Back to the innocence

My first trip was 3 years ago: 27 years old, female, small, and inexperienced. I was stuck. I had been following the universal path: college, then job, then marriage and wait to die. At that point, I lost everything and therefore I lost my direction. I realized I know nothing about my world and myself. I know nothing about this beautiful world and just here being miserable. So I bought a ticket to Cambodia, no plan. Just go!

I did a shoestring from Cambodia, Siem Reap, and Bangkok. I spent days wandering around, hours in squares observing the life, fighting with the inner self to push it stand up and talk to strangers, alone in the night running away from perverts, being scared by policemen, got lost in forest without anybody to call for help. I did grew up from that trip.

You ask me how I grew up?
It was when I captured the simplicity in smiles and faces of people.
It was when I realized the universal truths in conversations with no topic.
It was when I realized I gradually became genuine during the trip.
It was also when I wanted to give up, and became negative.
That moment when I realized adventures were the best way to learn. I did make some mistake on the way, of course. But I was not wrong making those mistakes. I learnt that in this life, I am the only one who can save me, and I am absolutely competent.

Also, Angkor which needs no introduction, and palaces in Thailand, the Killing Field in Phnom Penh, everything I saw, they are tremendous, and breathtaking. How miracle! I realize life is too short to enjoy the whole of it. I need more. I do not want to waste time being meaningless, miserable, pleasing people. I want me to be pleased. I want to see all, feel all.

Since then, I became addicted to the wanderlust feeling. I want to spread the love of traveling. I want everybody to understand that this world is incredibly splendid, materials or money is meaningless. I dream of a world full of humanity and surrounded by Nature. That trip is my metanoia. It changed me. it made me treasure my existence.