Send Me on My Way

I'm off.  My flight is out at 5:30am.

No updates for a while, since there's no electricity at the turtle conservation site.

Send me on my way-Rusted Root

Catch you in a month.

xoxo, Cleome

What I Took: Costa Rica

The final, definitive list of what was in my backpack (and on my person, if we're being technical) when I boarded the plane to [Atlanta, GA, and then] Costa Rica.


Clothing

• Tennis shoes
• Kickass rain boots
• Flip-flops
• Water shoes
• 1 pair jeans
• 4 pairs of shorts (2 athletic, 2 other)
• 1 pair black yoga pants
• 1 pair black athletic leggings
• 2 black, long-sleeve shirts (for turtle work)
• 1 lonnnggggg black skirt
• 1 black dress  (hmmm, noticing a color pattern?)
• 4 tank tops
• 4 T-shirts
• 1 light, long-sleeve shirt
• 2 swimsuits (both a bikini and a one-piece)
• 1 pair work gloves
• Columbia rain jacket (new! and it's worth being small enough to fit a kid's size to save money- those things are expensive)
• 1 bandana
• 1 belt
• 4 bras (2 sports, 2 regular)
• 7 pairs underwear
• 5 pairs socks
• 1 pair of [nerd] glasses
• Sunglasses

Toiletries

• Bag to hold everything
• 2 3oz containers of shampoo/conditioner combo
• Mini bar soap
• Feminine products
• Contraceptives
• Travel toothbrush (which is super awesome, by the way- it folds into itself!)
• Toothpaste
• Retainers/case
• Mini brush
• Contact case and 4 extra pairs
• 2 4oz bottles of contact solution <-- can use the larger-than-3oz size since it's thankfully considered a "medical necessity"
• Razor
• Deodorant
• Bobby pins & hair binders
• Face wash
• Facial lotion
• 2 3oz bottles of sunscreen
• Sunscreen bar
• 2 bug spray sticks (? we'll see how well these work...) 
• Floss
• Chapstick (a couple of tubes)
• Makeup (waterproof mascara & eyeliner, signature sparkly eyeshadow, coverup)
• Eyelash curler
• Tweezers
• Travel mirror
• Sink plug
• Wet wipes
• Tissues

Medical/First Aid

• Cough drops
• Bandaids
• Antibiotic cream
• Hydrocortisone
• Stop the Sting! cream
• Tums
• Benadryl
• Ibuprofen
• Moleskin
• Needle/thread
• Peptobismal
• Diarrhea meds <-- apparently one of the most common afflictions while traveling... great

General Supplies

• Backpack (duh!)
• 1 super lightweight, water-compatible flashlight
• Headlamp with a red light <-- doesn't interfere with turtles' nesting habits
• Extra batteries for said headlamp
• Phone (with roaming and 3G turned off; I'm not trying to incur a ton of charges)
• Phone chargers (both normal and solar- ooohhhh)
• Money pouch
• $100 worth of Costa Rican colones (so, like $50,000 in their currency) and $300 (American) for first-leg transportation
• Debit and credit cards
• Passport and other important travel documents (vaccination records, insurance card, and my permit)
• Copies of the above documents 
• Camera/extra batteries/connector cord
• Waterproof cards
• Hackey sack
• Water bottle
• 4 paperbacks: The Stand by Stephen King [thanks Sam!], The Songlines by Bruce Chatwin, Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, and Beloved by Toni Morrison
• Spanish phrasebook/dictionary
• Mosquito netting
• Silk sleeping sheet
• Travel towel
• Plastic bags/rubber bands/twist ties
• Duct tape 
• Journal/pens
• Mini notepad (for addresses, phone numbers, budget balancing, etc.)
• Sharpie
• Small trash bag for dirty clothes
• 1 [relatively waterproof] watch
• Headphones
• Headset (for Skype)
• Small, flexible lock
• Pillowcase (I'm going to stuff it instead of using an actual travel pillow, thus saving room)
• [Rape] whistle
• Small cloth bag (makeshift daypack)
• Gifts for the kids at the orphanage
• Gift for my host family: Minnesota wild rice
• Family picture (since I guess I'll miss them... TONS)

Thanks to the annoying TSA regulations, not all of my "lotions, gels, and aerosols" could fit into one quart-sized plastic bag.  So frustrating.  Meaning right when I land I need to buy some hand sanitizer, body lotion (preferably with aloe to sooth the inevitable sunburn), and zit cream, yaaayyyyyy.

I can't believe 1) all those things fit in my 55L backpack, and 2) I'm carrying it all on my back.  

Damn I hope I get stronger.  

xoxo, Cleome

Game of Opposites

With less than one week left until I leave, I've been feeling quite a few conflicting emotions.

While I've certainly been smiling at random moments (generally accompanied by a squeal of "In X days I'll be in Costa Rica!"), I've also had my fair share of slight freak-outs.  But I figure this is to be completely expected; with any new experience comes an array of emotion.

There are happy feelings:
-Yay, my gap year activities are finally starting.
-I can't wait to be on the beach.
-I'm so ready to become completely independent and leave everything I know behind- bring on the adventure!

Relieved feelings:
-Thank god I'm not currently being thrust back into a school setting.  Though I've heard college is quite awesome in many respects, I'm so glad I'm not having to study/do homework or be stuck in the regulated academia environment.
-While the weather is changing here (freezing-ness is cominnnggggg), I've got three more months of summer to look forward to....

Excitement for first-time activities, including:
-Being away from home for longer than a few weeks.
-Going to Costa Rica.
-Hard-core volunteering.
-Being completely self-dependent.
-Living with a host family.
-Flying alone.
-Traveling alone.
Alone.
Alone.
Alone.

And then, quite honestly, the excitement feelings quickly turn into nervousness:
-I'm going to a different country, where the main language is not English, and I will be ALL ALONE.
Alone.
Alone.
Alone.
(At least at first.)

Yeah, that's the main one.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not regretting anything about what I've chosen to do this year.  And while I have to admit that every single reason for excitement also brings me a tich of fear, I suppose the challenge is what makes what I'm doing all the more valuable and meaningful (in terms of self-growth, and whatnot).

It's crazy how I feel so prepared and ready to get out in the world, but then also feel woefully insignificant and young and naive and inexperienced when I think about how big the earth is.

And maybe I'm being slightly dramatic, since it's not like I leaving home with no plan, or that I'm never coming home.  But this part of my gap year is definitely significant in my life as an independent human being and a traveler.  It's how I'm choosing to jumpstart my adulthood.

I'm 18, and ready to take on the world.  Or so I tell myself.

xoxo, Cleome