I basically spent my entire
Spring semester planning for and building up all these expectations for my
summer in Europe. I spent hours daydreaming about what it might be like, but no
amount of daydreaming could prepare me for what I was about to experience. I
will never forget the moment I jumped off the airplane into a new world.
Barcelona was my first stop and I could not wrap my head around the fact that I
was finally living and breathing my dream. When I first met everyone on the
program at the airport, I could have never imagined these would soon become
some of my very best friends. When I first met my host family, I would have
never thought we would have some of the most life-changing conversations. When
I took a look around at Bonn the first time, I would have never guessed it
would soon become my second home. Our first attempt at traveling on the
weekends was a little chaotic and I figured I would never get the hang of
things. But sure enough, every person on the trip now holds a special place in
my heart. When I think back on some of my best memories, I think back to the
little moments made with my friends. The missed trains, the bike crashes,
random falls, working together through language barriers, getting caught in
monsoon-type-rains, and everything in-between. My host family quickly became my
second family. When I think back on them I think of jumping on the trampoline
and playing darts with my host sister. I think of the moving conversations such
as talking about WWII with my host mom. I think of sitting outside on the back
porch and just living in their every day lives. When I look back and think of
the excursions we took as a group and the weekend trips I went on, I can’t help
but get completely lost in my thoughts. Every place we traveled to was a new
adventure. Every place helped me grow in a different way and I feel like I left
a piece of my heart everywhere I went. There is such a huge amount of culture
packed into such a small area in Europe. I appreciated how every country had
such a unique culture. I loved embracing new languages, food, cultural norms,
music, and so much more.
Traveling through Europe felt
partly like a vacation, but mostly it was the biggest learning experience I
have encountered. It challenged me in ways I could have never predicted. It
made me so much more open-minded and made me realize that I really only live on
one little dot on the planet. There is so much more out there, and you could
say I now have the “travel bug.” All I have done since I have returned to the
U.S. is figure out ways I can continue traveling. I want to be exposed to as
many different cultures as I can before I die. I feel like there is no way to
be fully accepting and open to differences without experiencing some of these
first-hand. I would be lying if I said it has been easy being back home. There
are times where I feel close to depressed. But I am thankful that I now have
this yearning to continue to learn. Traveling for 10 weeks also made me
appreciate a lot more about my home, family, and friends. It allowed me to take
a step back and think about who and what is really important. This experience
helps me approach situations differently and overall has given me a more open-minded
perspective.
When I am old and gray, I know
I will still think back on these 10 weeks abroad and think they were the best
10 weeks of my entire life. I don’t think I will ever have quite the same
experience again, but that is okay. I could not be happier with the way things
turned out for me and I know I will never lose my “travel bug.” Thank you
Europe for showing me a whole new world and making me fall completely in love.
Thank you Dr. Wasser for encouraging us to chase the “Hero’s Journey.” Thank
you Professor Waltz, Henning, my host family, and everyone else who encouraged
me to keep myself open throughout the entire trip. Thank you to my 20+ best
friends who made this experience so much more than it would have been on my
own. For now, I will continue to dream about Europe until I can hopefully soon
return.
No comments:
Post a Comment