The trip

Friday, January 8th, 2010 in: News, Travel

So, I guess I should tell you what’s going on.

I got a call from Hiro, a good friend I made in Japan. He’s graduating from CSU Chico’s school of business, and moving back to Japan to set up a website to sell yo-yo’s. This would be kind of strange, if he weren’t a former world champion, and one of two Japanese yo-yo masters. He asked if I was interested in working with him on this site, in exchange for a free trip to Japan. Being the marginally employed freelancer that I was, I jumped at the opportunity. I had yearned for an excuse to go back, and travel alone wasn’t good enough.

Having just suffered the first of many rounds of heartbreak, my plans for Japan slowly started to expand to encompass other countries. I had a lot saved from when I had a “real job,” and was trying to decide whether to pursue a graduate degree or a career path, and this third door opened up, as if to remind me that my options are limitless. I’m a young guy with a lot going for me, and few things really tying me down to Sacramento other than family and some good friends. I realized that this world has so much more to offer, and I need to see it for myself.

And so my journey begins. 4 months of preparation, gearing up, gathering documents, formulating plans and determining major destinations: Revisiting friends and family in Japan. Studying Mandarin in Beijing, then travelling around China making use of it. Seeing Lhasa. Climbing to Everest base camp. Hiking the Annapurnas. Living in monasteries. Learning yoga in India. Surfing and deep water soloing in Thailand and Vietnam. These are just a few things I’ve decided  that I’m going to do.

So here I am, just a few weeks from my departure date. I’m trying to finish all my preparations and see as many of the people I care about before I go. This is getting harder to do. I feel like I’m preparing myself for reincarnation, and it’s sad to leave this body behind, but it has to be done. There’s no turning back. I’m going.

The countdown begins. 3 weeks exactly.

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