where, oh where

i need to go somewhere where there are trains prevailing.  that counts most of the 50 states right out.  this train-call comes to me ever year, right around this time.  it makes me feel restless for the "other", the "abroad", those things that can only be seen when you're in your twenties, strapped to backpack, wending your (probably unwashed) way through foreign lands.  every time i have felt this call it has hummed the same words to me, "to europe, to europe, to europe, to europe," as steadfast and chugging as a steam engine.  but this year, the engine's whistling a different tune.  and i think i know the reason.

i'm in love, i'm in love, and i don't care who knows it!  but not with a boy.  oh no.  with my job.  i have found the best secret that provo, utah has to offer.  the diversity that the whole town lacks seems to be hiding on the corner of university and university at the ELC.  and everyday, i get to be a part of it.  as a white, american girl, it is a very novel thing to be a minority anywhere in utah, but at the ELC i am.  it's wonderful.  each day i am confronted with 10, 12, 15, 20 different cultures that i have to teach to and find my own place within.  my students have witnessed things i have only ever heard about.  and the more i hear about these things and these places, the more i want to go.  and so, my train-call is torn.

i want to go to 3 distinct places:

1) EUROPE- it is so, so very hard to go wrong when visiting europe.

endless destinations

prime beachfront property

myths and legends

near death experiences

haute cuisine

fashion

trains, trains, trains

soccer...

 this is obviously just the smallest smattering of what europe has to offer.  and what a convincing smattering it is.  however, it is not enough to still my wandering heart...

2) for the bear grylls in me (and to see gretchen-gretch and justin-just) SKAGWAY, ALASKA- alaska does happen to be one of the few states where trains do still prevail, at least in some locales, skagway included.  

the hustle and bustle 

my worst nightmare

taking-your-life-into-your-own-hands hikes

idyllic, old-timey feelings

death-defying trains

my gretch

i haven't even touched on the journey it would take to get there and the music that that would surely include.  so, skagway certainly does have it's own allure.


and, finally, the most tempting, inviting, attractive, enchanting, seductive, appealing option of all, 3) SOUTH AMERICA- this is where working at the ELC comes in.  with a healthy dose of latin students, gaining some southern exposure has never been more apropos.

a million, billion flags

death-defying trains in the tropics

friendly people

CARNIVAL!

hardcore soccer

rock-solid men

extremely pointy mountains

waterfalls jon schmidt never dared to dream about

beaches from top to bottom and back again

in all seriousness, south america seems absolutely amazing and is nothing like anything i have ever seen or done before.

so, i have a rather tough decision to make.  which place do i visit?  which set of pictures do i personalize and make my own?  i am in my twenties.  i have a backpack to strap on.  and i am more than happy to wend my grimy way through the great unknown.  BUT WHICH GREAT UNKNOWN SHALL IT BE?!  i don't know.  but what i do know is that i have this song playing in my head an awful lot...

now, i'm not saying that that's a sign or anything, but i'm not saying it's not either.

ps- making a photo-montage interesting on a blogger blog is virtually impossible.  bad form, .blogspot.com.