To leave or not to leave... that was the question

Since my first blog entry, I have started several entries but never finished any of them. I didn't like them or simply got bored with them. And besides that, I am the queen of procrastination. And that is probably the best reason for why it has taken me so long to write again. Well now seems appropriate.

Originally, my plan was to stay in Georgia until June of 2011. The decision to leave home and drop everything to come to a foreign country was a pretty big one, so I figured I might as well do it for a significant amount of time. Well the program that I am here through gave us the option of staying for one or two semesters. When I first arrived here, I signed the one semester contract but I had every intention to extend it for the second semester. Well my train of thought eventually changed and I decided to not resign. My contract will expire in late December and then I will be free to go home and take on a different adventure.

The reasons are many but not really related to Georgia. I have no complains about my experience here, my host family or my school. One of the primary reasons is the fact that I want to explore other places. I am absolutely loving my time here and I want to continue with something similar. It's not possible to explain how immersing yourself in a culture different from your own can teach you so much about yourself and your own culture. While it is a real challenge to accept the new cultural norms, it simultaneously is exciting to discover these new ways of thinking, socializing, and relating to others. While Georgia is a relatively small country, it definitely has a very particular culture different from what I am used to. If I have found so much in such a small country, I cannot even begin to imagine what else is out there for me to see.

The second main reason that influenced my decision is the fact that realistically speaking, I can't (or want to) be away from home forever. I want to travel some more but I don't want to be away for 2 or 3 years. So I figured, I would spend almost half a year in Georgia, go home for a month or so, and then head into a new country for about 6 months or a year. After that, I think I'll be more that ready to go home, get a job, buy a car, and all that fun stuff.

While it is an amazing experience to discover new places and meet new people, it sure is hard to be away from home. It was extremely hard to say goodbye and it continues to be extremely hard to be away. My first month or so in Georgia went by pretty smoothly. I was having a blast, eating wonderful food, working with super cute kids, and living with a wonderful family. This last week, however, has been pretty rough. I missed home like crazy and many of those "Georgian cultural norms" were getting on my last nerve. But thankfully, I feel much better now and once again I am embracing the (many) cultural particularities of Georgians. I still miss home like crazy, but I know that I will be there soon.

So basically, I am currently applying for positions and trying to figure out where to go next. It's actually quite exciting to know that my adventure will continue somewhere different. Since I want to figure out my future place of temporary residence a.s.a.p., I am now busy busy working on applications, interviews, and so on and so forth. I am keeping my fingers crossed so that I actually land something somewhere somehow.