Ooooh...Unagi

I keep seeing the Co-operative Travel advert where a guy booking his holiday witters on about what he wants to do. He finishes by saying:

“I want to spend time enjoying my holiday, not months planning it.”

Well I must be the odd one out as I’ve been doing nothing but plan for the past 6 months! Granted, he’s probably booking a 2 week all inclusive holiday to Gran Canaria but still, it kind of irks me. I’ve actually enjoyed all the reading and discussions I’ve had with like-minded people about my trip. If anything, my grasp of geography has vastly improved! (Do NOT ask me where I used to think Morocco was!!).

The more I think about where I’m going and what I might (or will in some cases!) be doing equally excites and petrifies me. It’s no secret that I am a classic wimp. Which is why doing something like this really takes me out of my comfort zone. I like to be organised and know what I’m doing and where I’m going. This, coupled with a ridiculously bad sense of direction, has planted a seed of doubt in my head. It’s like the angel and devil on either shoulder. One’s saying “Go for it!! You will have the time of your life. Do what makes you happy, sod the rest.” The other one’s saying “Are you frickking crazy! Sit your ass back down, get a career and have babies”. Haha, I added that one on the end for dramatic effect. Babies indeed! But that seems to be the growing trend amongst my circle of friends.

Although settling down is something that some are all too happy to do in their early twenties, it’s something which completely freaks me out. Don’t get me wrong, I am so happy for those that have chosen that path. They know what they want and they have it. Part of me is envious of that – I wish I knew what I wanted and where I’d like to be in say 5 years but then, for me, that’d be pretty boring. As I said before, let there be ADVENTURE!! Bring it on…well maybe just a little bit…see how I go yeah?

My safety blanket will be the travel insurance. Searching for the “right” cover was a mind-boggling experience. I thought car insurance was a ball-ache…well an ache anyway. Excess? Breakdown cover? Whaaa…errr…eenie meanie minie mo. Well it was more like – “That one’s the cheapest and if Iggy Pop says it’s alright…”
Travel insurance is a little more complicated. This is one thing I can’t afford to hold back on. I feel I have the essentials sorted though and managed to get a pretty good deal. DO NOT get insurance from a travel agency. They must make a fortune given what they quoted me.

It’s not the nicest of subjects to be thinking about. Like car insurance, you hope you never have to use it but best get decent coverage rather than the absolute basics just in case. Rather than legal cover and car key replacements I have to think about medical expenses and repatriation. The latter ensures that if I die, I have cover for the cost of flying my body home. Lovely! I have unlimited funds to cover my medical expenses which is good. Although I don’t plan on dying (of course!), I do feel like I should make the most of my insurance somehow. I might adopt the same annoying hypochondriac syndrome that the recurring character in Scrubs (Mr Corman) suffers from. Hmmm, full body scan…where do I sign. Seriously though, I really don’t want to get ill. I’m not very sickly but when I do fall ill, it hits me tenfold. It’s as if the germs in my body wait until they have a sufficient gang and then play havoc with my insides. What can I say, my body hates me!

So basically I need to have my wits about me. Safety-wise I’m not going to have anything worth stealing. I’ll be taking a camera which I desperately hope will stay with me throughout my trip. I don’t want to lose any photos! Passport and cash are the obvious items to lose/get nicked. Again, I have a back-up for both of those too but it would be a pain in the arse to sort out. It’d be wishful thinking that nothing will go wrong. I’m not that lucky unfortunately! Although I have a brown belt in kickboxing and would like to think I can handle myself…the likelihood is I would scream and run in the opposite direction. According to the standard gap year advice, that reaction is exactly what you should do. Nothing’s worth getting stabbed for. Not sure they worded it like that but I got the picture.

In the meantime I do wonder weather I can learn to sense danger…Do I have Unagi? Stupid YouTube won't let me upload the video to my blog so a link will have to do. Sorry guys!

221 days to go! Ages away but a countdown's a countdown.