Wanderlust: a very strong or irresistible impulse to travel.

Wanderlust: a very strong or irresistible impulse to travel. This word could be used to describe how I feel lately. In the fall semester of 2008, I traveled abroad and studied in Florence, Italy. Needless to say, it was the best four months of my life and I think everyone who has the opportunity should study abroad…but we’ll cover that another day. Right now, I just want to talk about the literal craving I have right now for traveling and seeing as much of the world as I can during my life.

I’m not sure what sparked my reminiscing, but I’m thinking it had something to do with seeing the movie Eat Pray Love. I saw it on Sunday with my mom, and of course part of the movie takes place in Italy. Instantly I was jealous of Liz as she apartment hunted through Rome, learned the language, and indulged in amazing Italian cuisine. It brought back so many memories…traveling to Rome twice, living in an apartment that I am obsessed with but would probably not like as much if it were in the United States, etc. There’s a beauty in not knowing where you’re going and getting lost in a foreign country. I think this is one of the best ways to get to know a place because you never know where you’ll end up.

The movie also took place in India and Indonesia. I would love to travel to either of these places, but especially Bali. I can’t think of anything I’d like more than to live by the gorgeous blue and aqua ocean in a hut of some exotic location. So after leaving the movie, I got kind of depressed. It’s really hard to explain how I feel when I start missing Italy and Europe in general, but I guess it’s like some sort of reverse homesickness.

I obviously went through all of my tagged pictures from abroad and looked at my photo albums when I got home. This in turn inspired me to start looking up international jobs and volunteer abroad programs. I swear if I had the funds, I would travel to South Africa or Costa Rica or pretty much anywhere for that matter. I had found this well-known company, Student Travel Association, that allows you to travel, volunteer, intern, etc. in pretty much any country you can think of. There are programs where you can volunteer for two weeks and travel for two weeks all over the country you’re in. THIS IS MY DREAM. Unfortunately you have to pay for your own flight and I can’t really be dropping that much dough right now.

So my advice to you…if you have the opportunity and money, travel. Travel anywhere; Europe, the United States, Asia, Australia, etc. You may think you know a lot about the world (I sure did before going abroad), but there is SO MUCH out there for you to see and explore. Traveling is a great experience alone or with friends and as corny as it sounds, teaches you a lot about yourself. You immerse yourself into other cultures and experiences that are so random and unique and you meet the most interesting people along the way. So now that I’ve told you how amazing traveling is, I’m going to sit here and continue to have wanderlust. GO SEE THE WORLD!!!!!

Eat, Pray, Love

I think it’s safe to say that most of us have all had a certain point in our lives where we feel like our world is crashing down. Maybe it was from stress, or maybe a love lost, but we have an idea of what rock-bottom feels like. When we get that feeling of emptiness, it’s hard to know what to do.

During my junior year, I studied abroad in Florence, Italy with some of my best friends. (Side note: if you can study abroad, DO IT. It was literally the best 4 months of my life). Anyway, after the initial excitement and awe wore off, my roommates and I found ourselves in a funk, or depression, if you will. We were missing Marist, family and friends, America, and the feeling of being familiar with our surroundings. During my time here, I met a girl who I became very close with. She recommended I read a book called “Eat, Pray, Love,” by Elizabeth Gilbert, and said the book was amazing and life-changing. I love to read, but I doubted the book would have a profound effect on me.

I was wrong. The book is everything my friend said and more. I found that I wasn’t able to put the book down because I was so involved in Elizabeth’s story and found myself relating to her. One of the main concepts of the book is loneliness. Gilbert encourages herself (and others) to embrace loneliness so that you may be comfortable with yourself. It is never a good thing to rely on someone else for happiness (kind of like the quote…you have to learn to love yourself before you can love anyone else).

Coming out of a messy divorce and feeling extremely depressed, Gilbert decides to travel to three different countries (Italy, India, and Indonesia) to learn their ways and experience their cultures to the fullest. In Italy, Gilbert  indulges  in food, culture, and music while facing her loneliness head-on. Her next stop is India, where she practices silent meditation at her Guru’s Ashram. At first, Gilbert finds it extremely difficult to stay focused enough to meditate “correctly.” She works on controlling her thoughts so they aren’t as overwhelming while meditating and discovers a peace within. Finally, she travels to Bali, Indonesia. Gilbert spends her time with Ketut, a ninth generation Indian medicine man. Ketut teaches her to find balance and in return, she teaches him English. Throughout her journey, she meets other interesting people who affect her in one way or another.

The book was great and I would definitely recommend reading it. You will find yourself laughing and crying and relating to the author in ways that you can’t fathom until you actually read it. The importance of staying balanced and peaceful while loving yourself is perhaps the most important message of the book. It gives the audience hope so that when you feel you can’t go on, you know that someone else has been through the same thing. She teaches you how to conquer your fears and loneliness while loving yourself. This may sound corny, but I really did find “Eat, Pray, Love” life-changing.

“Learn your way around loneliness. Make a map of it. Sit with it, for once in your life. Welcome to the human experience.”

 — Elizabeth Gilbert