Odyssey: Year One

A year is a long time. Thousands of sights and experiences. Hundreds of people. Thousands of thoughts, conversations and enlightening moments. A year that has changed my life. As the year comes to an end, so to does my year long odyssey of the world. Soon I arrive back to my country. Back to my the my friends and family. I look forward to seeing the land I left and to see how much it has changed.

The world feels like such a small place to me at the moment. Some days I close my eyes and i open them a few hours later and I find myself on a different continent. Time and place seems somewhat disjointed, yet connected in ways I have never experienced before. To me, London is a city in between New York and Tel Aviv. Lately, I wake up and not just wonder what time it is, but what country I am in. At the moment I am in Thailand and sometimes I find myself wondering if I am in Peru or Brazil.

Within the chaos of my life this past year, a light has emerges. It has broken through the noise and images that surround me everyday. The light points me to next stage - the next Act.

This week I have been hanging out with my Argentine brother, Santiago, in Chiang Mai, Thailand. What better way to end this voyage than with one of the best friends someone could ever have the privilege of knowing. There has been mate. A bottle of Fernet was drunk. There was laughter, reminiscing and new adventures. The most incredible thing we did this week was going with Noom, the owner of the hostel we are staying at, to see his family's rice field. To see and take part in the rice harvest was a pretty special event. We learnt of lives and workings of his family. Seeing the rice helped me understand and appriciate the enormity, simpicity and importance of the rice (one of the world stables) and families like his who produce it. That was better than any temple, world heritage site or city I have visited in some ways.

I just said goodbye to Santi as he continues on for what is the beginning of his own odyssey. It was sad to say goodbye not knowing the next time we would get to hang out next. But I am so happy we both were here and appriciate the time we shared. This year has been incredible in that I have met so many great people. But its been getting harder to say goodbye.

Tonight I get the overnight train back to Bangkok. Only the seats were left as all the sleeper were sold out. Luckily my Oesteopath appointment is already booked for the week I returned! So as I enter the last stage of this journey - I reflect on the Year of Odyssey. I realise though that by going home that it all doesn't stop. The Odyssey continues and will be a part of me forever. The friendships, the cities and the experiences continue.