ready or not, here I come!

"So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more dangerous to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun. If you want to get more out of life, you must lose your inclination for monotonous security and adopt a helter-skelter style of life that will first appear to you as crazy. But once you become accustomed to such a life you will see its full meaning and its incredible beauty."
— Chris McCandless, Into the Wild

This quote is one of the things that propelled my interest in traveling. I guess you could say it all started in high school. A few classes (that I wasn't expecting to like) caught my attention and "stamped" me with curiosity. In geography, we watched the movie "Hotel Rwanda". In english, we read Into the Wild. And in sociology, we learned about evolution and also watched documentaries on different tribes that are still active today in remote areas. When I got to college, we were lucky enough to have Lisa Ling speak on campus. Since then I have thought a lot about eeevvveeerrryyyytttthhhiiiinnnggg out there that "we," as privileged americans are blind to. I am hardly a spec on this globe full of 6,893,295,289 some odd people. I speak ONE language (fluently). I have ONE family. I live in ONE city (okay, one and a half. college). I have eaten the same food my whole life. I listen to a few select types of music. And I have my own style. 

On the flip side....why not? Why NOT try a different style? Why NOT try a different cuisine, better yet adopt that cuisine? Why shouldn't I force myself to speak a different language for a few months, if not longer? Why NOT be taken care of by a foreign family? 

Long story short, In the few places that I have already seen (Ontario Canada, Cancún Mexico and Costa Rica) I am extremeeeeely intrigued by this world. And I want MORE. Who wouldn't? 

So SPAIN...ready or not, here I come!