The Wonders of a First Time Traveler

Before signing up for my trip to Greece and Italy I tried to imagine what it would be like to actually be there. I could not picture in my head me standing in front of the Trevi Fountain or on the grounds where they say Athena once walked. After making my first payment and reading the materials I was amazed that one place could hold so much history. As the trip came closer and closer it still did not feel real. Waiting at O’Hare International Airport I honestly could not even think about what it was going to be like to finally be in Europe. All I could think about was that I had to sit on a plane for the next 8 hours. I expected to land and be blown away by everything I laid my eyes on. When I got to Athens it was different from the United States but nothing like I expected. I thought there would be ruins everywhere and old fancy buildings. I imagined to be blown away with the architecture. In my mind, it was this perfect place where cavillation was formed. I pictured Rome to have the energy that the movies portray it to. They make it seem romantic and relaxing but it wasn’t exactly what I expected either.

The first day, or should I say night, in Athens was an adventure in and of its self. I was exposed to more graffiti in the drive from the airport to the hotel than I was in my entire life I believe. Than that night, when I think I can follow directions, I somehow ended climbing up The Acropolis without even knowing what The Acropolis was when I was supposed to be going around it. It was crazy to be in a place where there were not any street signs and I had no clue what was right and what was left. The next 3 days were a blur I was physically sick from being so jet leg. My body was very fatigued and I was getting a fever. I never thought that being in a new location and time zone would affect my body, I thought only my mind would be impacted. Even though I was not feeling my best I embraced every second of being at the top of The Acropolis. The tour guide that I was placed with allowed us time to sit where over 17,000 others sat years ago to watch performances. I appreciated the times that I was allowed to sit and reflect at these sits because those are the moments that I could imagine what it was like what the structures were not ruins.

Getting to Rome was so exciting. I could not wait to see all the places that were on our agenda. The first night I remember was cold and rainy. We also landed late so we just had some dinner and rested to get ready for the day that we were warned would be busy but I never imagined would be as busy as it was. The first full day in Rome we saw the Coliseum, Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps, chapels, and we visited Vatican City. I saw more and walked more in my first day of Rome than I have ever done in the matter of 15 hours. I felt like we were sprinting around Rome trying to get to the next spot. Also, it was a Saturday so the city was incredibly busy. Do to how busy the city was and how rushed we were I did get the relaxing romantic energy of Rome that I originally thought I would. Once I made the 45-minute walk from Vatican City to the hotel it was late and I was so tired. I wanted to think and reflect right then and there but my mind could only focus on sleeping. I hated to rush and I found myself laying there at the end of the night wanting to go back to each place and spend more time appreciating it instead of seeing it and walking away.

Back to the streets of Rome and I was ready to go back to all the places that we went to day one but just didn’t get to spend much time at. Before I could do that we ventured off to Pompeii. At first, I didn’t know much about Pompeii, just the basics. After speaking with a professor, I was able to have a better understanding of that exactly I was looking at. It was mind blowing how much they knew about the day the volcano hit. They knew that it was in the morning and they knew that it took out everyone that no one made it out safe. after visiting Pompeii, I was incredibly thankful that I went. My last day in Rome is when I got to go back to the Trevi Fountain and simply sit and enjoy it. I also climbed to the top of the Spanish Steps at night to see a breathtaking view over the top of Rome with Christmas lights to add to the beauty. Of course, I did my last-minute souvenir shopping for my friends and family. My last night in Rome after meeting with some teammates that were on the Italy trip I laid in bed just thinking about everything that I learned and saw in the last 2 weeks and it was so hard to wrap my head around. I remember saying to my roommate “I need to go back to Greece.” Then in the blink of an eye it was time to come home, back to the states.

Related posts:

The Ole Miss Rebels received a No.4 seed in the NCAA Tournament, meaning if Ole Miss survives Regional play, it will host a Super Regional next week. There are no Power Five opponents coming to…

There is a common belief among people that sex helps to stop snoring. There is no direct scientific evidence for that. However, several sleeping medicine producers conducted surveys among people who…

Watsup party people! I spent some of my spare time this Friday going over React Native and why it is so popular. In my opinion, it will be the future of mobile software engineering. It is the go to…