sun, beach and caipirinhas.

Locals speak with us in Spanish even after we tell them we are Portuguese (we both speak Portuguese but with different accents). It's alright. We're citizens of the world dancing to sound of funk music.

And when in the first days of January we have our arses on the sea to helps us survive temperatures above 40ºC, there's one question that must be asked "Where are we going next year?".

I believe we have started a new tradition!

Bon Voyage

Juanix... an old nickname created by a friend in creativity moment or, maybe, just a moment of pure silliness.

The name has stuck. There's not many people who would call me by Juanix, but everyone knows who she is!

I have way more ideas than a willing to write them down, but it's time to do it! Juanix ventures into the the cyber world. And this will be another journey.

But the main goal is to share other journeys: my travels. Some already dreamt and travelled, others still to be dreamt but with a big will to make them! For the ones who love travelling, the destination is not very important. 

There will also be space for other trips... other deliriums. Well, whatever is going on in my mind!

"Because someday you need to stop dreaming, get your plans out of your drawers and, somehow, start." - Amyr Klink

Happy travels!