ˈwändərˌləst/
noun

a strong desire to travel.

“a woman consumed by wanderlust”

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My love for traveling started at a very young age. Before I had ever been to a place where I could understand what ‘traveling’ really was.

I remember being in Grade 6. We were learning about Greece. The history of the country, the history of democracy, and of course, the stories of Greek Mythology. I was fascinated. I loved Zeus, Hercules, Hera, Aphrodite, Mount Olympus. Everything. And I knew then, I NEEDED to see this place. My family also played host to several exchange students while I was growing up, so that’s probably another reason I have this strong desire to see new places. I was constantly exposed to people from other places, and stories of things so vastly different than what I was used to. However, it was during a family trip to Europe where I truly caught the “travel bug.”

When I was 9, Kristian came to live with us. He was a German exchange student from Berlin, who lived with my family and went to school in Canada for a year. He became my German big brother, and to this day, we still remain in contact and continue to visit when we have the chance. A few years after Kristian went back home, my brother went to Berlin on a private exchange. The summer following his time there, my parents and I flew to Berlin to meet up with him and venture throughout Europe. We started in Berlin, drove to Rothenburg, Munich, and then Nuremburg. From there we flew to Rome and did a bus tour to Venice, Lucerne, Paris and London. There were several times throughout our 3 weeks where I just stared in awe and thought, “This can’t be real. There’s no way I’m standing in front of the Vatican right now. That’s not the Eiffel Tower, you’re dreaming.” But it was real. And I remember every single memory. Something happened to me on that trip. Something was awoken inside me what I didn’t know existed. This desire to see the world. Something that I had never experienced before.

I went on a high school trip to Europe as well. We went to London, and a few smaller towns in France, finishing in Paris. Greece however, was my very first solo adventure.

I graduated high school and had NO idea what I wanted to do. All I knew was that University wasn’t on my radar, even though, that’s where most of my close friends headed. I was lucky that my parents never forced me to go to post secondary. In fact, quite the opposite. My mom and dad told me to wait and encouraged me to travel first. So, I stayed at home, in little old Vegreville, got a full time job working for ATB, and a part time job working at Vito’s and I saved money.

I remember thinking to myself: “I don’t care who comes with me. In fact, I don’t care if anyone comes with me. But I’m going to Greece.” It was this mindset, with some help from my Mom, that allowed my first ever travel dream to come true.

I decided to go on a Contiki Tour. Well, let me rephrase that. My MOM decided I was going on a Contiki Tour. To be honest, it made the most sense. I was 19 years old, and didn’t know the slightest thing about traveling, so Contiki made sense. All my flights, accommodations and transfers were paid for. I just had to decide what extra activities I wanted to do. This was the BEST decision I made. For those who are considering solo traveling but are really unsure, go with some kind of tour group. Contiki (https://www.contiki.com/ca/en), Life Before Work (https://lbwtravel.com/), Free and Easy (https://www.freeandeasytraveler.com/), and BusAbout (http://www.busabout.com/) are all great companies to consider.

I can’t stress this enough. You may not think that solo traveling is for you, but I promise, if you go for your first time with a tour group, you will instantly change your mind. Traveling brings a variety of people together. Not to mention, you share a connection that you likely won’t have with your friends at home. You don’t just make friends, you make lifelong friends. And another bonus, you get free places to stay all over the world when you meet people!

I started this blog to keep track of my adventures on my 4 month trip, and while this is still a place I can talk about all my various travels, I now want this to be a place where I can offer advice to those who are thinking about traveling. The world is huge and infinitely beautiful. Go explore it! Seriously…do it now.

If you’re thinking about traveling, but don’t know where to start. Message me! Please! I would LOVE to help you start your journey!

‘Till later…

Ciao!

-A