OK so far this is been one of the most boring blogs ever; I have not written a thing since creating it! I intend to change that now as I am officially on my way...

I'm sitting at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, watching them load food onto the plane what will whisk me away to a new adventure in a few short hours. It seems this is actually the first time I have had real time to think! As this trip approached, I seemed to become more and more busy with vaccinations, lawyers, bankers, and just planning in general. (My partner Michael and I are taking possession of a new condo while I'm gone and let's just say that the bankers have been a little "tight" with their money given that I will be 16,000 kilometres away when the deal closes).

Now I sit, partway through my journey to Solo, wondering what my motivation is for this! I can tell you that I have been given a unique opportunity by my employer Randstad (http://www.randstad.ca/) to partner with VSO to try and make a tiny difference in the world. Randstad is the world's second largest staffing & HR Services company and we have a global partnership with VSO. Part of that partnership is an initiative allowing Randstad employees to take a leave from work to go volunteer in a developing nation. This is an absolutely fantastic initiative and I am so very proud to be part of Randstad, and now VSO as well. My partner Michael has also been extremely supportive, encouraging me every step of the way, even though it means we will be apart for 6 months. We said good-bye this morning, in front of US Customs Agents, and I later found out that Michael waited until I wound my way through the customs line so he could see me off silently and from afar. I didn't even know he was there.

...That answers HOW I'm doing this, but not necessarily why. That is a much trickier question which I don't think I am completely able to answer now. Hopefully it will reveal itself through my journey as it unfolds.