Home for the Holidays: A Travel Review

A westward flight over the Atlantic added six hours to what otherwise would have been the shortest day of the year. Thanks to the hospitality of two Australian friends, I watched the sun rise from a surprisingly comfortable fold-down couch and not my bed in the university residence. My frustration with residence admin had escalated over the last month as I identified extensive black mold and a persistent drip from the ceiling in my room. Not only was I refused new accommodation, but admin never even came to check the severity of the problem. On top of exams and pre-departure preparations, the first few weeks of December were frantic and none too pleasant.

Nine hours from Milan to New York, a six-and-a-half hour layover, and one last hour-long flight to Toronto and I felt like I had never left the comfort of my own country. There was no sadness, no surrealism; just a tucked away truth that certain events had conspired in some distant part of the world, distinct from was now my present. In the family SUV, headed north on an icy 404 Highway, the struggle began as I fought to recall my stories. Now that I’ve settled down for the holidays, I’ve had some time to reflect and adjust my plans for the next leg of my year abroad. Here are my first four months in review:

TIMELINE:

Aug 26, 2013              Arrival in Milan, Italy

Sept 01, 2013             Arrival in Castellanza, Italy (Homebase)

Sept 13 – 15, 2013     Tuscany: Florence, Pisa, Siena, San Gusmé, Viareggio

Sept 28 – 29, 2013     Switzerland: Lugano, Caslano

Oct 06, 2013              Genoa, Italy

Oct 09 – 13, 2013       Palermo, Italy; Dublin, Ireland; Nice, France

Oct 16 – 20, 2013       Rome, Italy; Vatican City

Oct 25 – 27, 2013       Venice, Italy

Nov 07 – 10, 2013       Barcelona, Spain

Nov 12 – 17, 2013       Budapest, Hungary; Vienna, Austria; Bratislava, Slovakia

December 2013          Italy: Castellanza, Legnano, Milan

Dec 21, 2013              Return to Toronto, Canada

THE GOOD:

I’m very happy with that list and I’m glad that I got to see and experience all that I did. Even after everything, I came in under budget which makes me feel like I could have crammed in more. It will be nice have more for Asia though. 

During my time abroad, I really took advantage of my freedom to catch up on some reading and do my own research. I covered a lot of business psychology and passed my reading quota for the year. Possibly to procrastinate from my university studies, I did some research in human biology and nutrition. It was wonderful to be able to focus on work that I cared about.

Some of the best conversations I’ve ever had took place during this trip. It really hit me just how sparse good discussions have been since high school lunch period. For the most part, I listened to others and learned how they see the world. When I did participate, I generally found that having the chance to articulate my ideas really gave me more confidence. It’s not something that comes easy to me, so the fact that I felt comfortable enough to talk through ideas was very liberating.

THE NOT-SO-GOOD:

While travelling, I have this tendency to live as though I will live again. I always expect that one day I will be back; that every person I meet, I have not met for the last time. Doing so means that I don’t put everything I have into the moment. I wasn’t sad about leaving Europe and I regret that a bit.

I didn’t get much out of the university lessons. Italy is more bureaucratic and, at the same time, more easygoing than Canada. It was really frustrating. Fortunately, I have reason to believe that the University of Macau will be more my style. I hope.

In December, I didn’t travel outside the local area. During that time, I felt that I spent way too much energy on my computer. I fell into a trap of tabbing through the same websites over and over. Even in such small towns, there were things to see that I didn’t. I’m sure that I would have enjoyed my last month more if I had convinced myself to leave residence.

SUMMARY:

Europe is a delightfully different change from North America and studying in Italy was a fascinating experience. I’ve learned how to be a more efficient traveller and I’m excited to see more of the world.

I can’t thank you, my readers, enough for all of your support. It means a lot to me to hear your feedback and it pushes me to keep writing. My next adventure promises to be even more exciting and I can’t wait to share it with everyone! All of the best to you and your families this season wherever in the world you happen to be. 

Merry Christmas and happy holidays!

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For some reason all of the pictures on my site were removed for a while and I had to replace them. I haven’t done this for my posts because I’m afraid it might be sent out again to my email list. I’m going to try it with one of my posts and see how it goes. Thanks for your understanding!