Truthfully it feels scary - how time rolls so fast and there's no way to turn back. Everything that I did since university till now, it just went quickly. A year in Australia, gone in a snap. Now I'm at the age of a quarter century. I started to worry about my future. It's time to get real.
Traveling has become a part in my life. I am so grateful that I can travel a lot since young. For the last four years, I moved many times, jumped from one place to another. I could be in
Vietnam for weeks, hit Malaysia for several months, back to Jakarta for work, flew to
South Korea for a month, and did
work and holiday in Australia where I spent the longest time in one place, Sydney, 10 months and finally break the record!
However, the excitement to travel starts to fade away.
I completed my work in Australia end of September and started to travel for six-month long. It's hard to say that I enjoyed the whole experience. I felt exhausted on the road- checked-in to a hostel, walked around to see the attractions, packed up, and move, always the same routine. It really got into me after a while, I just wanted to end this quickly.
Long travel makes me realize that I have no close friends around. I do make some good friends but then I have to leave and I'm not sure when we will be able to meet again. I still keep in touch with them but I don't know how long it will last after being apart for so long. I met many inspirational travelers from around the world. I could add 50 friends in a week on facebook from group tours that I joined. It's true- less close friends brings more essence than lots of acquaintances.
Deep in myself, I am no longer thrilled with quick travel. I would rather stay long in one country and immerse into that particular experience. I wanna feel how locals live- what they eat, how their culture impacting their lives, where they go and hang out, the political situation, etc. I am still dreaming to study language in China for 1-2 years, volunteering in India for six months to a year, or continuing my master degree in Europe.
I think it's time for me to settle down.
The word settle down used to creep me out but as the time goes by, thinking about my future creeps me even more. I am twenty five years old now, a young age if I follow my western thinking. However, as an Asian, 25 years old is considered as the age where you are stable enough to have a good career and to start a family, especially for woman. Plus, I have demanding parents and they're getting older. Like it or not I have to put aside my own selfishness to travel and start to give them more attention and support them financially.
Looking at my friends who are well-established in their career and business, I feel like I am more demanding now. There are things that I still wanna achieve, such as; setting up a business, involving more in society and NGOs, own a house, being financially secured so that I can manage to travel longer and better. Also, I have received helps for so many years from my family and friends, now it's time for me to give back and being the one who helps people.
I need to take consideration on many aspects, collecting back the puzzles of my life. I need to create my goals and direct myself to reach the goals. For now, I stop myself from traveling for long term. Maybe I'll still do some short vacation but not as frequent as before. Meanwhile, I am focusing on my self-improvement, broaden my circle, earn some money, and work on things out. So, you might not hear a lot about my travel or seeing me posting pictures on instagram but, I will try to write and update my blog constantly. Good luck for myself!
Cheers.
Labels: Thought
