"We travel, initially, to lose ourselves; and we travel, next, to find ourselves. We travel to open our hearts and eyes and learn more about the world than our newspapers will accommodate. We travel to bring what little we can, in our ignorance and knowledge, to those parts of the globe whose riches are differently dispersed. And we travel, in essence, to become young fools again - to slow time down and get taken in, and fall in love once more." - Pico Iyer, "Why We Travel"

I'm still in the beginning stages of planning my trip to Europe. I have many friends throughout England, France, Germany, Portugal, and Austria that I have met through studying abroad and traveling that I can't wait to visit! This will be my first time in Europe, and I am planning on being over there for a few months (at least). I may stay even longer if I can work my way through or find a town I particularly feel the desire to stay in for a longer period of time. This will be my second travel experience alone, but first without a set agenda. I'm planning on making a general outline of things I want to see and do, but I think I will leave the majority of the decisions up in the air this time. I want this vacation to be like one of those "Choose Your Own Adventure" books. I'm in the process of doing a bunch of research, saving up money, etc. I know I'm going to love it. I can't wait until I'm back to living out of a suitcase. I am happiest when I'm exploring new cultures and cities. I just read "Vagabonding" by Rolf Potts and it was wonderful. It should be required reading for all world travelers out there!