Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Anticipation

I'm not going to lie. I'm really excited

Half the fun of traveling is planning a trip and the time leading up to actually boarding the plane. I’ve had some pretty great trips to look forward to: a summer Arabic program in Egypt, a train trip through the National Parks of the American West, a journey through Japan’s cities and countryside. All special to me in their own way and for different reasons. The next trip, however, is indescribable.

The Middle East has been an interest of mine since high school. But it began to fully develop in college when I decided to formally study Arabic. Working for Smithsonian Journeys has given me many fantastic opportunities to travel and the anticipation has been mounting ever since I was assigned an “Arabian Gulf Voyage.” The voyage will take me through Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, and the UAE, an area of the world I’ve read about, studied, and hoped to visit one day. From visiting the Grand Mosque in Muscat, Oman to crossing the Dubai Creek by water taxi, history and modernism come together to create a unique dynamic only found in the Arabian Gulf states.

I’ve definitely thought about what I need to pack, but it hasn’t been transferred over into my suitcase yet. I still have a day and a half though and tomorrow night it will magically work out!

2 comments:

jane and jack said...

Hooray Alyssa! You go girl and have a blast. Thank you for keeping us in the loop. We look forward to your adventures and amazements. jane and jack

Mom and Dad said...

Hi Alyssa,

Glad to hear that your trip to Oman went pretty smoothly. We are also very excited for you and this great opportunity you have to represent your country and the Smithsonian Journeys program. Hopefully you'll get to practice the Arabic you've been studying over the last few years. We hope that all your travel partners will share your love and admiration of different cultures, ethnic groups, languages and customs. That will greatly enhance your exploration of countries in the middle east. We look forward to seeing more of the pictures you've been taking for the Smithsonian - they help us to see things through your eyes. Please come back to us safe and sound. We look forward to sharing all your experiences. Talk to you again soon. Love, Mom and Dad