Less than a week ago, I began my trek across the Atlantic Ocean to explore a new world. Alright, it’s not a new world, it’s just Europe. Even saying that sounds a little bit wrong, though. Just Europe? Europe is fascinating, exciting, totally different than what I am used to. However, there are some things that I wish I would have known before hand, other titles to this article may include, “What I Have Learned Thus far” or “Wait, What?!” The last one is simultaneously the phrase most likely to pop up if you ask me what I’m thinking most of the time. So without further ado, if you ever plan on traveling, keep reading.

Jet lag is a real thing.

Not that I didn’t think that jet lag existed. I knew it existed, in fact I had experienced it when traveling from one side of the U.S. to the other. However, I forgot to take jet lag into consideration when planning out the beginning of my trip. My initial flight over to Europe included 3 layovers, all in different countries, long enough for me to get out of the airport and explore. They expanded over 2 days. This worked exceptionally well at first when I roamed around the streets of Manchester. I had a couple beers and a waffle in Brussels, but when I arrived in Madrid, I honestly could not even tear myself out of my seat on the plane. I was thoroughly exhausted.

So tired that I slept on the airport floor for the entirety of my layover. Lucky for me, I am planning on going back to Spain, so I will still be able to experience it. However, I learned a valuable lesson: Don’t try and shove every single possible experience into your time in Europe. Give yourself the moments to relax and not have to rush off to the next destination. Also, it might be worth the extra hundred or two dollars to not have as many layovers.

Walking is no joke.

I genuinely believed that I was going to be more prepared for the walking than most travelers are. I realized about a couple weeks before I left that I spend the majority of my time in Southern California in a car, so I decided to take action. I upped my Pokémon Go game, I woke up early every morning to walk a few miles, I offered to take my friend’s dogs on walks sporadically throughout the day. But then I arrived at my first stop: Manchester, where I walked for 6 hours straight with an incredibly heavy backpack and I genuinely thought I was going to die. A few more days in, and I have continued to walk for the majority of my day, and I still get much winded and I wake up with sore calves. I am not complaining, I am just saying, prepare yourself.

Side note: One of the best ways to see a city is to take a walking tour, but it is not as fun if you are constantly distracted with how exhausted and ready-to-collapse that you are.

Not all countries have the same climate.

Now this may be a “No, duh, Dorri” moment, but coming from an extremely moderate climate all of the time, where it doesn’t change too much if you travel even a few hours in different directions, this was shocking. Manchester was slightly chilly, Brussels was a little bit colder, then Portugal was blazing hot. With that comes the realization that your body might freak out a little bit. Going from temperature to temperature quickly and semi-sporadically is something your body is going to need to adjust to. Needless to say I have been drinking a lot of water, internally crying over my lack of sunscreen, and taking extremely good care of my skin to combat this.

If you are traveling around a lot, DOUBLE CHECK YOUR TICKET TIMES!

I genuinely thought that one of the trains that I was going to board left at 11:50am, however, thank goodness for the kind man at my hostel who pointed out that my train actually was set to leave at 8:23am. The time I had been looking at before? It was the time that I had originally purchased the ticket. When you are traveling around often and using various methods of transport, it is so important to either have your information downloaded or printed out so it is readily available. If you don’t, you may end up sleeping through that 20 Euro train you already purchased. No fun.

Cobblestone streets? They exist.

No matter how durable, non-slip, or comfortable your shoes are, it is of the utmost importance that you are aware of what type of ground you are walking on. I have had a lot of almost-face-planting moments that were simply because cobblestone streets are very hard to walk on, and the streets in Lisbon are super slick. This has nothing to do with the fact that I didn’t prepare ahead of time by buying shoes designed for walking long distances, but because the ground is something I’m not used to. I have had to work extra hard to not shuffle my feet at all, because I will stub my toes. I have to focus when walking down a hill because I don’t want to end up somersaulting the rest of the way.

Be flexible and don’t be scared.

As long as you are aware of your surroundings and take care of your personal items, you are going to be fine. Don’t let the fear of getting lost or hurt impede the adventure you are about to embark on. Take it from the worrywart queen herself, I get scared that I am going to get lost and miss every transportation that I have booked, that I will never find my hostel, and that people are going to mug me every corner that I turn. But if I let that way of thinking run my life, then I will never actually experience all that Europe has to offer me. So take a few breaths, relax, have some bread (it is so delicious here!) and ride the wave.

Finding the correct bathroom may be difficult.

This one took me by surprise. I have already been caught three times going into or coming out of the incorrect bathroom. Believe it or not, they aren't all labeled with pictures! My best advice is, if you don't want to ask whether it is for the ladies or the gents, to mentally prepare to being looked at like you're an alien after relieving yourself.

I’ve only been here for about a week and already I can feel myself beginning to understand the world from a different perspective. I remember being overwhelmed, anxious and over planned before I boarded my first plane. The most valuable thing that I have learned is that nothing is the end of world. There was a point in England when all my cards got declined and I thought that I was seriously screwed for the rest of my trip, but it worked out. And it will, in a way that’s better than you can possibly imagine.

So since I am about to get on the Metro to board a train, a bus and then a plane to my destination, I will bid you adieu. But I will leave you with this: “The world is a book, and those who do not travel, read only a page.” –St. Augustine