The Sky's the Limit

“Dream it! Plan it! Do it!”-National Geographic Adventure
Marily MacDonald
Wow, I can’t believe I am actually about to embark on a six month Odyssey around the world. It all seems so flippant. Here I am jetting off, leaving all responsibilities and “reality” behind, to do what? Live life to the fullest? Well, heck yes I am. When else could I ever do something like this again? I am putting off that mortgage, two and a half kids and the picket fence for a backpack, two and a half months worth of Malaria pills and no limit to where I will “find myself.” My degree is not going anywhere and those cover letters are written and ready to send out as soon as I get back.
Lisa Auchincloss and I, both Middle Park Alumni (‘02), are setting off together. We graduated from college in May and wanted to ‘get around,’ (as in the world) before we get serious about our careers. The last six months have consisted of saving and planning for this expedition. I have found myself swabbing decks as first mate on a yacht, cooking for a rowdy bunch of hunters, tending bar and patiently teaching three year olds how to ski, all in pursuit of saving enough money to get myself around this blue dot of ours.
Shots, packs and facts, we have done our homework. Registering with the US Embassy’s in the countries we plan to visit and checking up on Visa requirements have kept us busy. Not to mention the shots and meds we had to get; Typhoid, Tetanus, Hepatitis C, Malaria and stocking up on a healthy supply of Pepto and Imodium AD. Packing your life into 2500cc of nylon and trusting your insurance policy have been trying and we’ll find out how practical. Without the Internet planning such an endeavor would be a bit more tedious. We are winging a few aspects of the trip but, all in all, we have everything organized and will have our wits about us at all times.
Now that our ducks are in a row we plan on starting this Odyssey in South America, where we will explore the Inca trail and trace Che Guevara’s path through Peru and Chile. Followed by a brief stint in the emerging economic super power of Hong Kong. Then, we will hangout in the tree house bungalows of Thailand and swing through the jungles of Cambodia. In Morocco we’ll catch the Marrakech Express and find out what Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young were singing about. While in the UK we may loose a few pounds but it wont stop us from getting “out of this world” in Iceland’s unique and diverse topography.

~~I write to entertain, inspire and expand your horizons into the world around us. Our mission is to experience new cultures and broaden our perspective on life. Thus, making us perceptive individuals with a keen sense of adventure and a yearning for understanding and insight. ~~

Dreamt it! Planned it! Doing it!