Today i'm wondering what made me choose to leave New Zealand in the first place.
When I deferred university, got a waitressing job and announced on Facebook that I had just purchased a 1 way ticket to the poorest, busiest and most unhygenic city in the world, I don't think I truly understood the repercussions of my choice. Frankly, veering off the path of school-uni-successful job isn't part of my cultural paradigm, and I think I shocked my mother with the pace in which I changed the course of my life. To me, it was a spontaneous, exciting decision, to her, it was rather rushed and impulsive. After having visited Nepal in February I had well and truly caught the travel bug, and no amount of study, partying or hot showers could endear me to stay in New Zealand. With an optimism and excitement only a naiive 21 year old could possess, I have gone about selling up my worldly possessions - goodbye car, goodbye bike, goodbye 5 year old ball dress. Combine this with a waitressing job and I have managed to scrape together enough to dive head first into the life of a backpacker.
After weeks of goodbye lunches/barbeques and parties with friends, tearful conversations with mum and generally just putting my entire New Zealand life on hold, I am ready to fly off into the sunset. Am I scared shitless? Absolutely. Positive i'm making the right choice? Not completely. Am I ridiculously excited about starting the adventure of a lifetime? You bet.
Tomorrow night I will fly one way to New Delhi, India: stay tuned to my travel blog for lots of interesting, shocking and downright funny tales of my travels through one of the most chaotic countries in the world.
