Travelling Thirties

 Happy New Year y'all! Not just happy new year but Happy Chinese New Year too! Haha, haven't gotten anything up since the new year began but oh wells~ 

Today, I watched New Year Blues with Natasha. It's a romance movie directed by Hong Ji Young that focusses on the lives of four couples. There's no overarching storyline that connects all four couples but rather, the vastly different lives and histories of each couple are told with tactful cuts between each couple to clearly convey their stories to us. 

^I don't know why I wrote it like I was writing a (honestly terrible) movie review; maybe I'm too buried in my writing classes and now I'm being influenced by them, haha. 

One of the couples in the show is Jae Hun and Jin Ah, where Jin Ah is a 29-year-old (Korean age) lady who took an impulsive 5-day (originally 4-day) trip to Buenos Aires after her boyfriend of six years broke up with her. In Buenos Aires, she meets Jae Hun, a Korean who moved to Argentina in search of freedom from the workaholic life in Korea. In Argentina, Jae Hun works in a vineyard and often does deliveries for them. That is how the couple met. With little time to prepare for her trip, Jin Ah is left lost and confused in a foreign land where she could neither read the signs nor speak the language. She approaches Jae Hun when he makes a delivery to her hotel and through a series of events, they become close. It even felt like there was a budding romance that was never addressed before Jin Ah left for Korea five days later, feeling refreshed and ready to take on the world in her thirties. 

Anyway, enough for that lame movie synopsis. One thing that stood out to me was the fact that Jin Ah literally flew across the world on such short notice and that made such a big difference in her life. Of course, it was exaggerated and things were pretty idealistic for the sake of drama, but it got me thinking: 

What would it be like to just take a random backpacking trip to some random country in the world? 

I've travelled around Europe, and have been to many countries in Asia. But they have always been with people, they have always been planned out, even if the itinerary wasn't always set in stone just yet. I've never done what I would deem a crazy trip: where I'd just up and go to a different country and see where life leads me. 

On the way home, I told Natasha that if I was: #1 still single by 30, #2 have enough savings, and #3 have a job I can either quit or be allowed a long break from, I'd do it too. 

I'd buy a one-way ticket to any country, explore the place and see where life leads me before coming back home. Maybe I'd come back with stories to share, or leave with newfound friends that I'd keep in contact with. If nothing at all, I'd come back with a better understanding of myself. 

Honestly, I feel like I like this idea more and more each time I think about it. 

How nice would it be, to up and dump yourself in a land where you likely don't speak the language and don't understand the culture? Where you're the puppet of fate and you submit yourself to the current of life? 

As I think about it, the more plans I make. 

Maybe I'll fly out on my thirtieth birthday—buy the first ticket out of Singapore and leave for whoever knows how long? Maybe the whole first ticket thing will be difficult, since I do want to celebrate my birthday with my friends and family still. So how about this: the first ticket I find that leaves Singapore after dinnertime. I'll get it a week in advance and that gives me a week to prepare. Do I need thick clothes or thin? What currency should I exchange? Inform those important to me that I'll likely be uncontactable for a while (I won't fall off the face of the earth; don't worry), and pack up and go? I'd probably have to quit work at least two weeks before my birthday so that I can spend some time exploring this country that I'll be leaving behind for an indefinite amount of time. Maybe I should start brushing up on my languages? I can speak English, Chinese and Korean. I can read Tamil and speak three sentences of French. Maybe in the years leading up to my thirtieth birthday, I should start taking more language courses, get myself up to an intermediate proficiency of French, Tamil, or any other language out there. Just so that I can communicate with the locals better. 

Then I'd arrive at this mystery country, probably book a hostel stay in the airport when I'm having whatever meal of the day it is. Maybe there'll be friendly people in the hostel and I'll make new friends? Tour the city—not just visiting the tourist spots but diverging from this path to find hidden gems. Maybe I should get some self-defence classes too; just so that I won't be completely helpless in the event of an emergency. Stock up on some pepper spray and a police whistle too. 

Can you imagine what I'd find? What I'd eat? The people I'd meet? 

Thinking about all this, it makes me so excited. Maybe 30 doesn't seem so daunting after all. 

But I'm also thinking: what a joke this would all be if I do find someone in this seven-year wait and settle down, and read back on this post years later? What a joke that'd be. 

We'll see. 

But until then, I'll just be prepared. 

Hope™

Ps. This is unedited and really just a random spew channelled by my feelings after watching the movie. This is NOT a reflection of how my teachers have been teaching me to write. HAHAHHA