It's been almost a year since I wrote anything on this blog, and that's mainly due to - well. It's mainly due to having a crisis about uni like every week and also organising a trip away and then actually going on it.
Two days ago I got back from travelling Europe for what were probably the greatest two months of my life, and I know it's super cliche to say "I went to Europe and found myself," but like. That's exactly what happened.
For many who know me, I'm not typically the most outgoing and confident person you will ever meet. In fact, I struggle with anxiety every day of my life, which is why it was a shock to my family when I said "I'm going to Europe. By myself."*
*Well, I got the plane over there by myself. That counts, right?
One small step for man, but one huge leap for Madolynkind.
I know people do it every day, but for me, getting on that plane and flying twenty four hours to the other side of the world, alone, was probably one of the most terrifying things I've ever done.
When I got off that flying death tube at the other end, the excitement was unreal. I had made it! This was the new me! It was time to #YOLO, #LWWY, and other hashtag acronyms that mean having a great time and potentially doing stupid things in the name of them!
After a few days exploring London with one of my best friends, whom I had only met once before in real life (that's the power of the internet these days, folks), it was time for another daunting experience: the first day, alone again, on my 24 day Topdeck tour.
Yeah, the first morning was pretty scary. But once we were on the bus, and our trip leader had danced down the aisle to the great classic hit 'Don't Stop Movin'' by S Club 7, I knew everything was going to be all right. (And it was. But how much I recommend you to go on a tour is a story for another time.)
Our tour group bonded like a family, but all too soon it was time to say goodbye, and hello to my old friends who were all just arriving.
Traveling with friends is, in my opinion, not something to be taken lightly, and I can't explain to you how fucked up my group of friends is and everything we've been through with each other. In summary, everyone has dated/liked/kissed/hated everyone, and before this trip, some of us hadn't actually spoken in months. Truly the ideal situation for a month of close proximity to one another in foreign countries.
Everything went (mostly) fine though, but band-aids don't fix bullet holes (right Tay?) and towards the very end, it all came out. This led to a little bit of patching up, but also to new holes being ripped. Honestly, I can't keep up with us either.
Now here's the lame part: what I learned.
- I am strong and confident and I can do things on my own.
- I can solve problems and speak French well enough and pretend nothing ever happened so no fusses are caused and take internal flights even with the risk they might lose my bags
- I have a talent for spotting famous people
- Europe is full of the most beautiful places I've ever seen and now been
- I can't be trusted with my money in makeup stores
These lessons are all very heartfelt and important and I am so glad that I was able to learn them while I was having the best time ever exploring incredible places and meeting incredible people. Don't miss me too much, Europe, I'll be back soon!