From Russia with Love.

We always want what we don’t have. We crave vacation time, relaxation, extra sleep, and lazy weekends. In the midst of our busy lives…that usually doesn’t happen. In my case, I found that by the time September hit, I was craving the opposite: I was craving routine, a place to be each day, responsibility, and a busy schedule once again. I had an incredible year of travel and experiences, but by the time it was over, I was ready to go back to being a contributing citizen of society. 

So far I haven’t been disappointed. The past month of adjusting to a new country, new job, and new lifestyle has flown by. I can’t believe I’ve been here since September 1^st – I’m still feeling very brand new in terms of language, all the components to my job, and figuring out Moscow, but at the same time I’ve fallen back into teaching like my last class was yesterday. I’ve had a happy reunion with teaching, and have already found myself ready to face the week on Sunday nights because I’m looking forward to seeing my students and having class with them. Most of my students, anyway. Teaching is still teaching, no matter where in the world you are. Some of them are little terrors.

I’ve frequently gotten the question: “Why are you here in Russia?” from my students, and I can give a flippant answer: “to teach YOU!” or a basic answer: “I’m interested in Russian history, culture, and language,” but the most common answer I’ve given is: “I like teaching English in other countries because I can learn about the country from my students.” Truth. Who better to learn from? The more effectively I teach them English, the better we can communicate, and the more we can learn from each other. They ask me questions about America, I ask them questions about Russia, we discuss. It’s a win-win.

 I landed in Moscow on September 1st and was picked up by my school director the very first day. I immediately liked him. His English was fantastic, he was friendly, he answered my zillions of questions, and he made sure I was settled in on his Sunday afternoon off. Though my school technically started the next day, Monday, I found out that all of my classes would be covered for the week by other teachers so that I could attend the orientation at the head office. I’m working for a private school, one of about fourteen in Moscow, and one of many in the world. EF (English First) is a company that has schools in Indonesia, China, and Russia. They develop their own curriculum that follows the standards of the Cambridge English exams, of which there are a variety of ages and levels. Basically, parents pay a lot of money for their kids to attend our schools after their own public school, and we teach English while simultaneously preparing them for whatever level of the Cambridge English test they’re planning to take next. So in a way it’s teaching to the test, but at the same time there are regular course books and independent lessons outside of the test.

Gina Teacher back in action - with flowers from one of my students for Teacher's Day

This is a huge contrast from my job in Korea, where my job was simply “get kids to speak in English.” Actually, that's not a simple task at all, but that's another story. In Korea I was given a very small amount of material to create a 50 minute lesson out of that usually involved PowerPoints, games, and no homework or tests. Here, I teach for an hour and 40 minutes, using materials that have already been created for me, and there’s not much time for games because I have to assign homework and give exams. In Korea, I taught with a Korean co-teacher in a classroom of 8 to 24 students. Here, I teach by myself in a classroom with no more than 14 students, though I ‘share’ a class with another Russian teacher, who teaches them for the other of their two weekly lessons. There, barely any of my kids could hold a basic conversation in English. Here, some of my high level students and I have discussions about politics, customs, and modern art. Just to give you an idea of what I’m working with here. And speaking of work, here I teach sixteen classes a week, which is comparable to my last year in Korea…except here the classes are twice as long with no breaks. I teach many more hours here, but to compensate for this I only have to be at school for my lessons, compared to Korea when I had to be at school all day regardless of when I was teaching. In Korea I spent 50 hours a week getting to work, staying at work, and getting home from work: here my ‘at work’ presence is about half that amount, as I don’t have a commute and I teach from 4 to 7 hours each day. I can prepare for my lessons by coming in early, staying late, or even coming in on Saturdays, which I’m finding I enjoy because then I can feel better about the week and enjoy my Sunday.

