Going to asia for the first time
We’re going to Asia! This is a trip that’s five years in the making so it’s a trip with wild anticipation. I have long felt a connection to Asia and eastern philosophies so this is pretty much a dream trip. Given the distance, we're planning to be gone just over a month and are hoping to go to three or four countries. On our list are South Korea, Vietnam, Laos. We're also contemplating going to Cambodia or Thailand. While it's not all of the countries we want to visit, it's enough to feel like we had a good experience without pushing ourselves too hard moving every couple of days.
I was so elated when we booked our tickets, finally realizing a long held dream. "This will be amazing, may be even life changing." I thought to myself. Even though I had other trips before it, I started planning for this one right away.
Reality crept right in. Anxiety slipped in, displacing some of my excitment. Isn’t it funny? We want something so bad and then when we get it, we’re surprised when anxiety or fear creeps in. I know others must feel this too but it can feel like we’re not supposed to talk about it. You got your dream! Why aren’t you feeling anything other than excitement? In the past I’ve just shut up, letting those feeling consume me on the inside while pretending like I was the most content, placid human on the outside. But I’ve grown, and this blog is part of that growth. Rather than putting on a facade, I want more community which means being open and creating a space where we can share these thoughts.
When these feeling rose, I wasn’t totally surprised. Going to an other worldly place is exactly what I want in my travel: the opportunity to shake up my day to day life. At the same time, an experience like this, shifting so far outside my comfort zone has the capacity to be destabilizing. Finding the balance between giving me the jolt of the new without undermining my hard won battle with well-being would be tricky.
While some might be concerned about safety, that wasn't where my worries lie. My concerns were more about taking such a long trip, to places where the food is much different and we don’t know the language or at be able to wing it like we can in Europe where sometimes you can decipher words. My inner dialogue was filled with questions.
How would I stay healthy?
Would I be able to communicate my food issues?
If I stray far from my normal eating patterns, would I end up sick while on a long trip?
Would being without structure that long be mentally and emotionally exhausting?
This went on for a couple weeks. I realized that it would be a miserable few months if I kept on this way. I had to shift the conversation in my head away from fear. I started asking myself new questions.
How can I stay healthy?
What kind of travel bag will be best for a trip like this, especially with my back issues?
How can I make sure I get my food needs met?
What are the boundaries I need to keep and where can I be more flexible?
How can I adjust my routine at home for being away a longer time?
I found these questions much more empowering. They provided room in my head to continue dreaming about the trip. They flipped me out of analysis paralysis and into problem solving mode. They reminded me that I have a great community of people who have done trips like this and some who have gone to Asia before. I had plenty of resources to help.
So while we start the preliminary planning like Visas and how to get between countries, I'm beginning to background process what self care will look like on this trip. What about you? Have you been on a trip like this to Asia? What do I need to know? What tips do you have on taking good care of yourself?
This is an ongoing series about traveling to Asia. Next up: Packing for a month in Asia (in a carry on)