If you would have told me last year that I was going to spend this Christmas traveling to three different countries with a group of people I just met 4 months ago …. yes I would have been intrigued, but definitely wouldn’t have believed you. This year I did in fact decide not to travel home for Christmas, which was one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever made. Leading up to my Christmas trip with a group of the other scholars, I started to become more and more anxious. My anxiety wasn’t just due to the excitement of traveling to new places, but rather questioning whether or not I made the right decision by not going home. After all, the holidays are all about spending time with the people that mean the most to you, so why was I choosing to travel even farther away from them? As it turns out, this will be one Christmas I will never forget.
First, in short- here’s an overview of this incredible trip with a group of my fellow scholars…
Our first stop was Prague, Czech Republic. We explored the city, which was absolutely beautiful, and experienced the night life which was really fun. Sightseeing we saw the Old Town Square and the Astronomical Clock, St. Charles Bridge, St. Nick’s Cathedral, Prague Castle, John Lennon Wall, and the Christmas market. To summarize, Prague is a really nice city with beautiful architecture and lots to see and do.
Next stop was Vienna, Austria, where we explored Schonbrunn Palace and Belvadare Palace, and went ice skating at the Christmas market (one of my favorite memories of the trip!).
Last stop was Munich, Germany, where we took a day trip to Neuschwanstein Castle. This is a MUST SEE if you’re ever near Munich. It was absolutely incredible.
On Christmas Day, a few of us went to a Catholic mass (spoken all in German) and spent the rest of the day at the Hofbräuhaus beer hall… experiencing the true German culture. (Church then booze… life’s all about balance right?)
The day after Christmas we took a free walking tour of Munich, and explored an art museum (which was also free… lots of free things in these cities if you do the research!). The last day in Munich, Shay and I took a tour of Dachau Concentration Camp. This incredible experience is really hard to put into words (something I would highly recommend you experience for yourself.) Before we left Munich that day, we watched a few locals surf in the river at the English Gardens … even in 35 degree weather! This was a really cool sight to see.
Overall, a few times throughout the trip, I got homesick. It came in waves, but as the trip went on, I knew I made the right decision not going home. I put myself out of my comfort zone once again, and ended up learning so much about myself and the world around me. I got the chance to experience the culture of 3 incredible major cities of the world with a great group of people.
Kollyns, Shay, Courtney, Johnny, Ellen, Tom, Justus… you guys made this Christmas one I will absolutely never forget. Our Christmas may have began with eating Pringle’s and playing cards til 4am, but I wouldn’t change it for the world. The memories, the views, the laughs we shared are invaluable.
@sportchangeslife thanks for choosing some pretty cool scholars to join me on this crazy ride. Hope everyone had a great holiday. Cheers!