So yes, there are many differences for me to get used to. But, what do I find the same throughout both of my teaching jobs? My incredibly kind and helpful fellow teachers. They all speak fluent English, most have been teaching with EF for years, and they’re all willing to help, give advice, and chat with the new teachers. I’ve gotten so lucky with my team teacher, whom I already decided will be the equivalent of my Russian mother (she has a daughter the same age as me and she’s also an Aquarius like my mom, which are obviously signs of fate), as she always updates me on what we need to do next with our classes, offers me suggestions, and even copies extra workbook pages for me to use in class in case I didn’t have time to look for supplementary materials. She wrote “I’m sorry” on one of her notes to me the other day about not finishing an activity in class, and when I started laughing at it and told her she never needs to be sorry for anything, she said “but I am just trying to make things easier for you, so I feel sorry that you will have to finish this activity that I planned to finish in my class!” She gets a gold star.

Team USA pride

Most of the other teachers are younger, and even though the teacher’s room is pretty comparable to Wal Mart on Black Friday during the ten minutes we have in between classes, (picture a tiny room filled with teachers running around photocopying, looking through books, cutting out flashcards, trying to eat a quick meal, printing worksheets, and gathering materials for class), they always try to find time to chat to me and see how I’m doing. We had a bowling activity one Sunday evening with some of the younger teachers, (Team USA plus an honorary Brit won vodka shots twice for dominating both rounds against the Ruskies. You’re welcome for upholding American pride.) and it was really fun to hang out and chat with them outside of work when we all had time and weren’t trying to do a million things at once.

So that, in a nutshell, is what I deal with at school. What else is happening in my new life in Moscow? I live in an area called Yugo-Zapadnaya, or “south-west area,” which is also the name of the closest metro stop. The stop is at the very end of the red line, which makes it foolproof to not miss the stop. It also makes it easy to get a seat when you’re the first one on the new car, though sometimes you’ll have to fight for it because everyone crowds the doors as the subway pulls up. So far the Japanese are the only culture I’ve encountered that actually waits in line for the metro.

My apartment building

Kitchen view

My area is very ‘suburban,’ with a few shopping centers and coffee shops near the metro, but otherwise mostly apartment complexes, grocery stores, schools, and bus stops within a ten minute radius. I can get everything I need by walking about ten to fifteen minutes in any direction, and I can always hop on a bus at the stop right outside the apartment complex. In between the massive apartment buildings (I live on the sixth floor) there are nice little sidewalks lined with trees and benches that people like to stroll or walk their dogs down, and some little playgrounds for kids to play on. I live next to a massive park that I haven’t really explored yet, and there’s also a small park across the street with some trails. 

The reason I haven’t explored much in the parks or even in the city center so far is because the weather has been terrible. I’m not usually one to complain about something so unchangeable as the weather, but even I got frustrated with the past month, as it was cloudy, chilly, rainy, and windy nearly every day. Picture wind so hard it flips your umbrella, while you’re tromping around in boots to keep your feet warm and dry, while wearing a coat and a scarf to keep warm…in September. I think I saw the sun for a total of 24 hours in the past month. There was one mostly sunny day last week and it was a work day so I didn’t really get to enjoy it. But, what can you do? I’ve still done some walking around and exploring, but as we’ve already had snow twice this past week, it’s looking like I’ll be hibernating early this year, and will have to save my city street walks for the spring. The good thing is that I can hit all of the museums and do all the reading up on Russia and Moscow I want to in the winter months, then I can hit the pavement in the spring and actually know what I’m looking at.

So if I don’t go outside to walk around and I don’t have to work until the afternoon, then what do I do in the day? I’ve established a bit of a routine that I’m very happy with and again, I was craving after a year of traveling. My day begins with waking up to go to the gym at opening hours, which is 8 AM. It’s a bit of a trek to get there, but for the cheap price it’s worth it. The gym is very basic, but it has everything I need, and I very happily spend one to two hours a morning at the gym re-establishing a fitness routine. The gym I found isn’t busy or crowded in the mornings, and while I’m sometimes the only female, the dudes just hang out by the big heavy weights and leave me alone while I do my thing. This is a nice change from the small crowded Korean gym I went to for two years where everyone always found some time to stare and usually there was a wait time to use the equipment. A lifetime of swimming and training can’t be erased, so now that I’ve started going to the gym about four mornings a week (I give myself one morning off on my busiest day of teaching), I no longer feel lazy, and my day is significantly better when I know I’ve already gotten my workout in.

