The Misadventures of Joey Tafuro

You are probably wondering what kind of crazy adventure I am going to get myself into next. I can’t only about a week and a half home and I’m already daydreaming about travel. I honestly thought it would take a little longer. Thailand is the first place I have been that I have an instant urge to return to. I also would like to see more of central Africa while it is still untouched by travel.

I have had a lot of dream trips in mind over the last few years and the one I actually just took was a little off course at times and I spent more money than I should have on airfare with poor planning. I’d like to limit the amount of flying for my next travels. Maybe London to Saigon overland by train that way I’m only putting a few hundred dollars on the one-way flight to London and I can get there non-stop from Tampa. I’d like to take Spanish lessons at some point to get a basic understanding and then eventually travel through Central America to get my practice. I would like to get back to Africa for a safari and Kilimanjaro climb but I have to smart about this and that is just too costly for the amount of time I would get to be there.

I’m still set for school in the fall and a class over the summer and I don’t plan on doing epic trips for awhile and most likely after I graduate but in the mean time I will just have to figure out a nice 1-2 week spot to get to.

After a nice Memorial Day weekend back home with friends I decided to spend the week taking care of some business. I am still jobless and will probably stay that way for a few more weeks. I’m not sure what exactly the plan is other than looking for something part time. I went and registered for classes for the 2nd summer session at school and decided to focus on education as a possible major. I met a lot of teachers while traveling and every one of them felt that it was the best thing they could get into to allow time to travel.

My short term goal is to get my degree and eventually try teaching overseas first. Out of all the places I traveled on this trip Hong Kong seemed the most likely place for me to live and teach. The city is really nice, it is close enough to the rest of Asia to use as a jumping off point for more travel and it is just very livable. For now though, I have to just keep at school and make sure I finish it this time.

I used to think I had no time to travel but I met a lot of older people doing the same thing I was doing so there is no limit on age for backpacking and experiencing the world so it takes the pressure off needing to see everything before I turn 30. At least I got a big trip out of the way and hopefully it keeps me going for awhile. I still plan on leaving the country during school breaks but I think it will be on a much smaller scale. Maybe a week in Europe or hitting up some of the islands in the Caribbean. I guess I could also visit more of the United States too.

I have handled returning home pretty well. I do miss the freedom of the road but it is nice to be home with the comforts I remember. My first meal back was a soft taco from Taco Bell and then Carabbas Italian Grill. I really miss Thailand. I think I started missing it the minute I left but didn’t realize it. The people are so nice in Thailand and I spent more time there then any other country. I didn’t like the food much but I think I am itching to get to a Thai restaurant here to bring back some memories. Hopefully it won’t do to my stomach what the real Thai food did.

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