A year ago today: we set off on an adventure

Aw, look, we were just pups!

I remember barely sleeping the night before (or really, the night of) our flight. Waking up with my heart in my throat: excited, anxious, nervous, jittery... Eyes wide as we took one last look around the house, so quiet and empty without the cats and most of our stuff packed away... Hoisted our stiff, pristine packs, full of our carefully thought-out things we thought we would need... Locked the door, to be opened in a few days by our tenant who would be moving in... Leaving the known, and setting off into the unknown in the pre-dawn darkness... Tears of excitement and disbelief pouring down my cheeks on the cab ride to the airport... The day had finally arrived! Mind racing through all the possible scenarios that awaited us... Flying west-ward and passing the edge of Canada, the farthest west I'd ever been in my life.

And then being thrust into the intensity of Bangkok. Eyes wide at everything... trying to navigate our way around... Getting suckered at every turn (and oh, we were suckers...). Our first tuk-tuk ride... Our first dish that was too spicy to eat, and we didn't know how to ask for it any other way... Seeing more Buddhas in one day than possibly my entire life up until that point... So many colours, and sights, and sounds, and scents! And oh, the heat! I remember being so overwhelmed... everything was so new and unexpected and in-your-face... It was incredible, and I would do it all again, but I'm still happy to be home, and excited for the first good snowfall to arrive.

I haven't had a good snow for over a year and a half...

Leaving O'Hare after appropriately dosing up on Gravol as I failed to do for the first leg. (Lesson learned.)

The only way to get around! Ottawa could use some tuk-tuks.

We did not, but hopefully will still have goodluck and happy in our lives foreverss.

So good, but so spicy! My spice threshold was pretty low then...