 |
When I first wrote this blog last year about how much I loved Las Vegas, little did I know would be back there less than a year later, with the boy I had recently started talking to who also professed to love Las Vegas as much as I did.
Las Vegas isn’t your typical starting point for a round the world trip. I get that for some of you it may even be a yearly vacation spot. And as for Scott, although our trip has officially now started, he hasn’t even left his own home country yet. So I can understand how some people might see this starting point as an anti-climax; not exotic enough to even warrant talking about. But for us we always knew we wanted to visit Las Vegas together, so the start of our big trip just seemed like the perfect time. Trust me when I say that we have plenty of exotic destinations in our future. For now, we want to party and enjoy the city we both got misty-eyed over when we first got to know each other. (Back story: Scott used to live in Las Vegas and I have been twice before – once for a whole week. And my liver survived.)
Starting my round the world trip was a lot different than I expected. When I left the UK less than a week ago I expected there to be tears, a marching band, banners and confetti as my parents waved me off in slow motion through to the check-in desk.
It was nothing like that.
It was early morning, it was bloody freezing and we were all tired. The week leading up to my departure had been an emotional roller coaster as I bid farewell to all of my friends and family in turn, yet I never once had any regrets. The only tears I shed were for my pregnant sister, simply because I was sad that I wouldn’t be around for the birth of my first niece or nephew. But apart from that, I was actually a lot more composed than I thought I’d be. Probably for the simple reason that I knew that this trip was the right thing to do. I was happy. And so once I got to the airport on the day of departure, I was ready to go. Both mentally and emotionally.
And as I made my connections for my three flights that day it felt much like any other travelling experience I had ever had. Surely I should be feeling differently? This was a much bigger trip than I had ever taken before. But the simple fact was my brain had still not registered just how long I could possibly be away from home. Although I was ready for a change, it still hadn’t sunk in just how big that change could turn out to be.
As I sit here looking out at the Las Vegas Strip, I am still in denial that my trip has actually started. I’m not sure when the realisation will sink in, but I have no doubt that one day soon it will hit me like a big hammer over the head.
And if there is anywhere in the world I would be able to find the marching band, banners and confetti I was craving, Las Vegas was the perfect place to start.
Leave a Reply