A Taste of Reality...

Amsterdam, Holland

December 29, 2007
N52°22.800
E004°53.320

Today marks eleven months since we left San Francisco on our adventure, The Big Trip. We still remember how anxious we were before we embarked on our trip. We’ve seen a lot, done a lot, and enjoyed every minute over the past eleven months. However, now that we’re only one month from going home we are starting to have a “reverse” anxiety. Let me explain.

Before we left on our trip we counted down the months, the days, the hours, we were very excited to go, but at the same time we had a feeling in our stomachs; an ache that represented the unknown. I remember our last day in our home before we left. We both stood in the kitchen crying; unsure of what the next several months would bring. We weren’t scared, we were ready; but at the same time we were diving into a space we had never been to. It brought an adventure that is for sure!

That familiar pit in our stomachs is back, but now it’s anxiety related to re-entering society—getting jobs, moving back into our home and living what many people call a “normal” life. Returning home and the end of our trip, comes up almost daily in our conversations. We catch each other pondering; thinking about what it will be like at reentry.

Marc told me the other day he feels like an astronaut (we are in Amsterdam). He feels like he’s been in space, weightless, no responsibility except for doing what he loves, traveling. However, the shuttle is headed back to Earth. Gravity is beginning to take hold, feet feeling heavier, and thoughts about reentry. The last week will feel like hitting Earth’s atmosphere… turbulence, tiles flying off the wings, God I hope the parachute ejects! Once on the ground he can “really” only explain his journey to other “astronauts”… the good news is I’m an astronaut too in Marc’s world. We will have stories of our trip to share forever.

I seriously doubt we’ll stand in our last hotel room, in Tokyo, looking at each other amazed we survived the year together. I think we will feel triumph for successfully spending a year together, a year really understanding each other, a year becoming closer, a year simply being a traveler and never once engaging in a no-holds-barred all out brawl.

We spent the day, our 11 month milestone, doing laundry, a necessity when sitting in smoke-filled brown cafes. I even sewed-up a hole in my jeans, something I would never do at home. I would do what every other good American does—throw the jeans away and buy a new pair, but since we’re still tracking to our budget I don’t want to blow it on a new pair of jeans. I will wait until we get home.

Our final month will be as fun as the last eleven months as we wrap up Europe, explore our own country’s capitol and relax on the beach for a few weeks to cap off our trip. We will continue the job search, but for now our lives in San Francisco are still unknown. If it turns out like the past eleven months, then I guess we shouldn’t worry.