Bali.

Thinking about this journey, I'm very interested in going to Bali.  This is an odd one for me because never before have I felt the need or desire to travel to Indonesia. I guess you could say it's one of those places I've overlooked in the past, one I put off because the culture never really seemed to interest me.  This all changed watching Eat, Pray, Love.  I know not all movies are filmed in their real-setting locations, but this one was actually filmed in Bali.  I looked it up.  The images of Bali I've found since then are stunning, absolutely beautiful.  I've learned that Bali is a Hindu country and escapes the more typical Muslim cultures which surround Indonesia and India. I've learned that Bali has exquisite beaches and spectacular land features.  I've also learned that the monsoon season is over by June, which will make it a perfect time for me to make my journey.  Bali is also supposed to be one of the best places in the world for underwater life with an abundance of fish, coral, dolphins, sharks, crustaceans, and eels.  Up until the last century Bali also was inhabited by tigers and elephants, sadly though they are now gone.  Such horrible things people do to the nature of our planet.  Bali is also a very communal place, where families work/celebrate ceremonies together as a way of life. Hard to believe that a few weeks ago I knew next to nothing about Bali and now it's a place that is fascinating me in ways I never thought it could.

Although my journey is far off, and my ideas of where to go right now are scattered.....I'm finding I might need to plan which way around this world I'd like to go.  I have a multitude of places I want to discover but there will have to be some planning on my part because I can't just go skipping off to Bali then Europe then Africa then Australia in no particular order.  It's looking like I need to decide which way to go first.....and maybe the New York to Europe route would be smartest. I'm thinking one of my last stops will be towards Bali/Australia or to some other South Pacific island nation before returning to the United States in August or July.  My goal is for the first U.S. soil to touch down on to be Hawaii, I think that would be a great way to be welcomed back into the country.