Bird's eye view from the apartment. 

After I get up and go to the gym, I usually come home to make coffee and get some things done during the two or three hours I have before going to work. One thing I have to work on is calming down my stress levels about the potential to go into work early and get a ton of planning ahead and preparation done. If I did that, I’d live at work and have no time to myself, because I’ve learned that it’s not possible to get fully ‘ahead.’ Instead, I’m trying to take it one day at a time and one week at a time, and if I allow myself not to think about work while I’m at home and just go in one or two hours prior to my lessons, I’ll be able to get everything I need to done and still have successful classes. That’s the one drawback for me working in the afternoons, as opposed to getting the work done they having time to myself like at my other job. It’ll take some getting used to.

Pinch me, I'm in Moscow. 

So, aside from venturing out in the nasty weather to get groceries, go to the gym, and go to work, I spend time at home studying and reading, then on the weekends I usually get together with some of the teachers from orientation. In comparison to when all of my orientation friends were spread out throughout the province I was teaching in, here all the teachers are spread out over the city instead. I look forward to our typical Saturday nights of getting together for a meal and some drinks, where we can catch up about the weeks and continue getting to know each other. I usually find myself getting off an extra metro stop early or late when we meet up just so that I can enjoy walking around and reminding myself that I live in Moscow. I always get chills when I approach Red Square and see St. Basil's Cathedral.

Russia has been a fun transition. It’s vastly different from living in Asia, because it’s much more western and familiar, but at the same time there are tons of differences that I’m still trying to figure out. One very strange difference is not being marked as a foreigner anymore – the only way someone can pick up on this is if they ask me for directions and I just shake my head and smile, or start speaking English to them. I prefer the anonymity, but at the same time it’s harder to mark any other foreigners since most of us look the same. I’m starting to delve deeper into the history and culture of Russia, and already my students and fellow teachers have taught me some “this is why this is like this” tidbits. I’m enjoying the opportunity to explore a new culture and learn even more, and I’m hoping to make a trip to St. Petersburg before the winter sets in. Otherwise, I’m very happy in my new city and hope I will make the most of it in my time here.

And…that’s my new life here in Russia! I hope this appeases some of you, but life has been so busy this month there hasn't been time. I just put up some new pictures on Facebook if you want to look at the album, though some of them are repeats from this post. I hope everyone is loving the fall weather back home, and that your October has gotten off to a wonderful start! 

Prague: The Fairy Tale City

Prague is one of those cities that everyone raves about – its beauty, its history, its charm. So I decided I had to go. When my recruiter told me I shouldn’t book a flight to Moscow until I received confirmation on my visa processing, I figured instead of book a last minute (and probably more expensive) flight to Moscow, I’d book an early cheap flight to Prague, then a last minute flight to Moscow from there. After saying goodbye to everyone in Wisconsin, Minnesota, then Colorado, I took off for Prague via two layovers (cheap ticket) in Chicago and London. I finally arrived in Prague a day and a half later, jet lagged and sleep deprived. I checked into the hostel after lugging my suitcase (a big change from always traveling light) up the freakishly slanted metro escalator steps (I was seriously concerned for my trip back down the escalator with my suitcase in three days time due to the odd design that made everyone look like they were going to tumble straight down any second) and down the cobblestone streets of Prague. Once I dumped my stuff, took a shower, and had some time to compose myself, I took off on a little walking tour of Prague for orientation.

Old Town Square

Prague looks like a fairy tale city. It is one of the best preserved medieval towns in Europe, with a variety of architecture and charm that makes every street pleasant to walk down. The Old Town Square was my favorite place to hang out and watch tourists, but I fell in love with the Charles Bridge and its view of Prague Castle early the next morning, when I got up at 6 am to beat the crowds and see the sun rise over the Charles Bridge. 

