where to next?

All of you are probably wondering what I am up to now; now that my bike trip is over. truth is, i've been very very sad. ariel and i had sobfests over the phone the first few days after we left each other.

two days after my trip, my dad drove up to Boston to pick me up. my dad wanted to do some biking with me, so we biked around Boston (to the Arnold Arboretum along the Emerald Necklace) on Saturday, then drove to Cape Cod. On Sunday, we biked the Cape Cod rail trail, and visited the beach. I didn't like the fact that Cape Cod was so populated with tourists, but the sight of the marshes and the ocean were still very beautiful; the vast grand view stretching toward the horizon was something no tourists can taint.

We got back to the good ol' NYC Sunday night. I've been hanging out here since, mostly going to the Manhattan library everday. My parents moved to Queens, blegh. I feel like I'm living in a prison here. My room is half the size it was at WILG, and I always have to mess with the security alarm system because breakins happen in this neighborhood. What a drastic change to go from never having to worry about leaving our bikes unlocked, to having to set the alarm system even to open a window. as i said, BLEGH!!

It seems that I am experiencing such extreme bicycle touring withdrawal that I can't seem to get away from my bike. On Labor Day, my family and I went with the Chinese Mountaineering Club of New York on a camping trip to Taconic State Park. During the day, some people went hiking, and others went biking. I went biking of course. Everyone was also excited to listen to my stories around the campfire, and I was excited to tell them. In the end, though, I found myself reminiscing even more about the last two wonderful months.

Next week, I'm going to fix bikes! I'm spending the next month volunteering for Recycle a Bike, an organization who look for volunteers that do precisely that. I was so elated when I found several environmental organizations looking for bike mechanices. I can't wait to meet more people who understand the magical wonders of bikes, and learn more about repairing and building bikes!! you might be able to tell, i'm SUPER excited.

So what next? i've applied for a working holiday visa in New Zealand and Australia. i am in the process of filling out my documents right now. if all goes well, i will be in New Zealand in mid-october, and hopefully with a job soon after. i am going under the sponsorship of the work and travel program called CCUSA (www.ccusa.com). i plan to stay in New Zealand for a year, and head on to Australia for another 4 months-1 year of work. the thought of all this overseas by myself is daunting, but at least they speak english there, and CCUSA is providing me with a lot of support in terms of finding a job. i do have to learn to fend for myself at some point, why not now?