So Long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Goodbye!

This has been the summer of wild blackberries, classic rock radio, rock climbing, dinner parties, epic concerts, new friends, and good times. Rough Raleigh has done me well. I feel like I'm in a very comfortable spot, let's do a metaphor here kids: I feel as though I am sitting in the back of a pick up truck, breeze in my hair, smiles all the way around, and I suddenly fall off- some might say through compulsion- of the truck bed. The question is, do I do one of those sweet Jackie Chan tuck and roll dives off of the truck bed where I instantly, if not miraculously, pop up on my feet and scream "Bring it ON b****es!!", or do I kind of scratch my knees when I fall, make this whining noise, and sit criss cross applesauce on the ground thinking "why are my friends such crappy drivers?"

Hopefully, I'll harness my inner Jackie. and by hopefully, I mean bring it ON.

So, I'm off. My bag is packed, my visa stamped, and I'm ready and rearin' to go.

Nervous?  I suppose. Hot Mess? Maybe. Excited? Absolutely.

The trek down to Valdivia will be pretty extensive and includes a whole day of travel. (Punk- "I've been flying all day and my arms are very tired") But I'm sure it will be fine. Can't say I'm too concerned about the whole traveling bit, I started flying internationally when I was 6, Tiffany was 8 and Cody was 4, and traveling alone pretty regularly a short few years later. Customs ain't got nothin' on us! Let's just say I've had my fair share of international flight experience, and this flight to Chile may be long, but hopefully not too daunting of an undertaking. I just hope the weather gets a little bit warmer before I arrive....I can dream :)

Briefly, I just wanted to thank my friends for helping me move my stuff (I swear it would be less if I didn't have all that camping gear), my mom for being patient with me, I gather that I may be a little scatterbrained at the moment, and everyone else for making this summer a memorable chapter.

"There was a point to this story, but it has temporarily escaped the chronicler's mind."


and I'll leave you with words of wisdom of a dear friend of mine: "Peace and blessings y'all. Where's the turkey?"

With that, I think I'll go to Chile. 

Well I Guess I'll Go to Chile...

I suppose I can be called a travel conformist, for creating this blog and all. But hey, we do what we can to keep Momma Cox and the fans happy.

So, with that being said, I guess I will start out with a little background info. I'm going to Chile. Yep. I am studying abroad, and I can't believe it. This came as a result of several decisions that may or may not have freed up an entire semester. Which is great, I mean, I am going to seriously put my Spanish to the test, learn some new things, meet some new people, travel a lot- and according to my lovely mother find a nice Chilean boy who can cook her a good meal when she comes down to visit (Yes, Momma Cox and I will be taking on South America for a month, more to come on that later). Overall, I'm excited and eager, albeit a bit wary, to take off for 5 months. I know there will be lots of adventures headed my way, and I get antsy just at the thought.

My mom has always told me that life is an adventure, and that goes with the good and the bad. So, I guess I'm kind of an adventure prone individual, in the most diverse sense of the word that is, so we will see what happens.

For now, I am just sitting here on my couch, watching Ironman (wondering how Pepper runs in heels so very effectively), eating freshly baked snickerdoodles, and living the American dream of summer field internships in Raleigh and nights rock climbing at the gym- just thinking how different my life is going to be in a mere 2 weeks...and I can't wait.

And so, my pre-departure dedication goes as such:

To my family: I love you guys: Willis: no major life decisions while I'm gone, but good luck as a frosh in grad school! Cody: good luck with your first semester buddy, you are going to do great! But please keep in mind that I'll only edit your essays if they are in spanish. Momma: Brace yourself, you have the experience of a lifetime ahead of you (and I'm not talking about learning to install a webcam so we can skype). To my friends: Thanks for the support, and the whole accepting the fact that I'm crazy thing. Just wait for what I have planned next. To the facebook stalkers and creepers alike: It's been real, and it's been fun. But, well you know what they say...enjoy this exclusive preview into my life, maybe I really am as cool as I look on my profile.

And to everyone else: enjoy the read! I don't have much experience with this, so we will see how it goes. I did write a blog  for the Sierra Club a couple of months ago, and I'm pretty sure Josh was the only one who read it, but he said it was alright, he was mainly a fan of my "cats are invasive species" entry....Anyway, maybe this one will be alright too.

So here's to the stereotypical travel blog, and all of the adventures by proxy that come with it.