Three Months

Three months.

It is a very long time, and yet it is no time at all. To think that I have been on the road of European backpacking and studying for three months seems just impossible. I feel as though I left yesterday and I simultaneously feel as though I have been here for ages. I can now check off one third of my trip, but it’s a third of my trip that I will sorely miss. I have fallen hard for the UK, and I think parts of it will forever feel like a bit of home. As of tomorrow, I will officially be on my own traveling to Ukraine. It is bittersweet to say goodbye to my travel partners, made sweet only because my heart longs to be in Ukraine. I will arrive in Kiev on Monday and swiftly make my way to Bogodukhiv…the orphanage I first worked at two years ago. Knowing that I will be in Bogodukhiv with the children that changed my life is simply surreal. I’m not even sure I fully comprehend it yet. I am ecstatic to say the least.

This month of travel post-study abroad has flown by, and it has also been a huge time of learning. I’ve experienced so many new situations, met so many new people from all over the world, and enjoyed such beautiful cities. From the mayhem of Paris, the rejuvenation of Cessy and my immense love of Italy, it has been a glorious month. This term of Italian travel was split between Palermo in Sicily, Florence and Venice. Each of these cities is so different and our experiences in each were very different as well. I must say that Sicily is my new favorite location in Italy – it seems to have remained untouched by tourist culture, and the raw Mediterranean atmosphere that you find there is hard to resist.

Ciao Sicily.

Florence.

Going to Florence, where it seems that more people speak English than Italian was a bit of a shock after Palermo. While Florence holds such a wealth of art, history and architecture you can’t seem to escape the tourists that flood the streets.I was expecting much the same when we went to Venice a few days later, and while the main streets surrounding the Grand Canal and San Marco Square were filled with flashing cameras and rows of gaudy souvenirs and knock-off purses, once you meandered down the narrow alleys and bridges you found yourself in what is truly Venice. Small cafes lining the canals, locals conversing, and motorboats which have replaced the usual cars found in a city. We enjoyed many a morning sipping on cappuccinos, eating pastries, and reading as the city woke up and as canal traffic began. I think I could go on forever living such a life. Venice was the perfect end to our grand Italian tour and the perfect end to things resembling the west. So now, it is time for the east. Time for Ukraine.

This is Venice.

Venice.

Venice.