Have fun!

I can certainly relate to the mixed excitement, apprehension, enthusiasm before setting off on a trip like this. It was 20 years ago this month that I flew to Portland (from CO) for my first cross-USA trip and it was a lot of different things to work through before finally getting off on the trip. Once underway, it all settled out though it took a few days before I reached "flow" as was living and problem solving more in the present underway.

I've done some trips since and I'm not sure the exoticness of the locale depends as much it is different from what you've already done. By now a week-long trip is fairly routine but if I get multiple months again then it becomes a bigger deal.