Comfort zone

So I guess traveling is all about getting out of your comfort zone,  because until you do that you don't really test yourself or see your inner strength. How do you respond to adversity?  How do you solve problems?  What reaction do you have in stressful situations?

We only just arrived in Ulan bataar yesterday so I can't say there has been much adversity thus far. In fact,  it feels a bit easy but I think that may also be because I am traveling with a good friend which I have never done before. I think being alone adds a layer of anxiety which doesn't exist when there is someone else with you who speaks your language and can help you if needed which is all a new experience for me. Mongolia is actually much,  much easier than the 12 hours we spent in Beijing. Not being able to read the characters of a language makes you feel really helpless.  Just trying to get to our hotel was so difficult because i only had the english name and address printed out which no one understood. It took at least six people and one incorrect attempt to get us there. Talk about helpless!  At least we can read the Cyrillic characters here even if the meaning of the words is unknown. It's a relief to know with a little studying we'll be able to pronounce words,  read a map,  etc.

The strangest sensation thus far has been not having a computer and not compulsively checking email,  Facebook, etc. I am so used to a rapid-fire multi -tasking that I definitely went through a bit of withdrawal at first. I recall reading an article in the new York times about top neurologists who went on a trip to study what happened to their brains when they disconnected for a couple of weeks and it took them only a week for their brain chemistry to change. I am looking forward to that! I know my work has changed my brain patterns for the worse and hope disconnecting will be a much needed reset.

I think the trip is likely to feel somewhat easy until we head out west on Monday and stay in Ger's, ride horses and commune with nature which is always a wonderful challenge. It's guaranteed to rain when we are out in the steppe so I look forward to being wet and miserable at times and learning more about what I'm made of and who I've become over the past few years. Though it just recently ended, I grew and changed immensely throughout my relationship with Brian and I look forward to seeing all of these changes through the inevitable adversity to come!