One of the main aspects of my life that I'd like to document are my various travels, so that I can relive them and perhaps others can be inspired or learn something new. I'm a homebody by nature, but since I'm a Gemini I have that other side of me that just loves getting away to new and old places...but not for too long. After about 2 weeks of travel, I tend to hit a wall and can't wait to get back home. But then its back to work, which leads to thoughts of traveling once again and booking the next trip. Its a vicious cycle.
Growing up in Ohio, by the time I was in high school I knew that I did not want to live there the rest of my life. My love of "far off lands" started in 2nd grade. Family trips to Amish country, and specifically "little Switzerland," made me want to visit "big" Switzerland too. (It may have been the World's Largest Cuckoo Clock that won me over. http://www.villageofsugarcreek.com/visit-sugarcreek/) My teacher, Ms. Limes, told me she had been to Switzerland, and I totally admired her, so from that moment I set a goal that I would get there someday too. (Goal achieved May 2000, and it was just as wonderful as I dreamed it would be!)
All I want are my two front teeth, and to travel to Switzerland.
My first "foreign" excursion was a family vacation to Niagara Falls, Canada, in the summer of 1991, or possibly 1992. (All I remember is that Jesus Jones' "Right Here, Right Now" was playing on the radio at the time.) I learned that milk can come in bags and I cannot do a backbend from a standing position. (Just following the wall down does not work. It's a miracle I did not crack my head open. This is what kids do when the parents go off on their own and leave the children alone in the hotel room.)
My first real plane ride did not occur until Apr 1996 when I traveled first to Newark and then onto Madrid for a high school field trip. (And I'd like to point out that this trip was at my own expense, about $2,300.) I even misplaced my passport at the airport and didn't notice until I was paged over the intercom. I sure know how to start out on the right foot! For about 10 days I saw sights and places all over Spain - Madrid, Costa del Sol, Granada, Sevilla, La Mancha - that I had no background knowledge of. (There are windmills in Spain?!) I learned from this that sight-seeing and travel in general are so much more rewarding and enjoyable when you take the time to learn a little about the place, history, and culture first. Having only taken less that 3 years of Spanish at this point, my ability to communicate was primarily limited to hand gestures and answering everything with "Si." I did manage to buy 2 kilos of fresh strawberries in Spanish, only to realize upon receipt that "dos kilos" is a crap load of "fresas"! The best part of this trip was an optional 3-day homestay that I did at the end in Getafe, a suburb of Madrid. I only learned after I committed to this that I was the ONLY person in the history of my school district to EVER do the optional homestay! Needless to stay, I was super nervous. Thankfully, the family was incredibly nice, the mother was an excellent cook, and the daughter knew how to speak English much better than I knew how to speak Spanish. I got so many souvenirs, clothes, and gifts on this trip that in order to make room for everything, I had to wear two of my new sweaters onto the plane in addition to my coat.
Saying adios to my "Spanish family." That's one of the sweaters wrapped around my waist.
16 year-olds hang out in bars in Spain, and like to drink Coke with red wine. (Remember, this is when vests were cool.)
Side note: Two life-changing things happened shortly after this trip. I became a vegetarian/pescatarian, and I got my first pair of glasses just in time for Senior year of high school.
Me wearing the aforementioned glasses, coincidentally while doing my Spanish homework.
Once I had my first real taste of Europe, I could not wait to get back. That trip ended up being the first of six to Europe thus far in my life. (I don't count Great Britain as being Europe, and I think the Brits would thank me for that.)
The current tally of all of the countries/islands/etc. that I have visited, in order (as best I can recall), are: Canada, Spain, Switzerland, Canary Islands, France, Sicily, Italy, Mexico, Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Vatican City, Jamaica, Hungary, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Iceland, Belgium, The Netherlands, Hong Kong, England, Wales, and Scotland. Two more to be added very soon!
Related note: At one point, I could say that I spoke Spanish and French. Nowadays, I can read menus in a few different languages, but am pretty much useless beyond that. This is something I am extremely embarrassed about, considering I studied languages in college, and I definitely need to work on that.
3 comments:
Where to next?
Japan and South Korea.
Lisa,
I just loved reading your blog! Your way of writing is awesome (a word you taught me!). I totally agree with you: traveling is the best investment we can do! I wish you had come to Brazil while I was here, but now, I´d love if one of your next trips would be to NYC and, then, in approximately four years, coming to South America. =)
Looking forward the next posts on your trips!
Stela
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