Leaving your home country is an incredibly stressful yet rewarding moment in your life. You are exiting your comfort zone to take advantage of the allure everyone talks about. Everybody will have different experiences that make their respective trips unique. However, there is a sense of plurality that is shared among each individual. These pluralities are not specific to just my time abroad, but to everyone's as well. It is imperative to understand that traveling provides an opportunity for growth as an individual. The "things" you learn abroad can be utilized in your everyday life back home and you can share said "things" with the people around you. So, without further ado...

1. Money can buy happiness

Traveling abroad completely refutes the long-accepted adage that money cannot buy happiness. As a matter of fact, money can buy happiness. Most of the things you do abroad cost money. Food and drink, transportation, museums and sporting events all cost money. What makes me happy? Eating and drinking different things, traveling via air and rail, visiting thought-provoking museums, and attending raucous sporting events. Money is merely a surrogate to conquering ultimate fun. It isn’t how much money you have that counts; rather, it’s what you do with that money to add value into your life. Country singer Chris Young perfectly encapsulates this idea with his song "Buy Me A Boat."

2. Time management is essential

We all know this trait as the one you focus on during an interview. Sure, it helps with getting a job. Better yet, it’s imperative to utilize while traveling. Juggling train, bus, and flight schedules can be stressful. Allowing adequate time for transportation and all of the potential problems that may arise is vitally important. You are sure to have mishaps along the way and each of them will help you build upon your time management skills.

3. Appreciation of home country is greater

Taking a step away from your home allows for an alternative perspective to be had. The sense of national pride felt while abroad is uncanny and cannot be replicated within your homeland. Sure, you’re going to see some things in the foreign country that are better than at home. Exposures to new things and alternative ways of living are part of the joy of traveling. Being able to take these new encounters and reflect upon them in comparison to your country will help you understand the idiosyncrasies that make up your culture and give you a sense of national pride.

4. You realize what is important

We all want one more car or a bigger home or the newest iPhone. Yes, these things are all awesome, but are they the most important? The answer is no. While abroad, you will have had many different experiences in each respective country. Each interaction and activity will teach you more than what you could ever learn in a classroom. There are numerous things people start to value more while abroad, so I’ll only name a few. Religion. Ever been to Europe? The churches are incredible. Family. You are bound to miss them. Health. Value it. Getting sick abroad is not fun. Last but not least...friends. It is guaranteed that you will miss your friends. With that said…

5. You see who your real friends are back home

There are the friends who “like” your Facebook and Instagram photos. There are the friends you say “hi” to while passing on the street. There are the friends you only see at the bars, and you share a drink with them. There are the friends at work or school. Then there are the true friends. I’m not saying your true friends can’t do all of the aforementioned activities, but traveling abroad often means you are isolated for at least a short period of time. You aren’t able to stay in contact with all of the people you normally would back home. So, you value who to talk to when you have a spare moment. Let's be honest...you should be out exploring and creating memories wherever you are. You will only stay in contact with your "real" friends, because your time is precious.

6. Trying new foods becomes a part of your life

Everybody loves food. One of the best parts about traveling is most certainly the different types there are to try. Going outside of your comfort zone is a must when traveling. You cannot fully experience another country without experimenting with the various foods it has to offer. If you went to Belgium and didn’t try a Belgian waffle, did you really go to Belgium? No. No, you did not. So, before you travel abroad, make sure you know what each country you are traveling to is famous for.

7. Traveling alone can be exhilarating

If you’re like me and end up in Amsterdam alone, you will have two options. You can either go back to your place of residence or move onward with your traveling. I am grateful that I carried on with my backpacking trip around Europe by myself. It was an incredibly scary thought at first. The end result is something I will never regret. Yes, I ran into problems, but the benefits were countless. You go outside of your comfort zone and are more open to meeting new people simply because you have to. There is absolutely nobody holding you back from the places you want to go. Most importantly, you learn an enormous amount about yourself. My advice? Try it. You won’t regret it. Period.

8. Music tastes differ greatly

Part of traveling is seeing the sights, meeting the people, and trying the food. Not to be forgotten is the rich music culture that each country has. Music is a way of expression for many, and you can learn a lot about people and culture as a whole by hearing different tastes. Perhaps the biggest surprise to me was how great of an influence American music has across the globe. Sure, the genre that people listen to is different, but it’s still American nonetheless.

9. Places are fine, experiences are everything

As we near the end of this caveat of information, it is imperative to understand how important this idea is. You can travel all around the globe to every corner of the world but it can mean absolutely nothing. Seeing places is cool and all, but we don’t remember just places. We recollect the experiences we had in those places. The people we met. The nights we don’t remember. That’s what makes traveling worth it. It’s for the moment when you can say, “Oh do I have a story to tell you.” You might even get people asking:

10. The realization of how fortunate you are

While traveling, everybody, at some point, will come to the realization of how fortunate they are. The ability to see the world is not a right. Not everybody has the same opportunities you have been given, or have earned--whether it be that they cannot afford it, they are not healthy enough, or they simply do not have the time. Take every moment and make the best of it. You never know when you’ll be able to travel again, and cannot relive your life. So, make the best of every situation and take nothing for granted.