Blue shoes, back on board. Destination: Thailand.

When in doubt, escape via travel.

I’ll admit. I don’t really know where the blue shoes are. Stamped "out of service" and likely piled somewhere beneath the mounds of mess in my half of the closet space. 

But blue shoes or not, the blog remains and the adventure continues. This time, for a month in Thailand. 

It'll be just Caitlan and I, a girlfriend I met month one of freshman year. We both tossed the tassel over our caps last Saturday, accepting our status as college graduates and joining the ranks of those unsure as to where the next step would be.

Except for this trip. Because like I said, when the next chapter of a blurred future has yet to present itself, the certainty of travel plans should always be an option.

I returned from London and Paris back in November, still in love with all things Parisian though keen to experience something so radically different than the churches and rivers and bridges of every European city.

And so I let the travel ideas drift off, contemplating a tour of the Greek islands and a trip through South America, (every intention to track down my Peruvian alpacas). The plans didn't thrill me as much as my wishful thinking for a trip to Asia. Which is when Caitlan and I stumbled upon roundtrip tickets to Bangkok, sparing little time to snag our find.

We leave this Tuesday and return next month. All of which was organized two weeks back.

The first eight days are planned—four nights in Bangkok, an overnight train ride up north and three nights booked in Chiang Mai. It’s listed on some Google doc drafted last week, though neither of us are looking to have the month fully organized.

That’s the beauty of backpacking: We’ll take it as it goes.

We’ve checked off the necessary health precautions—shots and pills to proof against malaria, Hep A and typhoid. I’ve stocked up on white V-necks (a takeaway from summers at sleepaway camp), in addition to Tums, for who knows the affect of Thai food on a western adapted, digestive system.

I’ve wanted an adventure for some time, and this--a month in Thailand-- will be just that. Who knows where the four weeks will take us: the people we’ll meet, the stories and memories we’ll create. But I do know that this is the one time--potentially the last time-- we have to take a month away from the responsibilities and expectations that await us come return to the real-world. 

There's a quote that says life begins at the end of your comfort zone. And I agree for it's a combination of doing and trying that allows us to maximize the potential life has to offer. 

We've got this: Four weeks. One tiny suitcase. Infinite opportunities. I'm ready to do and keen to try. The girl and the traveling blues shoes is absolutely back on board.