Final thoughts...
Trip Start
Sep 30, 2007
1
43
Trip End
Jan 08, 2008
Los Angeles, California
Friday, January 18, 2008
Traveling has taught me so much about this world that we live in as well as myself. That was my goal from the beginning to learn about different cultures and meet as many people as possible. Precisely, I wanted to know what we share in common and understand the differences. Obviously visiting each city for few days to a week is not nearly enough to understand different cultures, but I did my best to learn the history and the people of all the places that I visited.
Europe is a fascinating place, exceeding my expectations by hundred miles. Continent full of cultures, languages, history and conflicts, Europe has seen it all. While all the countries are shoulder to shoulder, there are clear distinctions between each country and some are much more visible than others. For instance, you can feel the passion of Italians. You can see the quality of life in Switzerland. You can notice German's efficiency, Spain's laid back lifestyle and Ireland's friendliness. Characteristics of each country are well represented in their daily lives and my goal was to bring some of them back home.
Before I left, I've seen pictures of Eiffel Tower, Berlin Wall, Buckingham Palace and it was nice to finally see it in person. But ultimately, it was the interaction with people that I'll remember for many years to come. I've found inspirations in small places and through all the people I've met. It's difficult not to be inspired by other backpackers who are all traveling to understand the bigger picture in sort of speak. I met countless number of travelers daring to step out to the unknowns and explore new grounds. I met a tiny girl from south korea who walked 500 miles in 40 days from French border to west coast of Spain. An Argentinian who came to Europe to work through his travels to finance the trip. Catalonian doctors who volunteer in Africa to give hope. I will remember their stories and experiences.
As backpackers, we all go through tough times, facing adversities daily and learning to cope with unfamiliar elements. I believe it's through those experiences that change how you view the world and see yourself. Although I still have many questions, I found many answers along the way and I can notice the shift in my reactions and perception. When you start to question the very basics and open you mind to see things differently, you begin to collect new sets of paradigm in your life. In essence, the last 100 days have shown me the things that I once thought were so important in my life are less significant now.
Looking back at my travels, I enjoyed every single moment and that's quite different from how I lived my life in the past. I was too caught up in the past or the future and as a result, I didn't recognize of all the beautiful things that were happening right before my eyes. Either I'd let my past hold me back on moving forward or in anticipation of things to come, I'd let the moments drift away. Because I knew how extraordinary this opportunity was, I made a strong effort to stay in the moment and truly enjoy every passing minute.
Through it all, I couldn't be more satisfied with the result of my trip. Before leaving for Europe, I really wanted to do two things which was go snowboarding and attend a soccer match. I've been fortunate enough to do both and had the best time of my life. Watching Spain vs. Sweden in Real Madrid stadium was a lifetime experience and riding the Switz mountain was about as good as it'll ever get. But I can say the same for this whole trip. I've been wanting to backpack for so long and to be able to finally live the dream was unreal.
So, here I am, back in LA, having major post-vacation depression. I'm already thinking of my next travels to SE Asia and I believe I'll continue to backpack as long as I can. So, until next time, I hope you enjoyed my blog and thanks for coming with me to Europe.
*Special thanks to Benj, Mike, Jaume and Greg for inviting me to your homes and allowing me to experience your respective country's culture from inside out. Thank you and I hope to see you all in LA. :)
Comments
Good 'Work' Guy!!
I was just reading GOOGLE 'hits', regarding Italy ,and segued to your travel blog, I have no idea how that took place, but..........got caught up in your travels and just wanted to let you know that you did a really nice job of reporting your 'adventures'...AND...You final entry, stating your chg in perspective, due to interacting with other people and countries was spot on....Good Work! Here's to many more adventures in your lifetime..........
hey
I was reading your blog and it was amazing!!!. I want to do exactly the same but dont know how much money do I need, can you please give me an estimate of how much money did you expend dayly in Europe.
Thanks
Re: hey
Thanks for visiting my blog! To answer your question, I spent anywhere from $40-$100. I know that's a big range and I'll try to clarify. You'll certainly spend more in London than Poland. What you'll have to do is stay discipline and stay close to your budget. I think on avg, you can count on Hostel to be anywhere around $20-$30. Then you'll need $20 for food, $10 for transportation, $10-$15 for museums and sights, and so forth. Somedays, i didn't spend any money by just walking around the city which is always free.
