I’m 26 years old and I’ve traveled to 12 countries. Considering I did not get my passport until 2009, I’d say, giiiirl ya done good! Each vacation abroad has been a unique, inspiring experience. But… that’s just it, they’re vacations. They’re over before I know it.
My longest stay in one country was when I went to Spain, summer 2013. I was there for a week and was able to visit a few cities in the southern region. I felt that I could have had three months and still would not have even scraped the surface of the area I was in, let alone see the rest of Spain. There’s just too much to see, to do, to experience. What usually happens is I will jam-pack my schedule with so many things to do (because tick-tock, I must see EVERYTHING and only so many vacation days, ya know?) that I am overcome with complete exhaustion by the time I return home. It’s good and then it’s bad. Good because who knows if I will get to come back to this city/country again, so I should explore as much as possible! But bad because if I am moving around so fast I can become consumed in doing all of the touristy shenanigans and miss out on experiencing the genuine culture of the place that I am visiting. I am frequently left feeling cheated of either experience.
Thinking about this, a light bulb went on. (And the research began).
How can I do ALL of the touristy things AND fully immerse myself in a new culture? Is it possible, can it be done? The thought of not having to cram exploration into a 3, 5, 7 day itinerary is just, YES! My heart is so happy thinking about it.
This is why I decided to live abroad.
When You Wander 