Before I started college, I made a promise to myself that I would never go home for Spring Break. I knew that Spring Break only lasted a week and that most of my friends from home would have break during different weeks; I felt it was the perfect opportunity to try something new. For me, Spring Break became a week that I would select a different destination each year to explore any part of the world that was available to me, near or far. Last year, I signed up for a volunteer trip in Jamaica, and it was an incredible experience. I met such amazing friends, truly felt that I was making a difference, and got to explore a country through its culture, residents, and their community rather than only experiencing tourist attractions.

This year I decided to stay in the United States and experience my first independent travels on the East Coast. I had a handful of people I wanted to visit and desired a time to explore such a unique part of our country on my own. While I figured out my schedule in terms of staying with different friends, there was not a set itinerary. I am a very organized person and usually plan out every move in my life but I was excited to not have anything set in stone and to be able to explore. As my travels began in Rhode Island at Brown University and ended up in New York City, this time allowed me to realize a lot of things about myself and learn a lot from my independent traveling experiences. Here are some things that I learned from my time on the East Coast.

1. Don’t ignore the small cities and towns. You may end up deciding those are the best cities you’ve visited and will realize that there is so much more within them than you expect!

2. Easy public transportation should be implemented into every city possible. It rocks.

3. Subway rides are so calming and relaxing. If I could spend a day just sitting on one without getting off, I would.

4. You can take a bus ride absolutely anywhere in the country. I think it’s one of the most underrated and under used opportunities for traveling in the US.

5. Google Maps is my best friend.

6. You can cover so much ground in the span of a few hours and truly get to explore so much of New York City.

7. The vibe and lifestyle you see on one block can completely change within the span of a couple blocks.

8. Try as many new foods that are popular in the area you're visiting.

9. Get the weeklong Metro Pass if you’re coming for that amount of time – you’ll definitely get your money’s worth of subway rides.

10. Take a bike ride through Central Park if you get the chance.

11. It’s important to make time to wander and get lost – you don’t know what you’ll come across. Setting time aside that does not include an itinerary and allows you to explore without a final destination can lead you to so many incredible or unexpected opportunities and discoveries. Resist the urge to use Google Maps for that time and just see where you end up!

12. Picking a city that you’re not too familiar with and exploring it is such a great experience.

13. There is so much more to a city than the typical tourist attractions you expect. While those are still great to see its definitely worth it to make a time for both the typical and non-typical sites.

14. It’s so important to take the opportunity to travel when you can. While this could mean exploring a new country, it could also be getting in your car and driving to a new place you’ve never been to before. It can be costly or not cost you much at all, it could last for a month or only for a couple of days, it could be with friends and family or you can do it on your own – its whatever you make it to be.

I truly loved being able to explore different parts of the East Coast during my week off from school. I was able to see my friends’ and family’s lives on the East Coast and also figure out my way around when leaving one place I was staying at for a couple of nights and heading over to the next place. This only makes me more excited to continue my travels and to explore all new parts of the world. Whatever it may require of you, do whatever you can to travel. While you may have to push yourself out of your comfort zone, it’s so worth it to visit new places, try new foods, meet new people, experience different weather, and just explore the world.