Holiday in Dublin & What's Next?

As the New Year is approaching and everyone is writing down their resolutions, I am sitting back and enjoying what a nice Christmas I had here in Dublin. Spent Christmas Eve with new friends and a nice meal and then the special day with someone whom I love! This is what the holiday is about, right? I missed the usual routine with my family but adapting to where I am and trying something new for a change was nice.

Christmas consisted of a nice morning coffee and opening of presents followed by a pleasant "brunch" with wine. Slaving in the kitchen, Mattia made types of bruschetta: pear, walnut & cheese- prawn, parmesan & tomato-fig, ham, walnut & cheese. Went splendid with the bitter red wine from South Africa that we seem to keep buying weekly. Movies filled the rest of the day.

Following Christmas day, we went to the City Centre to find thousands of people, scrambling from store to store, spending hundreds of dollars on top name brands, perfume, clothes, shoes like it was Christmas all over again! The sales...another dollar, another day.

It is bittersweet when Christmas is over and everyone has to go back to work (except me for the moment). There still is the New Year coming up, but it is so hard to believe that 2012 has passed us all by. I know some say that when you get older, time goes faster. I didn't believe it until now. Being 25 years old and about to begin the year 2013. I remember how big the Millennium was...it seems like yesterday.

At this point, I know people like to reflect on good moments and bad from the previous year. What could have I done differently? Oh, that was a fun time we had. I will never do that again.

This is not my intention of mind. Yes, the year 2012 was good, it was bad, it was a learning experience, actually a once in a lifetime adventure. But so is now. I am not going to glance back, I am only going to look forward. This next year. What can it bring? It's exciting, you know? I realized that I have grown up a bit. Sound silly, nerdy, or whatever? A bit, yes. But as Mattia & I, on a Saturday night sitting on our nice, big, red couch watching our 4th Al Pacino movie with a pint and pizza...well...it was nice. It is a good feeling to just relax with someone. Connect with yourself, other people...this is one out of many reasons I found that I belong right where I am in this exact moment. How do you feel in this exact moment?

What's next? What will 2013 bring? Who knows. I do know that if your happy with where you are, what your doing...just continue your life. Its just a new year, nothing new has to change. Let life, naturally bring things to you. Don't search to hard for them.

Well, for those who are not happy with where you are or what your doing...change it. Find a new job. Quit your old one. Find those people who make you laugh constantly and surround yourself of them. Eat good food. Exercise. Have a nice cocktail once in a while. Hobby it up! Plan a vacation... Do what it is that will make you happy, even if it is just for a split second. As I have been saying, as you get older the time speeds up.

Wanderlust: Patient with what will come next and find what it is that makes you smile.

Christmas is Creeping

A few days have passed since Caged In. To be honest, I have been quite busy this week figuring out options to stay here in Ireland, finishing up some Christmas shopping, and motivating my mind to write has been difficult. I mean, this is true for most people around the busy holidays. Your mind is elsewhere! Thinking...I have to do this...I have to do that...

My advice. Slow down. Relax. Remember what this holiday is truly about.

Five days until Christmas! How time flies by. This time last year I was on my way back to Virginia from Ecuador to spend Christmas with my family and friends. This year is a bit different...

I am spending the holidays in Ireland with Mattia. This will be the first time in 25 years I have ever missed Christmas with my family. Mattia as well. Time continues and things change. I have been having a bit of trouble getting into the jingle bell spirit. Well, I am here, happy, therefore have to do something about this spirit I am missing! 

First step: Finish my Christmas post cards and shopping. Check.

We already have gotten a tree. Its a bit small but fits perfectly on our window seal. Shiny silver, red, green, golden bulbs and white lights. It stands about 4 feet tall. I could say it enjoys the sunlight everyday but 1. It is an artificial tree and 2. It is a rare occasion to get sunlight here in the winter!

Next, its time to begin baking! Theres nothing like baking nice sweets to enjoy around the holidays. I have quite a list of things going...but will let Mattia decide which are the best to have. I am thinking...a banana coconut loaf, chocolate crepes, a blueberry crumble, maybe some type of cookies, and apple oatmeal bars. What do you think? Well we will surely find out. I am kind of a disaster when it comes spending time in the kitchen...so this should be a fun ride.

After some baking and relaxing with a glass of wine. Christmas day will be here before I know it! I have walked around the city. Taking in the beautiful lights. Watching people scramble from store to store with hundreds of bags. I have even been to Christchurch. An old cathedral down the road of where we live. If walking into an ancient, Christmas decorated church doesn't get you in the holiday spirit, I am not sure what will!?! 

Ah...deep breath. It's Christmas time. Enjoy the people you will be around, be thankful for the people who love you regardless of distance, and be happy yourself. You have just gotten through another year of your life! The best has yet to come...

Merry Christmas!

Wanderlust: Adapting to change, believing in yourself to try new things, and be thrilled for finding more reasons of why you are where you are in life!

Caged In

We were walking through Phoenix Park located here in Dublin. It was a sunny, blue sky, no clouds kind of day. We had to take advantage of the weather and stay outside. As we crossed the street, there it was "Dublin Zoo." Being the nerdy tourist I can be, we went!

Through the Asian Forests, Fringes of the Arctic, African Savanna and Plains, Gorilla Rainforest, Chimpanzee Island, Kaziranga Forest Trail, Reptile House, Family Farm, and back out the exit. I would say it was a successful zoo visit. How endangered, scientific, or educational zoo's may be, these animals were locked up. You have to wonder what it may be like to have a fake environment to live in or be caged for most of your life. Well hopefully, speaking realistically, many of you won't know or have to find out. 

