The Flight of My Life

Today was the big goodbye. Since my mom is the definition overly emotional and I her daughter there was no one to hand us tissues, pat our backs or play a sad violin as we went separate ways, apart for a year. She has given me everything since the day I was born a wild child. From making breakfasts (not just on the weekends but EVERY DAY) to more vacations than I can count my mom has been superwoman. I have so much more to say about her but just writing this is bringing on a whole new waterfall. This will not be a pity party. I may be a sentimental hormone driven teenage girl but I am also a young person on a life changing journey. Now inflate your neck pillows, we're going to Spain!

Last family trip in California, Pismo.

Dallas to New York

I am in the worst seat on this entire plane. Last row and window, the literal corner of the cabin. The window doesn't help on this absurdly cloudy day. The sky is blank like I'm in a half finished drawing and the artist stopped before starting the sky (maybe he had a plane to catch too) Either way it looks empty outside the same way it's kind of empty in me. I haven't hit any of the wild emotions I should be feeling. Not the sadness and not the excitement yet either. Hopefully it hits me before I become heartless!

On my way!

New York looking as impressive as always.



Yes TIFOS in Spanish!!

Rushing to catch the AirTrain zipping through terminals, what pride I felt as I stood in front of my gate, an hour early. YES! I had time to kill and a long flight to prepare for. So like any sane person I plugged in my charger, stowed away my passport and began, Tandasana. That's right people I was doing yoga in the middle of an airport with plenty of staring travelers. Two Frenchmen halted their animated conversation to join me. They began laughing as their tight European clothes barred them from bending any further. In thick accents they both said. "Very good, but we fall!

New York to Madrid

I never like to take naps on planes, but this time I'm flying across more time zones than ever before so sleep is a must. When I doze off I have an unfortunate habit of dropping my jaw. My gaping mouth must evoke some looks and laughs. In the end it's ok because my embarrassing sleeping presence must have brought someone, the cranky toddler, the overworked businessman, anyone whose fed up with the flying a little smile. Even when I'm unaware I hope I'm making people happy.

 

I'm sorry but I can't go for I am far too tired. Not in the jet lag way but in the I've been up all day visiting tobacco shops, bike riding and testing mystery foods. You'll just have to wait and see what I've been up to on this glorious first day!

Growing Wings

It's finally finally here! After months of waiting and frustration the universe is done playing games with me (I mean "teaching me lessons", at least for the moment). Wednesday morning a midst a self taught yoga session I got a call. "Your visa has been approved-" YEESSSSSS!!! It felt like the first time I found out I was going to Spain or when I heard from my host family. The same scream/dance/running around like a crazy person, soon followed.


Instead of a visa pic (personal info sharing is a no-no) Here's a snap of some Tanika originals, painted for Spain.

 I was trying to stay positive but in all honesty, it stopped feeling real. Every time I mentioned "Spain" my voice got quieter, more like "Spaainn....?" But now I can shout it, full volume, on the tops of buildings or just in my house as I dance to my ever-growing "Vamos A España" playlist.


The view from the parking garage where I was shouting "I'm going to Spain!!"

 90% Chance of A Packing Storm

I have been packing.. somewhat. It's been a strategic 3,2,1 process. Pack 3 things, take 2 out, waste 1 hour on Pinterest. Repeat. My flight ticket was booked before I even had half a suitcase full. For anyone who doesn't know me I am quite the unorganized and messy living person. Needless to say the past few days have been a frenzy of flying clothes and list on lists. But the terrifying task of packing an entire life into two, under fifty pound suitcases is slowly zipping up, cased closed (pun always intended!)

Before and After the storm, completely wiped out. Never again will it be this clean.

I Got Spain on the Brain!

Like I said, lately Spain has felt very far away, was I ever going? So my usual Flamenco dancing, Spanish book reading had slowed. After holding that visa, it's amped up to 500 watts of Sonríe(Smile)!! I'm breezing through "Bajo la Misma Estrea" (Spanish translation of the Fault in Our Stars) and keep my little homemade Diccionario for words that trip me up. I now have 101.1 LA MEGA MEXCLA and 104.9 TU MUSICA blasting at all times. I kid you not, my sing-a-long attempts are to die for. I would post a video but never at the wheel (safety first kids!)

Some kids made pillows, others brought tshirts. I made name tags with some character!

Never Goodbyes

Now I'm driving with mom to Dallas, on my way to catch wings into a new life. My sister was surprisingly sentimental with the most amazing goodbye movie with our memories. I was tearing up, just like my crazy emotional mother. It was my Dad that gave me the hardest goodbye with a hug so squeezable, the kind that used to make me squirm, but this time I wanted to stay in that hug forever.

Saying goodbye to my new favorite supermarket!

Tomorrow will be the last day in the States for a year and the most daunting of all goodbyes. My mom's. We're both big mush balls so I've packed plenty of tissues and a pair of sunglasses. I'll try to post tomorrow during my layover. Assuming my words are blurred by salty tears. It's all a part of the journey, letting go to grab hold of something new. Somewhere in between I'll learn to grow wings!

