There were ups and downs on this trip. From missing a few trains, being stranded in a train station in Venice, living in no air conditioning, and taking 4 minute showers, I have to say that this trip wasn’t easy. Mentally and physically, I am exhausted. Even though this has been one of the most draining months of my life, it’s without a doubt been the most rewarding. I think that personal growth is something that I’ve been trying to work on lately. In Austria though, I’ve been forced into living the life I’ve wanted to live for a while.

1. I’ll start being more environmentally conscious. I will turn off the water while brushing my teeth, and recycle (I know I should of started doing this a LONG time ago). Being in Europe made me realize that we need to take care of our earth and that I take for granted having free water. I am coming back to America GREEN.

2. I’m smarter than I thought. I like to think that sometimes I freak out too easy, but in high-stress situations, I learned to keep my cool, and I made decisions to get us to where we needed to be.

3. I’ll take the time to slow down. There’s no reason I should rush home from work to do absolutely nothing. Why not take the long way and look at trees instead?

4. Turn the phone off. I thought I wasn’t that attached to
my phone, until we I didn’t have service or Internet access. Because I couldn’t mindlessly scroll through social media, I had so much more time to watch birds or take a walk or catch up on a good book.

5. Make. The. Bed. It takes ten seconds, and the room feels so much more put together.

And with that I will end this post by saying “THANK YOU EUROPE!” Studying abroad has been the most amazing experience and I am forever grateful for this opportunity.