Of all the places you have travelled which one has had the biggest impact on you and why?

What a loaded question, right?

I have been sorting through some of my old, unpublished writing lately and came across this question I answered last spring as part of a job application.

I think what makes this question so difficult has to do with what I have learned since living and traveling to many different places: traveling is actually never about the place at all, rather, your connection with a place has everything to do with the experiences you have in that place, the people you met, and the the way that a new place teaches you about how there are so many different “right” ways to live.

Read my response to learn about how my first time living abroad changed my life, how feeling uncomfortable is both humbling and empowering, discover what I refer to as “The Turning Point” of any trip, and I have even linked my old 2014 study abroad blog you can creep on.

So, back to the question…: Of all the places you have travelled which one has had the biggest impact on you and why? Spring 2018 me answered…..

Lyon, France. August 2014- December 2014.

Going to Lyon was more than about traveling; this was the first time I was moving away internationally, not just for a week or two vacation, but to live. On top of that, I was going alone, knowing no one, and not even speaking the language fluently. Prior to my departure (and my journey of getting there in the first place which was a long process of research, paperwork and administrative loopholes) I went through waves of emotions: excitement, nerves, sadness about leaving my home University, eagerness to jump into a new adventure, and many more thoughts and feelings about moving to a city where I knew nobody and knew virtually nothing about a place I would be calling home for 4 months.

From the moment I arrived at the Gare de Lyon, my host mom picked me up from the train station, and did not miss a beat showing me around the city and rattling off fast french. After this whirlwind of a welcome tour, I realized even more just how little I knew about anything Lyon-related: where to catch the public transportation, which cafés I should go to for the best coffee in town, which bars I should frequent for a social night out, where my university is located, essentially, everything.

However, these feelings of insecurity and doubt didn’t last long at all. When faced with doubt and overwhelm I have learned the best thing you can do is take action, even if that’s the least obvious and appealing choice to take. After just a few hours of entering this new world, exploring my new home city, I had this empowering surge of thirst and excitement to explore this city and Europe over the next few months.

It is an incredibly humbling experience to live in an environment where you don’t know everybody, or anything, for that matter. To feel uncomfortable is something everyone needs in their life, because it allows you to observe, reflect, learn, and push yourself. Pushing yourself out of your comfort zone is a huge focus that I had learned and practiced at Camp, but to come to a foreign country pushes it to a whole new, exhilarating, uncomfortable, eye-opening level.

I am so fortunate I kept a blog post during my time studying in Lyon, as I can look back on my transformation through my words and reflections. (Click here for a peep at said blog from 2014….the aesthetic may be reflective of the time and my lack of tech skills but the content is actually quite good if I do say so myself and also good for anyone more interested in European travel!) I wrote a passage shortly after arriving referring to week 2 of being in Lyon as “The Turning Point,” aka the point I have now learned you will always reach when visiting a new place. The Turning Point is the point when the new and the bizarre becomes the normal, when you feel like you have some kind of a grasp on a place, no longer a lost puppy wandering around, the point where you make personal connections with others, the point where fear slips away and you find comfort creeping in slowly despite new and different surroundings.

Exploring Lyon showed me what I love about travel. You create a relationship with cities, like you do with a person, but the the type of rare relationship that is hard to find. The kind of relationship where everything is new, and even when it’s not it still amazes you. The kind of relationship where adventure peeks out from every corner, offers you something exciting, thrilling. The type of relationship that is peaceful, allowing you alone time when you need it, but all the right comfort when you’re ready for it. And most importantly, a trusting relationship. When I arrived in France, I gave my full, blind trust to Lyon. Trust that I could settle there, make a home there, make friends there, learn there, smile there, love there, and not once did my belief in Lyon slide, or slip, or shatter, rather, it strengthened.

I have learned to carry over this attitude when traveling to any new city or country, to trust that “the turning point” will come and to believe that new adventures are always around the corner.

After returning from my study abroad semester, I vowed to transfer the same adventurous attitude into my normal life, continuing to journal, seeking out new restaurants and events even in a familiar city, plan weekend trips, realizing from studying abroad that sometimes all you need is 2-3 days to explore instead of making excuses that you can’t go somewhere because you don’t have a week or 2 to spend there.

In taking a giant leap outside of my comfort zone and building a life I loved far away from anyone or anything I knew, my passion for travel grew and strengthened and with it my self confidence and sense of empowerment that I could do anything. And for that, I owe it to my first of many travel loves to come, Lyon.”