✈️ Email #1: Leaving on a Jet Plane
This post is part of the Europe & Asia 2005 Retrospectives series. It is a raw record of the journey, preserved exactly as it was written in internet cafes and sent as an email to family and friends. While my travel style has evolved, the desire to experience the world and the wanderlust expressed in these notes remain the same.
Original Email Date: October 2, 2005
Location(s): San Francisco, California
My bags are packed, and I'll be headed to the airport shortly, so the next time you'll hear from me, I will be somewhere in the UK.
Thanks to everyone who has given me travel tips and helped me plan and organize for this trip. Because of all the advice I've been given, I don't think there could be anyone more prepared to get sick than I am. Also, if any of you think of anything that I must do in any of the places that I'm going, just shoot me an email. AC - Please send me the name of the island when you get a chance, and I would love any additional recommendations for Korea. DE and SO - thank you so much for my bon voyage dinner!
MC - Can't wait to see you in Paris. Keep me posted (via this email address, not work) on when you arrive and where you are staying, and we'll coordinate. There are still a couple of you that I am hoping will join me along the way. JJ and HH - Amsterdam? CT - Italy? (GT can spare you for a few days.) SL - Hong Kong?
Also, if any of you don't want to be on this update list, let me know (and I promise that my feelings won't be hurt - I know the amount of emails that some of you get in a day).
My itinerary is below. The places that are italicized are planned, but not set in stone, as I may decide change my plans along the way. Come join me if you can.
Love ya,
Corissa
The Retrospective Reflection (2026)
Looking back at this itinerary, I am struck by the sheer pace of it. At that age, I wanted to see everything. The schedule was relentless, often giving me only three or four days in world-class cities. Yet that was the energy of my wanderlust at the time. I also laugh at my comment about being "prepared to get sick." It highlights the overpreparedness I felt because of the care and mountain of travel tips my family and friends provided. I was armed with every possible remedy before I even reached the airport. This itinerary was more than just dates. It was the start of a three-month education that would eventually shape the way I look at the world today.
