18 countries and 11 months later

18 countries and 11 months later what have I learned? What will I take away from this experience? Try new things. Take time to contemplate. Be prepared when traveling, but okay with diverting away from the plan. Never sit in the middle seat of an airplane. Immerse yourself in new cultures. Don't hold back. Less is more. Learning a language in a classroom is excruciatingly different then using it in the real world. Train schedules are constantly in flux. Always charge your ipod. Don't forget to view the world through your own eyes instead of constantly worrying about capturing it through the camera lens. Find people to travel with who are okay with an hour of silence. Never travel without a deck of cards. Go with the flow, unless that means missing out on something you know is worth it, in that case speak up. Pack snacks no matter how short the excursion is supposed to be. Always have an emergency 50 cents to use a bathroom. The store brand jelly tastes just as good as Smuckers. If you get lost, try turning the map the other way. People are and always will be different. Everyone will know you're an american, embrace it but don't define yourself by solely that. Share your experiences people are genuinely interested. Never hesitate to ask for help. Live in the moment. Foreign people are still people. Scarves are in style all year round. Things will go wrong. There are no language barriers when it comes to laughter.

About a year ago as I franticly packed my life into two 50 pound bags and a camping backpack researching different lavish excursions I was going to embark on over the coming months I couldn't have even begun to understand how this experience would change my life. It is something hard to truly personify. I think what affected me most this year was how much I challenged myself. That is where the true growing process lies. I learned a new language which I can pretty definitively say I will never use in the United States, but that's not the point. I lived in Belgium for an entire year of my life and to not completely immerse myself in the culture, language being part of that, would have not given me the full experience. I participated in every cultural event, went on every trip imaginable, tasted every dish, rode each public transportation line, and made it a point to have a conversation with a local in every single country I visited. Had I not done these things and more I would of just been on a year long vacation, which some of you may still claim I have been. But to me, it was a year of growth, reflection, and understanding. Something I cannot put a price on, something I am so grateful I have had time to do, and something that has forever changed me.

When I think about it I literally removed myself from the life I knew and loved to come and see the world for an entire year. I was comfortable, happy, and very settled. I left my friends, my family, my school, my home, and the love of my life back in America, or so I thought. In reality, I carried them with me the whole time. The excitement I got when I saw something in a foreign country that reminded me of someone at home was heartwarming; I couldn't wait to tell them. When my dad, mom, uncle, and boyfriend came to visit me I couldn't have been more thrilled because they were able to see me in my surroundings here, something I could of never described in words had they not seen for themselves.

Some people get adrenaline rushes and natural highs from scary movies, roller coasters, or sports games, I get that feeling when I look at something so beautiful that had I not been in that place at that time I would of never known existed. Photography, art, wine tasting and beer pouring are now something I am well versed in, things that barely got my interest a year ago. I have always enjoyed challenging myself, but this year allowed me to step out of the box, for an extended period of time. That box of normalcy. I was able to challenge myself more here, then I ever could of at home and now I am ready to bring back everything I have learned and incorporate it into my daily life. My promise to myself is to do something that challenges me everyday, let myself divert away from the everyday rhythm to do something worthwhile but also intriguing and enjoyable. Whether that be sit down and read the New York Times before class, taking a weekend trip to a random city in Pennsylvania, or taking a walk in the woods to take pictures of the foliage I want to continue this feeling of everyday excitement. No two days were the same for me this entire year, maybe thats what I loved about it. Don't get me wrong, I love the thought of coming home and cooking dinner and snuggling up on the couch after a long day of work, a pattern is good, it's necessary, but just a small little something each day to spice it up is what I am going to focus on...

This seems a bit of an abrupt place to stop but this reflection has perhaps led me to the beginning of my next blog site "life after the adventure, back to normalcy." But, to be fair life in itself is an adventure and this was just a chapter of it. Thanks for following me on this European Adventure.

Spain: Barcelona and Palma Mallorca

Barcelona turned into one of the wildest experiences of my life. Not only were there riots going on, not violent, but just hundreds of people camped out in tents and dressed up in strange outfits holding random artifacts and posters to gain attention but the first night we were there Barcelona played Manchester United in the final soccer match of the season and WON. I was in a local bar watching on las Ramblas, I guess you could say the equivelent of a times square, and literally within seconds thoussands of people flooded the streets, fireworks were going off, bands were playing, traffic was stopped and every car was honking, people were lighting things on fire, climbing up traffic lights, it was complete mayhem I forever feel like I am a Barcelona fan after just experiencing the utter excitment and countries pride in athletics it was truly surreal.

The following day we took a bus tour through the entire city where you could hop on and off at different locations, we spent 10 hours on the bus. My favorite stops was the Olympic Stadium from the 1992 Olympics, the Barcelona Stadium, Park Guell - a park completely made of mosaic benches and statues, truly amazing, and the Sagranda Familia, a really beautiful strangely designed church. It was about 90 degrees so sitting on top of an open topped bus was scorching but it was so cool to see everything. The food was delicious too, paella filled with huge prawns, baby lobsters, and mussels and all different kinds of tapas, and home made sangria.

After Barcelona we took a 20 minute flight over to Palma Mallorca one of the Balaeric Islands sadly the weather didn't cooperate for the next 4 days of our stay but we still saw a lot of the islands everything from the beautiful beaches to the old town and port which were filled with spanish architecture, but surprisingly more British food and inhabitants. Evidently, it is a huge British vacation spot so I was able to get one more serving of fish and chips before leaving Europe and was also able to communicate with just about everyone. It was a beautiful island and had it been hotter and not rainy totally would of been the perfect beach vacaction but despite the weather we still explored and went to a katy perry cover artist concert, walked the beaches, went out on a mile long pier, and enjoyed the architecture of the old town. I liked it, but wish we would of spent more time in the big city of Barcelona.

Nice, Cannes, and Monaco

Though feeling like I was trapped in the Good Charlotte song from the 90's "Lifestyles of the Rich and the Famous" I loved the French Riveria despite the celebrity status that made me feel like I was dressing to go to prom every time we stepped out there door and the fine dining that made eating an affordable meal near impossible the beauty of the clear water and sandy beaches made it all worth it.

Nice was where we stayed and then traveled to the surrounding towns on the water via train from there. The first day we went to Cannes during the Cannes Festival, which was so surreal, red carpets, celebrity tents everywhere, paparazzi, yachts, the whole kit car and caboodle. I can't say I actually saw a celebrity but I did see Steven Spielbergs yacht which both Leonardo DiCaprio and Blake Lively were on, so that was pretty neat. The nautical views were amazing and the beaches were lined with clubs and restaurants in cabanas where you took your shoes off to enter and just step in the sand, it was to cool.

The following day we went to Monaco, also during a very good time of the year, the Grand Prix car race. The streets were painted like from the video game Grand theft auto and there were guard rails up and stadium seating facing the road, not to mention the hundreds of overly priced, yet amazing cars which filled the side streets. We got to go into the Casino which was all marble and just magnificent but to even walk into the gambling room you had to pay an ungodly amount, once I actually have money to bet in my life I would go back and do so without doubt.

The weather was 80 degrees and sunny the entire weekend, just perfect and on the last day as we laid on the beach before our flight home we ended up getting a free parasailing ride. Merry and I tend to get lucky that way, just minding our own business sleeping on the beach we were approached for a free parasail ride to attract other customers, what a deal. So we got to see the French Rivera from above and the boat driver was crazy he kept dipping us in the water and then speeding up it was an absolute blast. So glad I met up with Merry and her two friends from Ireland to go do this excursion. It was one of my favorite places. It was nice to see this part of France after being in Paris a couple times.