Exploring new places and cultures is something I have always loved to do. When I was little I was always interested in learning about foreign countries and their customs. My interest spiked when I was in middle school, and our sixth grade history project was to pick another country to research and give a presentation on. I remember being overwhelmed with choices and not knowing what country to pick. I used the globe in our classroom to choose, and spun the globe with my eyes closed. My finger landed on Germany, and I was so excited to do my research for the project. It was one of the first research papers I can remember being excited about working on. I learned about the history of the country, the food and customs. It was one of the coolest projects I have ever done, and it opened my eyes to a world that was bigger than just my hometown.
A few years later, I was given the opportunity to travel to western Canada with a choral group I sang with. We were going to Canada to give a few concerts and then participate in a children's choral festival with other children's choirs from around the world. While Canada may not sound like an exotic or interesting place to visit when you live in the states, I can assure you that it most definitely is. We traveled all throughout British Columbia and Vancouver. It was neat to see everything from street signs to food packaging written in both English and French. I remember being in awe of the Olympic village, and excited to see wildlife and the scenic landscape.
After that trip to Canada, I was hooked. The choral group I was in travelled every summer while I was in high school. We travelled all along the east coast and the west coast, but nothing was as exciting as when we went to Europe. We went on a river boat and cruised the Danube, traveling from Budapest to Prague. Over the span of almost two weeks we visited several countries, each one more inspiring than the next. One of those countries we went to was Germany, the very place I had done a project on several years before that had sparked my interest in the world beyond home I experienced new languages, new foods, and new customs at each stop. We were immersed in different cultures and it was the best thing that ever happened to me.
You see, the thing about traveling is that is opens up your mind. When you travel to a new place- especially a new country- you have to adapt to a new way of life. Even if it is for just a short time, you are forced to experience a different way of living; a different way in experiencing the world that surrounds you. It opens your eyes to new and different ideas, new people who force you to realize that the world is much bigger and much more important than just your hometown. When you travel to new places and different countries, you are receiving the gifts of knowledge and experience that would otherwise be closed off to you, and that's why it's so important. That's why I love it so much.
