I sit by a wood burning fire place with a cup of hot tea and spanish guitar music playing in the background, I am atop a mountain overlooking the city of Otavalo in Ecuador. This is the last stop of my 2 month traveling extravaganza and I have decided that everyone should travel.
why, you ask?
why not!?!
In the last 2 months I have developed memories, have had experiences, listened to stories of locals and fellow traveler, learned about and stepped foot on historical places, have had spiritual moments and times of inward reflection in churches and temples alike, rode elephants, slept in a hill tribe village,.... the list seems to be never-ending. But what I loved the most was meeting strangers. As silly as that sounds it was one of the best parts of my travels. Connecting with people from around the world and listening to their own experiences and what path they had taken to get to that specific moment was just fascinating. I realized how much I do not know and how much I have yet to experience and learn about the world, about how people live and think. Once I started talking to others it become evermore clear that we all tend to get stuck into a daily routine and forget to stop, observe, contemplate and breathe. We, myself included, start making excuses for not being able to travel. I met so many people of all ages (18 - 75) that had quit their job or took a 'gap year' or simply moved to a different country and just travelled while working random jobs along the way. I felt myself become jealous of those 'free spirits' - no plans, just living in the present and being open to new cultures and ways of life. Now, yes, it does take a certain type of person to be able to do that and I think I can be one of those people as a short term (1-3 years) plan because I believe I will miss world of academia and the challenges and type of learning that comes with it.
My trip was nothing short of spectacular and here are a couple of pictures to take you through my journeys, memories, and learnings.
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Lahu Hill Tribe hike overnight
accommodations in a hand built bamboo hut. |
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the day I got blessed by a monk.
Such a special temple in northern Thailand |
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| Lahu Hill Tribe 2 Day Hike, thailand |
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| Monkey sanctuary in Bali |
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| Ko Phi Phi Island, Thailand. |
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| Sunrise hike up Mt Batur, one of Indonesia's active volcanoes. |
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| Mt. Batur, Bali, Indonesia. |
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| the moment I officially became a doctor! |
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| Unbelievably grateful for my parents' never ending support and encouragement through this journey. |
I sit by a wood burning fire place with a cup of hot tea and spanish guitar music playing in the background, I am atop a mountain overlooking the city of Otavalo in Ecuador. This is the last stop of my 2 month traveling extravaganza and I have decided that everyone should travel.
My trip was nothing short of spectacular and here are a couple of pictures to take you through my journeys, memories, and learnings.
Wow, looks like you had a great time! I bet it was a much needed break. If you don't mind me asking, about how much did it cost you over that two month period? I am curious in case I get the chance to do something like that after fourth year.
ReplyDeletehey! thanks for reading. we had a pretty tight budget of approximately 1500. Totally do-able if you stay in hostels and eat local food ... in my opinion you get a better cultural experience that way :)
DeleteYou are so inspiring!!!! In my search for Caribbean medical schools as an alternative to American medical schools (which I haven't even applied to because my grades and MCAT scores are if at best mediocre) I fell in love with Saba and spending the last two hours at work reading through your blog has given me a tingly feeling in my chest. I share the same passion for global health, writing and traveling and its great to see someone where I would like to be in the next 5 years. So thank you so much for inciting that feeling!
ReplyDeleteOne question I do have for you is if you ever considered applying to become a physician assistant? If so what were the reasons you chose the MD over an MPA?
Theresa Sophia, thanks so much for your wonderful comments! I apologize for the late reply, residency got the best of me and my writing but I intend to try and get back into it in the new year.
DeleteTo be honest, at the time I didn't consider PA vs MD. However I have learned and rotated with PA students during medical school and what became clear is that the education is pretty much the same whereas the scope of practice is a little different. I think that's where everyone has to make their own decisions...Not sure how much this helps but I encourage both PA and MD routes depending on what you would like to do and what kind of medicine you practice - with that said it's worth checking our Nurse Practitioner as well. There are now so many modalities of providing patient care, you just have to identify which best fits your desire.
No rush to travel. You will have years to experience the world. You have to leave something to explore when you are older. Take the "uncomplicated" years to get your education and establish yourself. Adventure will be there when you tire of your career.
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