En Route

Meanwhile, somewhere over the Arctic Circle, the realization kicks in, I'm on my way to China. I start to think about the past eight months and how everything lead to this point. Nine months ago I was hired into a job that I thought was going to be great. I found out that it wasn't entirely what I was told about during the interview. This was around the time my friend told me about the prospect of teaching English abroad. Soon, I was enrolled in a weekend Teaching English and a Foreign Language Certification class. At work, I quickly grew frustrated, and knew that it was time for a drastic change. I set a deadline for myself, I was going to be leaving Michigan by the latest August.
It took a month of weekend classes to become certified to teach. I started looking at different countries and schools and after multiple middle of the night interviews, I was offered a position to teach at the same university one of my best friends was teaching at. Then began the blitz of paperwork, doctors appointments, vaccinations, and thousands of questions to help prepare myself to travel halfway around the world. With every step I took, the thought would sink in a bit deeper. Even after I bought my plane ticket, the idea seemed more surreal than anything. But now six hours into the flight and nine more to go it hits me. I'm going to be the farthest from home that I can possibly get, in a world that I won't understand. It's exciting and terrifying all at the same time. I don't know what to expect; but that's what an adventure is.