Our last morning in Italia was bittersweet. I wasn't ready by any means to pack up and head back home. Prior to my trip everyone told me that 12 days would be long enough for me as a first time international traveler. Those people couldn't have been more wrong. For some of the people on my trip, it was just enough time. For me, I could have stayed a whole lot longer. If there was a 30 day Classic Italy trip, I would have been on it. When it was time to head to the airport I wanted to stomp my feet, cover my ears, and hold my breath till I turned blue in the face. But, I knew that this is where part one of my Italia adventure ended. When we got to the airport, I spent 32 euros on chocolate. That's like, $43 USD. What does that tell you about my emotional stability on that day though?
I miss them. I had the window seat on the plane. I had not anticipated how difficult it would be for me on the plane heading back home. As we took off, I watched Italy fly away from me. My heart broke in two. My eyes welled up with tears and I had absolutely no control over my face muscles. It was incredibly unattractive so I decided to stop fighting it and just let it out- I cried. I was sitting next to some old dude who had no clue what was going on. He pretended not to notice my anguish and heartache.
Nothing in my life has ever felt so wrong. I really felt like I wasn't supposed to be on that plane- that I belonged in Italia. I have never been more at peace, more filled with joy, happiness, love, and light, than when I was in Italia. My soul was at home and all was well in my world during my trip. It was on that plane ride back to the United States that I made a very important promise to myself. I am going to do whatever it takes to make sure that I end up back in Italia next summer. I am going to move to Italy and work there. While I live in Europe, I'll to travel to other countries, as well. My journey isn't over. It's a work in progress and I couldn't be more excited about what my journey has in store for me in the future.
Nothing in my life has ever felt so wrong. I really felt like I wasn't supposed to be on that plane- that I belonged in Italia. I have never been more at peace, more filled with joy, happiness, love, and light, than when I was in Italia. My soul was at home and all was well in my world during my trip. It was on that plane ride back to the United States that I made a very important promise to myself. I am going to do whatever it takes to make sure that I end up back in Italia next summer. I am going to move to Italy and work there. While I live in Europe, I'll to travel to other countries, as well. My journey isn't over. It's a work in progress and I couldn't be more excited about what my journey has in store for me in the future.
If someone asked me a year ago, "what do you think your life will be like 5 years from now?" I would have given a confident, matter-of-fact response- "I'll probably be married, I'll be teaching, maybe I'll be thinking about starting a family..." If someone asked me that same question today, I would still give a confident, matter-of-fact response- "I don't know and I'm excited about it." This trip completely changed my perspective on life, what I want to do, where I want to be, and how I'm going to make it all happen. Traveling to Italy has made me realize that in many ways, I've sort of been living inside of this "bubble." There's so much world out there for me to explore- sensitively, of course. I can't wait to get back to Italy and explore other parts of the world. I'm so thankful that I was able to take this trip and figure this all out while I'm still young.
I wish the same for all of my young, passionate followers. Get out into the world and never tell yourself it's impossible. The only thing holding you back is yourself! When I made the decision to book my trip, I didn't have a job and I hardly had just enough money for the trip. That little voice told me I had to take a leap of faith and so, I did. Sure enough, everything fell into place shortly after I followed my heart.
I wish the same for all of my young, passionate followers. Get out into the world and never tell yourself it's impossible. The only thing holding you back is yourself! When I made the decision to book my trip, I didn't have a job and I hardly had just enough money for the trip. That little voice told me I had to take a leap of faith and so, I did. Sure enough, everything fell into place shortly after I followed my heart.
Over the next few weeks, I'm going to start looking into all the possibilities that excite me about living abroad. I need to have a great plan and I need to start working on that now. I'm going to work on learning Italian in the meantime, too, which I'm really excited about!
I miss Italy more and more with each day that passes. It's a great incentive for me to get the ball rolling on this next chapter of my life- living, working, and traveling abroad...sensitively.
:)
I miss Italy more and more with each day that passes. It's a great incentive for me to get the ball rolling on this next chapter of my life- living, working, and traveling abroad...sensitively.
:)