Speaking from the outside of the box and thinking about the world we live in, do we live in a fake environment? Are some of us caged in? Maybe so. Maybe not literally caged in but having that feeling...definitely. I guess we just have to get through it and be patient before getting placed back into our "natural habitat." Do the best you can with what you have and where you are. Just like the monkeys from the zoo. Take a look at the picture! Surround yourself with people that love you and that you care about as well. Stick together!

Wanderlust: Doing the best you can with what you have and where you are.

Finding the Sea

You know, recording all of your experiences and sharing them with the public is nice. Yes, people that care about you love to hear what your doing these days. I did exactly this when living in Ecuador. I shared what I was getting myself into everyday...But I am afraid I forgot to mention the meaning of all of those experiences and how it has shaped my way of thinking. No, I am not going to go back through each of my blogs from Ecuador and define what they mean to me. Ecuador is in the past now. I may refer to a specific time here and there, but no worries. I will not repeat myself.

What I am going to do is begin to share with you my emotions of the decisions I make and the aftermath of my adventures of living here in Ireland. What do you think?

About two weeks in-I was getting so called "antsy." I was ready to taste the salt, hear the sound, feel the gritty, rocky sand...I was ready. I was primed to find the sea.

Our, as in Mattia and I's, first little hiking adventure was a trip to Bray. We took the dart and headed to the coast. It was a bit cold and I wasn't quite sure what I was getting myself into. It was nice though. The feel I got from Bray was the old, run down, everything is closed, from the 90's feel. The cloudiness didn't help either. We hiked up the mountain and to the cliffs of the sea. Ah..there it is. The openness of who knows. You have to wonder...what's out there? As I felt the cold wind blow in my ears, the adrenaline rushing to my heart, I felt it. I felt the calm after the storm. No more culture shock. I have and am making the right decision of moving here. Just a simple breath of fresh air is all I needed in that moment.

Howth. Now, for those Southerners from the states, this is not pronounced like you think. Pronounce it as "Houwth." Howth is another little town on the outskirts of Dublin that is a must-see. There is a seaport with many boats, fun little seals, and a nice trail along the cliffs to walk. My first feel was-color. A nice sunny, yet another cold, kind of day, the colors popped! The boats, the people, the sea, food, everything! As I am sitting here writing this blog, the gray sky and falling rain hitting my window seal... its not that exciting, but is motivating to write about a colorful day. This is what you have to do sometimes. Reflect back on a specific time or day and even fast forward to something you imagine that gives you a sense of warmth and comfort. Wa-la!

Continuing to job search, listen to my music, a little art, and some chocolate...I think the rest of my day will be filled with colors!

Wanderlust: Finding ways to keep yourself motivated, happy to be where you are, and to keep going.

An Ending & A New Beginning

For those who have not read my previous blog El Capitulo Siguiente, I was a volunteer in Ecuador for one year. I lived in Quito for one month and the rest of my time in Manta, Ecuador. As my year was dwindling down, like time always does, so did my blog. I believe I ended my year with a video instead of words, which sometimes is nice but I didn't get the chance to actually conclude that year, part of which I lost a bit of who I was.

My year in Ecuador was an amazing experience and also a phase of life. I grew up a lot, learned a lot of who I am and who I am not, made good decisions, made bad decisions, built upon my career, learned a new language, created a happy realm of friends, and of course-fell in love, which brings me to my next blog: Wanderlust.

You probably are thinking what Wanderlust means. And no, I did not get the idea from the movie. I guess you can refer to Wanderlust any way you would like. To me, its a desire to be in a place you have never been, travel a bit, and find out where, how, and why you exist on Earth. Sound intense? Not really.

After Ecuador, I moved back home with the fam. Ah, it was good. I missed them a lot. Three months at home, working a bit, catching up with the parents...it was nice! There was something missing. Endless emails, Skype dates, and more...Mattia.

Referring back to my Baños trip in Ecuador, I never mentioned that I met an Italian-Irish (so to speak) guy, who out of no where  swept me off my feet! Let me tell you girls, it happens. And when it happens, you feel like you are on top of the world. Maybe I can use this as my excuse on discontinuing my Ecuador blog? I don't know. But I do know that I left Ecuador...in love. After a short meeting at the foothill of a volcano, I gave him my email address. We met ironically in the capital's city centre. I was on my way to grab a coffee as I heard my name. Mattia spent some time in Manta with me, left for Columbia for two weeks, and surprised me once again at my doorstep in Manta. We traveled the rest of the time we had together around Ecuador.

So what now? What am I doing?

Three months at home and I finally booked a ticket through Aer Lingus, packed my same two suitcases I had in Ecuador, and moved to Dublin, Ireland.

Big change, eh?

I arrived and had all the cultural shock emotions possible. Am I really here? I am here! What do I do? I don't know! Can I cross the street? They use the Euro not the US dollar, Sarah... Am I really moving in with my boyfriend? Yes, Sarah, you are. I was shocked and excited all at the same time.

A month has passed already so quickly, as always. And I am stuck. I am struggling to find a job to keep me here, and I am finding that I am not the relaxed and laid back person as I thought. I am actually scared of making mistakes which brings me to the fact I keep making them, and all I want to do is make Mattia happy and myself happy as well. Is it the cold and wet weather? Maybe. Or is it just me, not having enough courage? Maybe.

Wanderlust. The desire to find out your own existence. Well, I have to say that no one said life was going to be easy. As Nicholas Sparks said "So it's not gonna be easy. It's going to be really hard; we're gonna have to work at this everyday..."

Real happiness is only shared. So this blog, Wanderlust, are words showing how I am finding my way in life. So read, enjoy, and find your own happiness as well!