Today I’m headed back home – happily. It’s time. My stomach is still telling me its time to leave this beautiful country. But this morning has been the icing on the cake and ingrained in me why I love to travel alone. My roommate left for the airport in the middle of the night so – as much as I really liked sharing a room with her – I was finally able to spend some time alone. I needed to leave for the airport at 11 so it wasn’t much time but after having coffee and some bread at my homestay, I got to talk with my host Ana Maria and her brother in broken Spanglish for about an hour. We talked about our families, our careers, our travels, how we’ve tried to learn languages – both badly – and even about diarrhea (I know!). It was amazing! Every time I do these things I learn things about myself or I re-learn things about myself. I know that when I’m alone I’m forced to get out of my comfort zone and try to connect to people. I do that through Spanglish and smiles. Lots of smiles. And its invigorating and makes me want to book the next trip. There is really nothing like it! Those of you that have traveled solo know what I’m talking about. Those of you who don’t know, I just hope you try. Because it’s life changing. It turns a trip into a learning experience and then some. Said in a much more eloquent way,

“I am not the same having seen the moon shine on the other side of the world”. Viva Cuba!