You know, I’ve been writing the series about my weekend adventure. Last night, as I was contemplating how I would end the story with one day left to go, Warren Zevon popped into my head.
Excitable Girl, they all said, excitable girl.
It’s true. I’m easily excited. I love taking in life. When I went to Manavgat and Side, I took hundreds and hundreds of photos and wrote at least 5 posts about it. It was the same when I visited Gümüşlük. I had so much to share having spent two weeks there, in Yalikavak, Turgutreis, Bodrum, Ephesus, and Kuşadası.
Yesterday, I met with my weekly English conversation group and shared with the ladies my excitement over my recent trip – especially how I overcame fears by paragliding and kayaking. I then asked them to share their greatest adventures.
The first woman told a story of getting lost while snorkeling at sea. She was so vibrant as she told it, getting out of her chair to demonstrate how she was swimming and following the walls of a buried city.
The second woman said she would never do anything that could possibly cause her harm. So we started to talk about the definition of “adventure.” I pushed her a little knowing that as a child of a diplomat, she had lived her earlier years in many other countries.
She proceeded to tell a story from many years ago. She was 16 and living in Prague. It was 1968 and the Warsaw Pact Armies invaded Czechoslovakia. Tanks were rolling across the city. Her family was escorted across the border to safety. She said she will always remember the young Czech girls waving to her with flowers, begging that she never forget them.
The third woman also needed a little nudging. She told a story of her first pregnancy at 24. She was a week away from delivery and found herself stranded between 2 gardens, threatened by wild dogs. Bravely, she jumped onto a wall between the gardens to make an escape. Walking across it, she lost her balance and fell to the ground.
Adventure. What is it? In this short discussion, we discovered that adventure is not always a good thing. It does not always give one pleasure.
1. An undertaking or enterprise of a hazardous nature.2. An undertaking of a questionable nature, especially one involving intervention in another state’s affairs.3. An unusual or exciting experience: an adventure in dining.4. Participation in hazardous or exciting experiences
Adventures in Ankara 
. . just taking a few steps away from the familiarity of the comfort zone can be an adventure
So true Alan. The comfort zone is a great place, but often stops us from reaching out and experiencing something new.
Eye of the beholder indeed! Let’s not forget about Virtual Adventure, which bloggers do on a regular basis. Sometimes it’s as simple as sharing a thought close to our heart, and other times it’s reaching out to a fellow blogger to collaborate — not knowing where it’ll lead. Adventure is all around us – and can be pocket sized or immense.
I love that, “pocket-sized adventure!” Thanks for reading the blog!