World Traveler Edition 1

Travel Journalism

I have always wanted to make one of these. Pinterest, instagram, travel blogs galore are flooded with these homemade journals. They outline people's amazing travel experiences in ticket stubs, post cards, used napkins and the good ole' "Dear Journal". So I thought heck I'm going to Spain that should be enough adventure to earn a book! And I began. Like this blog it has been really hard coming up with ideas, do I write in it? draw in it? put chewed up gum in it? Yeah I found this on a Barcelona street bench woo hoo! Of all the internet trolling I had done, the advice that stuck with me the most was, make it memorable, make it worth it, make it yours. And I am so ashamed that I can't remember where I found these good words, but they definitely set me on the right track. With a few trial pages I started to get a feel for what I wanted this mixed-up-journal-sketch-scrap-book to be. So here I give you the early beginnings of "World Traveler" (Or Welcome To the Wild Mind of Tanika Santos.. the first one just seemed more professional).

Practice Page 1 : A Messy Mix Up

With this first page I just let myself junk it up and hope for some artistic inspiration to sweep up the mess. Well I did manage to junk it up. My "Pocket of Positivity" holds the secrets to happiness- kinda. I filled it will inspirational quotes about travel :D love <3 and life * (that's my figurative sun). The rest was a process of writing prettily, tearing it up and gluing it back together (another figurative image of life ;)) I'm so good at the figurative thing I even managed to give a ROLO's wrapper meaning :

Memories are like Rolo's.

We savor them.

Absorbing as much feeling, 

until it melts away.

But even when it's gone, 

the sweetness still lingers.

Flipping poetry, I know! haha only kidding :) Despite a messy beginning as I always seem to have, this page sparked some ideas for more pages to come. 

Page 2 (featuring the sweet notes from Breaking Down The Walls 2013)

This page got my juices flowing a little more. That morning I received as always a pile of college pamphlets and letters STUDY WITH US! Your future is calling! WE HAVE PAINTBALL!!! One did manage to catch my eye, not for the "bright future I had on their campus" but for the four simple words Your Journey Begins Here. It seemed like "here" meant the kitchen counter I was sitting on at the moment, here meant the anxiousness of waiting to receive my host family, here meant now. The picture, Our students travel to 32 different countries on semester long exchanges. Kaitlyn, 19 taking in the beautiful view of South Africa. They really were talking to me.

Pages in the middle : Doodles and Such

With these pages I found myself sitting outside and thinking without thinking. Some call it meditation, but really I just sit outside and occasionally draw stuff, or write stuff or shout at annoying geese. (No peaceful meditaty would shout at birds).

Page 8 : The Real Traveler Stuff

 I love these pages because they just look nice! I started on the left by drawing Spain so I could have an idea of where the cities were. (Not perfectly to scale but pretty snazzy huh?) I did some girlish travel doodles and left space thinking I'd fill it with actual travel stories. But then I got too excited! I have many lists, bucket lists, travel lists, travel-bucket lists (My favorite!) so I added some of them instead. Hopefully this will be a checked page by the end of the year because I know it'll be all checks before I kick it.

My

Pamplona 

Pages

I will have many more of these to come. They mostly outline my excitement for Spain, the city and my new life, even with some fears (shhhhh)

So that's what I've got so far. My journal is like me, an open book (there I go again with the figurative language) Hope you liked the little trip into my "Semi-artsy-definitely-crazy-mind"

See You Soon!

Introductions to a Budding Blogger

"Here we go!"

Words in Warning

This marks my first leap into the unknown jungle of blogging society. I realize that creating a blog means pulling together thoughts which spin and change, fade and fly (especially in my hyperactive mind). So if my words get jumbled or my thoughts skip around, please forgive my human imperfections. I'm still working on them :)

I am Forever Bound by the "-"

"I'm off on a new adventure! See ya!"

The hyphen. My name is my story, Tanika Rose Santos-MacSwain. Long name, cool name, and absolutely perfect for explaining my beginnings. (I tell this story to everyone so if you've heard it before skip on). 

My parents meet in Japan where "Tanya" my mom's best friend introduced her to this handsome Peruvian with an Elvis-like hairdo. Peru home to the Inca's, home to the beautiful city of "Ica" filled with gold. 

Skip ahead a few romantic years and then the name presents itself. In Singapore, my birthplace. My mom being the determined, independent woman she is insisted not only on my uniquely wonderful first name but my hyphenated glory name. My dad kept things simple, a middle name of beauty "Rosa". My name continues to confuse but also leads to a good story ending with "From the age of negative 9 months I became a traveler."

    So why Spain?

"15 countries, one crazy wonderful mashed up family"

Despite having an pretty cool background and moving almost always, I have lead a pretty simple teenage conquest: soccer, friends, peanut-butter sculpting, random dancing in public because I like the smiles I can bring (another warning I can be an upbeat cheese-ball) But no matter what I did I always wanted more. And then I met them. The exchange students. Boy was I in for a ride with these guys. I'll have more time to talk about them later because that is what my blog is supposed to be about? (Sorry for all the side tracking) But for now I will tell you this, they are superheros. 

"Pau's first time in snow!"

I'd experienced foreign exchange once before. Her name was Paulina, our exchange student from Mexico. The experience she was having was the experience I needed. In our year of late night trampoline talks and endless laughter we became not-by-blood-but-in-every-other-possible-way-Sisters. Never had the word felt stronger than in the moments of hugging goodbye. I've come full circle and I'm here 3 years later, saying goodbye, yet again, to another place, another year, another home. Let's see where it takes me.

"Look out Spain. This girl is on the way."