For the whole trip including airfare, I think i spent around $11k. Now at the end of my trip, i did spoil myself a bit, eating at nice restaurants and staying at hotels for few nights. One thing i'd suggest is I saved a lot of money by not buying the Eurail pass. Flying is so cheap in europe and also there are buses. Sure, trains are nice, but if you're trying to save money, you can't always have nice things. Also once you purchase the eurail pass, you are pretty much restricted to trains, whereas i had to freedom of flying to different countries for half of the cost.
I hope this helps and if you have any specific questions, please feel free to ask more. Hope you have a great time!!!
Backpacking Europe
Your experience in Europe seems sureal!
It's motivated me more to get out there and explore the world, culture myself.
good luck with everything and I hope you go again :)
Thank you
Thanks for posting your trip. I am currently a Freshman in collegeand feel a little lost and in the need of an adventure. This has given me the idea of possibly taking the next year off in order to find myself and others thank you so much
Great Blog
I only read a few posts, but enjoyed them all. I am heading around the world for two weeks and trying to do it on a tight budget. Your advice is really good. I agree about the buses in Europe. My trip starts on May 30th.
Great Job!
Hey, I'm planning a trip to Europe. I have friends in The Hague(Amsterdam), Italy, and Spain.
There's a lot of question I have. My trip is not for another 2 years because I'm saving up the money for my mortgage and my travels at the same time but I'm very serious about this trip.
Please try to find me on facebook so you can give me some pointers on my travel plans.
Edward.Ramirez.Accountant@gmail.com
Thanks,
Wow it sure was an adventure to read all your posts. I absolutly cant wait to go on my first backpacking trip! hopefully it will be soon :)
Hey man! Great Blog! I'm taking off to Europe this summer, and reading your posts really has given me some inspiration! Awesome final thoughts!
Hey Renelle, thanks for visiting! I hope you get to go because it's really a lifetime experience. Safe Travels!
Hey Rory, glad u like like the blog! I went during the winter so i'd like to do it again during the summer one time. Hopefully i can make it happen soon. Good luck and let me know if i can be of any help!
Sounds like you had an Amazing experience! In March I will be going on a 3-4 month backpacking trip around Europe by myself and my Itinerary is almost exactly the same as yours except I will be starting off in Iceland! I had been planning on purchasing the Eurorail Pass, but I guess I will have to look into the benefits of plane and bus transportation. Do you happen to know any of the names of the Hostels that you enjoyed? I find that to be the hardest part, trying to decide on the Hostels. Thank you for sharing your expierences in your blog, it has been great reading and looking through your pictures! I hope when I start my Blog in March you will check it out! Thanks again! Happy New Years!
Hi Kristy, i used a website called hostelworld.com. There's a $10 annual fee and after that, you can book as many hostels through the website. I found the website really easy to use and more importantly provided useful and accurate ratings of the hostels. It also has maps and user comments so that you know what to expect. I hope this help! safe travels and i'll check out your blog once you set it up.
kristi, let me know which city you're going to and I may be able to recommend some hostels for those cities.
I really loved your blog! Well written!
Stumbled upon your blog while researching driving to Chur. Love it! I did the same thing in 1991. My brother and best friend hit Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Holland, Chech Republic, and Austria. It was a little cheaper but you explain the very situations I still cherish. The memories created back then are unforgetable. I was in the Naples train station and had my jeans on a baggage cart drying from the rain that day. I turned to buy some post cards and gone were my size 40 waist jeans. Great times at Oktoberfest as well. Europe should be mandatory for any hard-working twentysomething. Do it again and soon. Before you know it wife, children get in the way and then you have to wait 20 more years. Go back, Go back!!!
Hey, i know this was a long time ago now but i just wanted to say that your blog was written so nicely! i have really enjoyed reading it over that past couple of days. i am currently planning a 4 month backpacking trip around europe for next summer (my first backpacking experience!) and i have certainly learned a few good things from your blog. Thanks so much! :)