Yup, the time has finally arrived. CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?!

When I first announced my world trip in June, it seemed a lifetime away. Seven months was more than enough time for me to leisurely plan my itineraries, book flights and hostels, purchase all the things I needed, and pack everything into my trusty backpack.

I’m not sure if Father Time decided to make me the joke of 2012, but those seven months FLEW. Now here I am, the Sunday before my Tuesday flight from LAX to Christchurch, New Zealand – and I’m blinking at the to-do list (nay, scroll) in front of me.

My last day at the office was Friday. That helps. Now I can focus primarily on packing, shopping, calling banks and the phone company and credit cards…having last-minute lunches and coffee dates, and still trying to finish assignments for my internship with Gogobot.

So, I leave on Tuesday. On a flight out of LAX at 2:20pm, which takes me first to Tokyo for a jet refuel, then to Singapore for a 17-hour layover (free trip to the city!), and then onward to Christchurch, NZ at the bottom of the world. I’ve booked the first segment of my trip through the South Island and on to Wellington in the north; I’ll be in NZ for three weeks and then on to the east coast of Australia for another three weeks. So far, I’ve got tours booked through…

Milford Sound

Tongariro Crossing (home of the Lord of the Rings filming!)

…and the Great Barrier Reef.

Anxiety has come in bouts, but more than ever now it’s the excitement that controls my senses. Sometimes I sit back and think, THIS IS HAPPENING.

After working my tail off at two, and at some points three, jobs for 14 months, it’s very strange for me to accept the fact that I have nothing to do but enjoy the next six weeks of travel and exploration. In some of the furthest reaches of the planet, moreover. I’m hoping it will be everything I’ve hoped it would be – and more importantly, I’m hoping it will be a successful start to a career in travel and writing.

And on that note, don’t forget to follow Stranger In This Town on all of my social networks:

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Let’s do this!