Charles Bridge, Prague. 

I love the idea of “waking up with the city,” as Paul Theroux described it in one of his travel books, when just a few people are out starting their day, the streets are quiet, and everything glows in the early morning light. That morning (the day before I only managed to walk around for a few hours then passed out at the hostel early) I got myself fantastically lost two times, took lots of pictures, and enjoyed every new twist and turn down the streets to see what view I would come upon next. I actually never really oriented myself very well in Prague after three days, as the streets are pretty windy and tended to set me off in the complete opposite direction than where I thought I was going. But, as always, that’s the best way to learn, and I was rewarded with new discoveries each time I got lost.

View of Prague Castle

                I didn’t do much in Prague besides walk and take pictures, but I did cough up entry fees to both the Prague Museum of Communism and Prague Castle. The Communism Museum outlined the history of communism in Prague, between the end of World War II and the advent of the collapse of the Soviet Union. The story is typical among most communist outlines: collectivization didn’t work, children were indoctrinated in their textbooks, and everyone was essentially brainwashed to ‘serve the state.’ Footage of live protests and riots in some of Prague’s main gathering areas, including Old Town Square and Wencelsclas Square put the events into better perspective for me. Czechoslovakia was famous for the “Velvet Revolution,” which alludes to the smooth transition from communism to a republic, followed by the splitting of Czechoslovakia into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993.

St. Vitus' Cathedral

                The next day I took my history lesson back to the medieval period, where I learned more about Prague Castle, situated on top of a hill above the Vlatava River, and its Bohemian kings. I arrived right at opening time, and was so glad for my timing especially when I returned to the entrance two hours later and found it swarming with tour groups. I enjoyed the old cathedral, the original castle, constructed in the 9^th century, and the castle grounds with relative peace and quiet. I learned that the founder of Prague castle was the grandfather of Wenceslas, of the Christmas Carol “Good King Wenceslas.” Though Wenceslas was revered as a saint and the “eternal protector of the Bohemian lands,” he was never actually a king. I guess “Good Duke Wenceslas” doesn’t quite have the same ring to it. After touring the castle complex I hung out in the castle gardens for a while and took in the views of the city from the heights of the eastward facing castle – I bet Wenceslas saw many a beautiful sunrise in his day.

View from Prague Castle

Beef Goulash

                Prague offered many advertisements for ‘authentic’ and ‘traditional’ foods, to make the tourists happier, but as always, I was traveling on a budget and therefore only indulged in one ‘Czech’ meal, at a restaurant from a recommendation book at the hostel written by local Prague residents. I chose the menu of the day in Czech, as there was no English translation for the specials, only the full priced meals, and was treated to a hearty plate of goulash (basically beef stew), bread dumplings, shredded horseradish (interesting…), and some veggies. It was delicious, and 1/3 cheaper than the more touristy restaurant next door advertising the same dish. Win. Other Czech speciatlies that I noticed on menu boards seemed to be roasted duck, garlic soup, and a type of sausage that looked like a giant hot dog on a baguette.

Morning sunrise

                I felt like I was getting my traveling legs (and sore traveling feet) back during my three days in Prague, and it was thrilling to be back in Europe after three years and reminded so much of the beauty I experienced three years before. To me, there’s really nothing to compare a beautiful Gothic cathedral to in the world, and I enjoyed running back through my Western civilization courses in my head to review architecture, empires, and dynasties so that I could put Prague’s history into a better perspective. I’ve never spent much time studying Central or Eastern Europe, so I’m hoping the next nine months in Russia will help round out my European history education. It was fun to hear familiar languages again, like French and Spanish, and to try to guess where people were from. My stopover in Prague was the perfect introduction to the next year I have to look forward to in Europe, and now that I’m finally on my way to Moscow, I’m very excited to get back to work, have a place to live for more than a month at a time, and meet some new people.

