It’s 8:30 pm on New Years Eve and I have just arrived at my gate at Newark Airport. I arrived a full three hours early for my flight to Quito, Ecuador which is scheduled to leave at 11:55 pm. Luckily, there was absolutely no line at security so now I have a whole three hours to to mentally prepare myself for the trip of a lifetime. I can’t help but feel that taking off at midnight tonight will be the perfect way to say goodbye to 2017, and hello to 2018. I’m feeling nervous and excited, but mostly I’m just hoping that I didn’t under-pack, and that my phone has enough space for the hundreds (thousands?!) of photos I’m about to take.
I have no idea what adventures await me in South America but I know they will be unlike anything I have ever experienced before! I am hoping to try some truly unique cuisine (worms, ants, and guinea pigs!) and spot even more unique wildlife in the tropical rainforest and the Galapagos Islands. I definitely want to hold a tarantula and catch some bats in the rainforest, and get up close and personal with sea lions in the Galapagos. I cannot believe that at the young age of 20 I have the opportunity to go on this amazing adventure, and learn some biology along the way! I am pumped to get this journey started and see what surprises await me as I kick off 2018 in Ecuador!
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