A lot has happened since my last blog post in 2019. The world was on lockdown and is still going through a pandemic crisis of COVID-19. On a personal level, I was emotionally distracted. I had met people and reconnected with past acquaintances that ultimately led to me losing the security and self confidence that I had gained as a result from my travels.
I came across some rough times that included me looking at the dynamic in my life from an outsider perspective. I gained some insight into my family’s dynamic with, and without me. Therapy was good in helping noticing things I hadn’t before that sometimes played into why my emotional self was having a hard time adjusting to so many changes.
While all of this was happening, I kept thinking to myself: I need to get away. Not just another state. I need to go back to the place where I am far away from my normal life and where I know that I am always the happiest. Now, I know it seems like I just want to run away from my problems, but it’s not like that. I had already felt like I made great progress with therapy and I regained the security and self confidence that I had lost for a bit, but this was the missing puzzle piece I needed to put myself back together again.
I needed to fly overseas. The first time I set foot in Europe, I was in shock. I couldn’t believe that after a year of planning, I was in the continent that I had always dreamt of traveling to. That first trip, with my best friend five years ago, was the best trip I had gone on. We learned a lot about ourselves, both solo and as a team. We had to rely on each other and on ourselves to make our next move every day. It’s not just the people, or the food, or the culture that you learn about when you travel abroad, You learn a lot about yourself. Your needs, your wants, and your desires.
This hiatus was something that I had to do. I couldn’t bring myself to write about my last trip to some Scandinavian countries. That was the last trip before covid, and before I had to survive two heartbreaks. It was the last time that everything was “normal.” I will write about that trip one day, but for now, I’m keeping it in my heart as the last time before I went through some life changes. It’s my “before”, and this last summer trip, is my “after”. This one I’ll write about, partly because it was the best summer of my life, and because I did it solo. For two months, I traveled by myself.
I encourage everyone to do a solo trip. Whether it be short or long, but it will open your eyes to who you truly are alone in this world, and how you can adapt to different environments, cultures, and people.
So, slated to be published these next few weeks, are my travels this past summer. I would like to invite you to live my trip through my words and some photos. I will leave tips and some advice for my fellow travelers.
Andiamo!
Voyage Checklist 