On bravery

"Wow,  you are so brave!" These are the worlds that I have most often heard the past weeks, as I announced to my family, friends and work colleagues that I was moving to live and work in India.

"You are so brave" obviously, its code for: "Are you crazy girl!!?? Haven't you read the news lately!!???" Or, at it's most polite, maybe just for: "I don't see why anyone on earth will ever want to do such a thing, I surely will never want to do that"

Only few people have surprised me with different comments. Some best friends seem to see in me the reincarnation of one of these pioneer pilot women that crossed the atlantic for the first time in those first fragile planes. Well... seriously?

The most beautiful and uncommon that I've heard, one colleague who particularly touched my heart with his: "Good deeds happen to good people. I'm glad to be able to see it happening to you. You deserve it"

For me, all this time, I was just thinking to pursue the dream of experiencing, once more: a new culture, a new town, new people (some to be friends) and, for the first time, the chance to hopefully discover more exotic places, too remote until now. Nothing out of the ordinary. Just a human being following a dream. Many do that, don't they?

To be entirely frank with you, I don't feel I'm being brave. Indeed, I have read the awful news running around Europe, mostly regarding violent sexual attacks to women and I have very naturally freaked the hell out a good few times. I simply decided not to let the fear stop my dream.

I have left Ireland with a bright big smile on my face. No anguish or discomfort. To my surprise, not even tears. I know I'm doing what's right for me. However, that doesn't mean I had no doubts or feel no fear.

Me joking at the airport.

I was trying to look like one very famous painting. 

I wasn't  feeling scared :)

Even today, on my first day in town, I had a nice massage and small walk before. Now, however, I am sitting in my new temporary "home" and I'm feeling a bit scared to get out. It was soon night, already at 6 pm, I was a bit hungry and would have loved to explore the neighbourhood, while searching for new tastes and smells to be discovered. Instead, I'm sitting in front of my computer, conscious that it might not be too clever to get to the noisy streets at night, looking all lost and confused, obviously new in town.

I might be a brave girl, by everyone else's standards. To my eyes, I am just a hungry, bit scared, probably crazy girl.

First walk out in town. Trying to not look jet lagged.