A 48+ Hour Compilation of Random Thoughts on Travel

Hello! Welcome to my summer adventures in Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore! I have written the following blog post over a period of, well, a good chunk of hours. All I know is that my hair is greasy, my face is greasy, no amount of deodorant can mask the stench coming off my unbathed body, but I am loving it! If you know me, you know I love to travel. While I wish someone would invent an instant teleportation device to take me anywhere I wanted so I could forgo 13 hour plane rides, there is something so interesting about being with a ton of people who don’t know each other, going to the same place, all for different reasons. Some people are going home, others are about to experience extreme culture shock, others are just here for business, others are off on a new adventure… but all gathered together. On our first flight to Shanghai, my neighbor across the aisle vomited into a barf bag and shook it for the flight attendant to pick it up. The man in front of me seemed very comfortable as he reclined his chair entirely into my seat. I watched a comedy show in Chinese. I took a few laps around the aisles and fell into a few people (shoutout to turbulence!) Definitely interesting to say the least… but we landed in Shanghai!

Please enjoy this collection of thoughts starting on July 11 at 11:00 am in LAX up until July 13 at 12:35 pm in Bangkok, Thailand! Some of them may make no sense considering I’m running on just a couple hours of sleep :) `

I am currently sitting in the LAX Tom Bradley International terminal debating whether or not $6 for a water bottle is a good deal or not… hydrate or die-drate, right?

Update: I bought the water, promptly finished it and quickly realized that chugging a hydroflask full of water right before a 13 hour plane ride probably wasn’t the greatest idea! You gotta do what you gotta do to take care of your body (if only the bladder didn’t have to be so annoying!) Enough about my pee, we are going to Thailand! It’s been awhile since I have left the country… almost 3 years to be exact. The last time I left America was to study abroad in France for 9 months and well, at this point, I think we all know how that ended.

I have been incredibly fortunate with how much I am able to travel. I am equally as fortunate to have a family that encourages travel and fosters a desire to go to other cultures and places. There is a word in German, fernweh which quite literally means “a craving for distant places” Somehow the Germans always seem to find the words for what I’m feeling… that’s probably why their words are so long. When I found that word, on Pinterest of course, I recognized that while I am infected with this travel bug and wanderlust, it isn’t just for the photo op, or to “see” the place, or to check a number off on my bucket list, I have a desire to be in this whole entire world.

I was talking to a couple of my friends a few mornings ago at breakfast and they asked me where I wanted to live after college. Los Angeles has always and will always be my home but simultaneously I feel as if I have a home in this whole world. Needless to say, I couldn’t answer their question with one city or place. New York City. Los Angeles. Paris. Sydney. Florence. Auckland. Havana. So many places hold such a dear place in my heart and others I have such a desire to be in. I want to learn about the culture and the language. I want to understand a way of life rather than just simply placing my regular self in a new place; completely unable to mold myself or learn that there is something bigger than just me in this world.

Visit is such an impersonal word. To visit seems like you’re just quickly stopping in and not really taking in. One of the things that I am so excited for about this trip, is that because it’s 5 weeks long, I can’t just simply be in the country, I have to take in the country and culture. I woke up in my hotel room this morning in Bangkok and thought to myself, “Wow! I’m really here!” I’ve heard stories about Bangkok from my mom who grew up here; this was her home. I looked outside the window and saw the expansive city and thought, “This is the home of so many people” Walking through downtown LA, I hear so many different languages. People come from all over the world to Los Angeles, but for me, that is my home. I can easily drive along Hollywood Blvd, frustrated because of traffic, and not recognize that this it’s a dream for so many people to see. Driving through Bangkok, I am in awe of the city, but for so many people this is just their normal routine. I love being in and being with. I know that Thailand isn’t my home per se, but it feels a part of my heart.

Here’s to many more thoughts and observations; adventures and funny moments! Thanks for following along!