i'm a stubbled little girl

out of the neon sun ~ part four

may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th may 19th...

the nineteenth day of may, the year of 2007.

we have a date. locked, cocked and ready to rock. short of sticking a pin in a calendar we've pretty much aimed for the general time of year and whacked it into our diaries. we leave england on saturday may 19th. 7 months away. ya-zoikes! that doesn't seem far.

look, i've put a countdown clock at the top of this webpage. currently 250 days. oh my.

gotta clear the exact dates with work. that would be the next step. part of me wants to book the flights today, but mustn't get ahead of ourselves. i'm reading a book called the great railway bazaar by paul theroux. he upped and went out of his front door leaving wife and kids behind to travel by train to japan and back. for the sake of traveling. it's whetting my appetite like pork-pies to grandads.

this journey has turned into magic in my head. it's not just sitting on a train for 4 weeks. it's a voyage of self discovery, an exploration of landscapes, an insight to people, a connection with humanity. and those are the things that are real, things that i will be able to touch while i'm there and describe when i'm back. there's this other element.

for me russia, siberia, lake baikal, mongolia and china are a whirlwind of shapes and colours and feelings; completely alien. they're not real. yet. they are cave paintings. they are ancient mosaics. they are television documentaries. they are mirages of rock and dust and wave and snow and leaf. i am alice in wonderland crossed with indiana jones, about to step into a vast expanse of dreamscape.

got to take the first intrepid step, though.

got to fill in a holiday form.