My family didn’t travel mush as I was growing up, except for our yearly road trip to see my grandmother in Idaho. As much as I loved rural Idaho as a child, it’s not exactly a thrilling destination. I lived in the same house from infancy until I moved out after high school. Before the age of 18 I’d stayed in exactly two hotels – the first was on a Disneyland trip when I was 13, and the other was in Reno, Nevada, for a wedding. To say I was not well traveled is an understatement.
This was especially worrying for me because I had big plans for myself. As an avid Discovery Channel watcher, I’d already decided I needed to see everything this world has to offer.
During my freshman year of college I had a chance to visit London. I couldn’t have prepared myself for the change this trip would have on my life. I’d seen enough movies and tv shows to have a general idea of what to expect, but seeing things like Big Ben and Westminster Abbey in person was thrilling. Seeing large crowds in front of the abbey protesting a war was eye opening. Talking to the students I met about everything from holiday traditions to school to national and international politics was enlightening. I didn’t expect it, but my little sheltered universe expanded and I understood for the first time that the world is a very big place indeed.
Travel truly changes you, and I believe it’s the best thing you can do for yourself. I hope you’ll join me as I travel the world and share my experiences.
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – H. Jackson Brown