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Allons! we must not stop here! However sweet these laid-up stores—however convenient this dwelling, we cannot remain here; However shelter’d this port, and however calm these waters, we must not anchor here; However welcome the hospitality that surrounds us, we are permitted to receive it but a little while.
Walt Whitman, The Song of the Open Road
After what turned out to be a much-longer-than-planned stop at home in Colombia, I have finally set out on my grand adventure. I packed 50.5 lbs worth of stuff in my suitcase again, and I am in the States for a few days saying hi to family, boyfriend and friends before heading for Beijing, where I am planning to stay for a year.
Though I have unfortunately missed the Lunar New Year celebrations by a few days, I am very excited that my year in China will be a Year of the Dragon. As it turns out, the dragon is the only mythical creature in the Chinese zodiac, and it represents big positive changes and mobility. (Or at least that’s what some random article said online, this may be the first of many cultural fouls to come.) The dragon is such a powerful symbol of optimism, that many Asian countries see a small baby boom every Dragon Year as many couples strive to have children under that zodiac sign.
So, taking advantage of the lucky symbolism, I have decided to rename the blog, which is something I’d been meaning to do for a while. In any case, spending the Year of the Dragon in China certainly sounds a lot cooler than some of the alternatives, like, say, the Year of the Pig, or the Year of the Rat. Perfect.
I am currently on my way to Boston, after two days in Florida seeing family. Yesterday, on my drive across the Everglades with my sister, I saw 46 alligators by the water along the end of the hightway. That’s right, FORTY SIX of them. I have been hearing stories of all the alligators laying along that stretch of Interstate 75 aptly named “Alligator Alley” but I’d never been able to see any and figured most of the sightings where hopeful interpretations of floating logs. But the weather must have been just right for gator sunbathing yesterday, and I saw clusters of unmistakable gators laying by the shore. It was so exciting, I stuck my nose to the car window like a five year old. The drive had never seemed to short.
I tried to take pictures going 75 miles an hour so I could prove my story. Predictably, I failed, but here is a picture I found online that looks like what I saw:
I have decided that these little dragons were some sort of reptilian charm of good luck. Here’s so a year of big dragon changes, and hopefully frequent blog updates!
PS. I didn’t realize how much I missed Pandora.
