What is travel fever? I found out this past summer when I was leaving for Costa Rica. I hadn't ever heard the word resfeber, until I got home. I didn't tell anyone, but I was scared heading out. I didn't think there was anything specific that would go wrong and I couldn't put my finger on what was bothering me. In some moments, I wished nothing was changing in my life. It was the mix of anxiety and anticipation making me concerned. I was so protected on my first trip out of the country, that I never experienced resfeber. I wonder if I'll feel it next time, but I'm sure I be aware of it now.

Before I left for Costa Rica, I researched, packed, and got as prepared as I could. I learned about the economy, healthcare, and the environment. I packed my bags as well as I could, adding little things here and there as my departure got closer. I was ready, all lose ends were tied. Even though I was flying internationally alone for the first time, meeting up with complete strangers in a new country, I had nothing to actually worry about. Everything was taken care of. No worries, right?

I had worries. The few days before leaving were a roller coaster. I was excited, nervous, ready, worried, among other things. I even questioned why I had decided to leave home. I never actually considered backing out and staying home. I had seemingly unwarranted feelings whirling around. When I ran through the specifics of my travel, I saw no holes. Nothing could go wrong that was under my control. My ride to the airport was the worst. I couldn't eat breakfast before leaving for fear of it coming back up (and it was 3 am). I had never felt so many butterflies in my stomach before. All of those feelings vanished with every step I took after security. My departures were flawless. At some point, while standing on an escalator in the Hartsfield Atlanta Airport, I was overcome with a feeling of accomplishment. I hadn't made it out of the country yet, but I would make it and do so on my own. I learned a lot about animals and about myself while in Costa Rica, but I learned this before I even got there. Anything is possible, and you need to be able to count on yourself to make anything happen. Traveling is, now more than ever, one of my top priorities in my education. I guess it is possible that when I am packing to go to South Africa that I'll go on a roller coaster of emotions again, but now I know how capable I am.