What is one word for "the nervous excitement associated with new things"?

Here are feelings which to some degree are related:

1. The feeling of waking up in a new city for the first time or starting work on a new job.
2. The feeling of new love, meeting someone for a date, getting married or having a baby.
3. The feeling of imagining what will it be like being in some place or time you have only read or heard about.

I have always felt myself at a loss of words, trying to convey that sort of a feeling precisely. I have to throw in several words to convey the effect: anxious, dreamy, excited, nervous, fresh, overwhelmed and so forth.

In contrast, if I have to describe the sad longing associated with old things, I have a precise term, namely, 'Nostalgia'.

The closest one word I could think of was 'Forward-looking'. But I feel, it is a bit too positive. Another word that I would consider is 'Ambivalent', but it needn't necessarily convey the feelings of new beginning. There must be a better word, isn't it?

p.s.: There are other similar questions like: this or this. So I have tried asking the question in manner, that highlights the different expectations from the answer.

Solution 1:

Anticipation (or expectation) may suggest the feeling excitement you are referring to:

• a ​feeling of ​excitement about something that is going to ​happen in the near ​future:
  • As with most ​pleasures, it's not so much the ​experience itself as the anticipation that is ​enjoyable. The postponement of the film's ​sequel has ​held ​cinemagoers in ​eager anticipation for several ​months.

(Cambridge Dictionary)

Solution 2:

Butterflies:

a feeling of hollowness or queasiness caused especially by emotional or nervous tension or anxious anticipation (MW)

As the definition suggests, this works for both positive and negative anxiety. Plus, it communicates the idea of nervousness effectively.

Solution 3:

"anxiety" is a general term and describes what we feel when we are facing something new. Not all types of anxiety are pathological, though. Some degree of anxiety is part of the human condition and an optimal level of arousal is necessary to best complete a task such as an exam, performance, or competitive event. Without it, we are likely to achieve much less than we would otherwise. But when anxiety exceeds that optimum, the result is a decline in performance and in this case it is certainly pathological.

Some common situations where anxiety may be exacerbated are:

• When you have to give a lecture or make a speech for the first time.
• When you go out with a sweetheart for the first time.
• When you have intercourse for the first time.
• When your wife is in labor.
• When you wake up for the first time in a place you always dreamed visiting.

All the conditions mentioned by the OP can result in anxiety. Either "first-time anxiety" or "performance anxiety" depending on the situation.

Read more about anxiety here

Solution 4:

Next to "anticipation", which I think is an excellent word, I'd add "exhilaration" because new experiences and the anticipation of those experiences in addition to making us happy, can also excite us and pump us up with adrenaline.