Take aways from Italian Times by Katy Macklin

And just like that, I am writing from my home in Virginia, already reminiscing on my time in Florence.

Here’s what I’ve learned.

 

No amount of times you hear “stuDyinG abRoAd wiLl chaNge yOuR liFe” will prepare you for how much it will. Since being home, my friends and family have told me how much happier and motivated I am. Not only am I less stressed about daily tasks, but I am more confident in my future. Not to mention…. I weirdly feel 10x healthier than I did the day I left. This is surprising since my meals were mostly pasta, but the amount of walking, exploring and hiking I did, really PEMDAS’d that one (yes its a verb!)

I think the main thing this experience taught me was how to trust my intuition and decision making. Traveling so much teaches you how to listen to your gut, and figure out if a situation isn’t the perfect fit for you.

Living in Italy, and being surrounded by people who live to enjoy the beauty in life, taught me to never settle for anything less than that perfect fit. Life is too short, and there are too many things to see and explore, to live a life where you don’t feel excited to wake up every day. We all deserve our perfect fits, and we owe it to ourselves to communicate to others when things just aren’t working out for us.

Lastly, I can promise you that the travel bug is real. I don’t know if it lived under my bed the last two months or what, but I do know that it found me. Since it did, I am planning on seeing as much of this world as I can before I leave it. After graduation, I am teaching English as a second language in Spain. I have always pictured myself doing something like that, but it sounded like a dream in a land far, far away. I didn’t have the confidence to be so independent in a foreign country, until now.

All of this sounds cheesy!! I know!!!! But it’s true. Life isn’t supposed to be about just getting to the next thing. Life is about enjoying lunch with a friend, reading a book on your balcony, taking the time to make your own coffees and smoothies, and calling your parents. Life is about travel, about becoming a regular at the cute aperitivo place on the corner with the really good pina coladas. (too specific?)

Life is about putting your phone down!

If I did have regrets about my trip, one would be not spending enough time in museums. I think I always just told myself I would get around to it and didn’t even see some of the coolest ones. I also could have been a lot better about keeping a budget and sticking to it.

But oh well….just things to think about for next time 🙂

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *