However, when it comes down to its literal meaning, I am terrified to fly. The very thought of taking off in an airplane that rises millions of miles off the ground makes me panic. It could crash at anytime. Even if it didn’t, there is still that uncomfortable turbulence that makes me feel ill. Once the plane lifts off of the sweet earth, I am stuck for hours; unable to escape what seems to be my very own personal hell. That is unless I become completely mad and decide to jump off of the plane. I suppose I could distract myself by making puppets out of those paper bags that are religiously placed in every seat before each flight. On the other hand, even if this were to work it would be just my luck to be placed in between two oversized, drooling and talkative people. The point is this: flying is not my thing.

Unfortunately, I am going to have to get over this factor and board an airplane in less than two weeks. My pop-pop just recently passed away and I swore to myself that I would visit my grandmother in New Mexico during the summer. I used to love flying when I was a child but as I grew, new fears did as well and eventually took control. Lately I’ve been angry with myself. I wish that I had forced myself to get on this plane earlier. I wish that I had been out to see him more often, but I can’t change this. These fears have kept me in one place, making it almost impossible to get to where I need to be. It occurs to me that perhaps my fear of flying may represent a pretty crazy metaphorical concept.

While I have grown tremendously by living away from home, I’ve discovered a feeling of stagnation as well. Going to parties is a great way to have fun and meet people, but after a few weeks of this it’s pretty redundant. At least where I’m from, it usually goes like this: You put on your make-up; you fix your hair, and you get dressed so that you feel good about yourself. Then you enter the party (or gathering, or get together or random group of people) and it goes like this: You begin to drink, you socialize with your group of friends, you continue to drink, you socialize with the guy you thought was kind of odd at the beginning of the night, you take some shots, you table dance, you stop remembering. You suddenly wake up and become a little bit angry. Why are you here? Did someone kidnap you? You start to look for your clothes. Then it starts to come back to you and you feel a little bit ashamed. You finally make it back to your room and right before you start the water for your shower you look in the mirror. Your hair is a mess, your make-up is all over your face, and you aren’t even in the clothes you originally had on because you couldn’t find them. You don’t feel good about yourself right now. You start to wonder why you even got dressed in the first place.

This, however, is not the attitude to have. As hard as it may be (and trust me I know) you must learn that mistakes, as awful as they may be, will happen. You must learn from these mistakes and continue to get dressed in a way that makes you feel good about yourself. After making such mistakes, a person may stop him or herself from doing something in order to prevent another “crash”. Many people are so afraid to make a mistake, or in my case die on a plane, that they end up in one place unable to move about. I am hoping that eventually I will be able to not only take chances, but also learn from wrong choices. I wish to learn enough to enhance my mind while still remaining a tiny bit ignorant. I want to continue to have choices to make, rules to break, and mistakes to learn from. I am not looking forward to this flight but I find a great amount of comfort knowing that, as I am drugged up on Xanax a billion million miles up high I am one step close to being where I need to be…wherever that is.

The attractions advertised didn't do much for me - temples, temples, more temples, and a water tank. Late in the afternoon, and feeling a little dispirited, I took a walk along a path that skirted the village. It ran around the peak of the mountain, with a drop on one side down through thick jungle onto the plain, and more thick bush on the other side too.

It was a scenic walk, as I'd been assured. Beneath me the plains of Rajasthan stretched out as far as I could see and the sun was just beginning its quick descent. That worried me. I had already been walking about twenty minutes and was beginning to feel the bush closing in on me. The light was fading, and I remembered my fear of snakes, a fear born of experience. I was alone. The walk was supposed to take thirty minutes, just ten minutes more left, so there was no sense in backtracking. I walked resolutely forward, appreciating with fear all that was around me.

Every movement in the bush was suspect - it had to be a snake, or maybe a big, wild cat. Then as I turned a corner hoping to see the village that was meant to be not far off, I was confronted by something terrifying, mysterious and compelling. Just yards in front, in the direction I was walking, a storm of color and dust hovered above the ground. It was like a miniature tornado developed in a science lab and was accompanied by a fury of squawking and flapping. I froze. Thoughts charged through my mind about retreat, escape, death and defeat. This dervish moved along the ground, throwing up dust, laced with scarlet, green and black, squawking and squealing and tearing leaves off trees.

After a few seconds the colorful, flapping torture lifted further from the ground. The hideous noises had stopped and the tangle began to free itself to stretch back into its normal shape. Bit by bit, when the dust had fallen away, the flapping shock evolved into a bird with an enormous wing span. It flew up from the bush, above the trees, and dangling from its claws, as it swung away from the mountain, hung the limp figure of a snake that it had snatched from my path.

You are surprised that Iraq is in the number 1 spot? Venture into the Sunni Triangle and it is like taking your life with your own hands. If you really want to visit Iraq you should go to the north of the country, where Kurds are a little less dicey for the adventurous traveler. I doubt if Iraq will ever leave my number one spot.

Afghanistan

This country is one of the top most dangerous countries, following the promise of good times to come. A few years ago two Japanese teachers were killed after venturing into the wild southern regions. Many parts of Afghanistan are falling back under the sway of extremists and it is very likely that you will experience its own fair share of terror attacks.

Somalia

Remember the movie by Ridley Scott, Black Hawk Down? It is a movie that bought the ugly conflict in Somalia for mainstream viewing. It is also good to mention that they have no central government and that has been happening since 1991. Somalia is a nice country but if you are planning to travel there, I suggest that you hire your own heavily armed guards. Daily rates for the guards vary from a couple of hundred bucks or several hundred bucks, depending on whom you hire. Failure to do so, may result in death.

Thailand

When we hear the name Thailand we usually portray a nice exotic country with wonderful beaches, exotic drinks and a good, cheap nightlife. But that is not the case. But don't take me wrong, it is not dangerous because of mobs and a high criminal rate (yes, you can find some). It is on the list only because of the Tsunami that hit a few years ago. Hundreds of people died and that made future tourists think twice before they plan to visit this exotic place.

Sudan

The ongoing tension with the government and rebels is what makes this country one of the most dangerous. Not to mention the government backed genocide. Murder and rapes are the two most common things that one can face in Sudan especially if you are in the area of Darfur. If you want to travel to the north make sure you get travelling permits, but for the south no. One should also mention that the south has finally come to peace after the tireless efforts of the late John Darang.

Indonesia

This country is not dangerous per se, but there are so many elements of danger that it made the top 10 list. A few years ago there was the Bali bombing and also the Tsunami hitting. If you are a journalist you have to be very careful, as usually those are the targeted people.

Chechnya

It does not get many tourists but sometimes journalists are forced to go there and it is a one country that journalists fear the most. A few years ago they captured a school and held hostages just to show how far they can go.

The Palestinian Territories

Despite efforts to make their country better, this country has been doing nothing but going from bad to worse and therefore it makes it a bad place to travel to. A few years ago two people who were there to educate children were captured and later released. Foreign aid workers have often reported being beaten by settlers. The military controls the human movement and curfews are to be expected.

Uganda

For a lot of years the Lord Resistance Army have made the region a no-go for travelers. The LRA are known for being the most evil, cold blooded murders on the planet. And it is good to mention that they force children to murder their own family members as part of the indoctrination.

Niger

Niger is the world's second most poor country. It is a famine stricken country and there are hundreds of people dying everyday due to malnutrition. The horror is not of being murdered or raped, but it is seeing all these children being starved to death, unless food aid arrives soon.