Please describe any travel or experiences that have prepared you for the Global Engineering RAP. This can include international travel and study abroad or any travel or experiences within the US that have showed you new perspectives, cultures or languages. If you have not had the chance yet to travel, please share where you would like to travel and why. I hurtled through the tunnels of the airport, frantically trying to catch a flight that had already left. I’m rather under-qualified for this, I think with a twinge of annoyance. As a sixteen-year-old traveling alone for the first time ever, the thirty-five day backpacking trip had already come to a halt. My parents had really thrown me into the deep end of the pool, and it’s either sink or swim.
Four hours of customer service later, I think I may be sinking more than swimming as I try to balance stress with the already overwhelming fear of the upcoming trip. I could not quell the racing thoughts of worry through my head. Will I get lost? What if I can’t find my way? How will I manage?
I shook my head. I wanted this.
Maybe you’ll get a new perspective, my dad had told me. Maybe you’ll find your true self.
London was a breath of fresh air and I found myself becoming excited. The hostel I had reserved looked run down; the broken shutters hung and swayed like tree branches and the windows looked cracked, and I felt my positive attitude wilting -- is this even safe? It was a struggle to adjust. With no experience in budgeting, I spent way too much before I quickly realized how quickly my funds were depleting. I planned and stuck to a budget designed to last me the rest of the trip, that included only two meals a day. It was also unexpectedly lonely, as I had grown used to the comfort of my everyday friends and family. Being alone meant I had to learn that the only person I need validation from is myself.
I took an underwater train that spanned from London to Paris, and from there, the language barrier became apparent. I had trouble buying a ticket because I could not speak or understand the language - and they could not understand me. It frustrated me so much, and I felt more out of place than I ever had. I did not know how to get to my hostel, and my poor French skills weren’t doing me any favors.
Through multiple attempts, I finally ended up at my destination safely. Exhausted beyond belief, I collapsed into my bunk bed and was awoken by the sound of water. Water had flooded the floor, and with horror, I realized I had left my suitcase on the floor. “Are you looking for your suitcase?” A boy asked me in a thick accent. “I put it on the desk, because the water line breaks quite often here in this old city.” I was flooded with relief, and through both clumsy French and English I was quickly able to befriend my roommate. Despite the difficult language barrier, I still made the absolute most of my time, spending up to fourteen hours a day out exploring.
The difficulties did not magically disappear after that. I spent countless hours walking due to limited funds, and I was even scammed in Rome. However, it was definitely a pivotal point in my journey. I began to talk more, began to reach out more to strangers, encouraged by the warmth shown by my roommate. Slowly, I became less reserved, less closed off, and by the end of the trip I had made multiple meaningful connections that I still keep in touch with to this day. Throughout this trip, I matured as a person by learning to be endlessly persistent. There were times when I felt like I was stuck in a dead end, times where I felt frustrated to almost tears, and times where I felt so lonely and isolated, but I still always continued on. Only after that, did I find the memories and the experiences that I wouldn’t trade for anything. I realized through this backpacking trip that persistence and resilience are important for success in life.