Vacation Vascillation

I won't lie: Several times since I made my flight reservation, I've thought about canceling. Morocco is not the best country for a woman to travel in alone in the best of times, and I wouldn't characterize these as the best of times. I am reminded, though, of a book I read a long time ago: Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway. "Fear" is probably too strong a word. It's more a slight sense of trepidation. I may have mentioned that, while I've traveled extensively in North America, I've never been anywhere else. This is a bold first choice! I am absolutely not going to cancel (and if I mention this more than once, it's because I'm reminding myself!).

Today I was offered two fall classes at the private university where I started teaching last year. I already have three summer classes, a week of scoring AP essays (in person, not online), and two classes for the second eight weeks of this semester. I'm sure I'll get at least two more fall classes at my other college. That means this is the only chance I'll have to take a vacation of more than a few days. Who knows if I'll ever have this much time off again? It's a roller coaster ride; nothing is confirmed absolutely until class starts, so even when I do have time off, I don't always know in advance. On the other hand, sometimes I think I have free time and I pick up a class (or more) at the last minute.

The time I have off now is real time off. I don't have to do much preparation, and my classes start the first week of March. While I do have things to finish around the house, I can easily work those in when I'm back to teaching classes. (My second-eight-weeks classes are both night courses.) If I didn't make good use of this time -- and travel is one of the best uses of time I can think of -- I'd feel like a big wussy baby. Also there's a good chance I would lose my mind, as I don't do well being home alone for long periods of time. I'm a social creature; what can I say?

I am getting more excited as the departure date nears. I'm getting a sense of what to do (and buy) in which city, and I'm also learning a little more about cultural expectations. This is an amazing opportunity, and I'm not going to squander it.