                My layover here in Stockholm is just about over, so that’s it for now. I’ll write more from Moscow – I’ve got a week of orientation coming up, then I imagine I’ll start teaching a week from Monday. Wish me luck, and enjoy your Labor Day weekend! 

A Room with a View

My room. My view. 

                I’d say this title (thanks E.M. Forster) is an apt description of the past two months of my summer in downtown Minneapolis. Though it has absolutely nothing to do with the book, which I actually haven’t even read, I’m prepared to argue that my summer lodging has provided a pretty sweet view, one that I appreciated every day and will miss very much.  I was staying in a condo that I lucked out in ‘renting’ for the summer, and the luxury of not only having a place to myself again but also being within walking distance of so many neat features of Minneapolis was so wonderful to experience for a few short weeks.

Go Twins!

                Honestly, I wasn’t at the condo all that much over the past two months, because I ended up traveling around the state and to Wisconsin just as much as I stayed put. But every time I came back and waltzed back into the condo and looked out the window, I took a minute to be grateful for the opportunity to live there. It was the perfect staging point to come back from nearly a year of traveling, have a place to myself, and get ready for my next overseas adventure. This past summer at home was a summer of reunions, with people from all stages of my life, who helped remind me how lucky I am to have such great friends and family. It was also a summer of first experiences, highlights of which include completing my first half marathon, my first brewery tour, my first state fair (sorry Minnesota, it was actually in Wisconsin, which means you have next year to impress me even more), my first time at the new Guthrie Theater, and, as every devout Minnesotan must experience, my first time at the new Target Field for a Twins game.

Training paid off!

                But in between all that fun stuff, I had my room with a view. Every morning for a month I would wake up with the sun and trot five blocks east of the condo to hit Mill Ruins Park, where I would either run or walk to train for my half marathon. It was the perfect way to start the day, with clear mornings, perfect temperatures (for the most part, depending on the humidity), and a great view of the sun rising over the Mississippi River. After working out, I’d come back to the condo and lounge around with coffee while eating my breakfast and doing some prep work for graduate school applications. After my ‘work’ was done for the morning, I’d usually spend the afternoons walking, going to a coffee shop, or running errands (aka getting lost) in various parts of the Cities, which only helped my sense of directions. I’ve got those interstates nailed down in my head now. In the evenings I’d sometimes see my friends who were living and working in nearby Uptown, or I’d find something to keep me busy. It was a perfect weekly routine, and I had just the right balance of time to myself and time with my friends to keep me happy and to keep the time passing quickly.

Visiting Target Field

Brewery tour in Milwaukee

                I also had some visitors at the condo – Allie came to visit for a few days, during which we toured essential parts of Minneapolis, such as Mill Ruins Park, Lake Calhoun, the Nicollet Mall, and Target Field. A couple of my long time Mankato friends also spent a night or two with me at the condo, which was a fun way to catch up and enjoy the Cities with them. And if I didn’t have people coming to visit or didn’t see my friends nearby, I made a few trips throughout the summer to do some visits and have some reunions. Between a week up at the cabin with my family, some time in Mankato, Rochester, Milwaukee, Green Bay, and even Big Lake to celebrate my cousin’s birthday, I was busy. It was a fun few weeks, but all good things had to come to an end, and before I knew it it was time for me to leave the state and make one final trip for some reunions: this time back to Colorado, to visit friends and family.

Reunited after a year.

                My last morning in my room with a view was…spent frantically running around after oversleeping by nearly an hour to catch the light rail to the airport. Not fun, and not a great way to say goodbye. I made it to the airport with “seven minutes to spare” for check-in (thank you check-in lady) and then collapsed into the seat on the plane bound for Denver, a large Caribou coffee in hand. I arrived in Denver and spent the day with Ceci, my travel buddy from Asia and South America, and we went to Boulder for the afternoon to meet up with Roxy, my serendipitous friend who led to me meeting Ceci in the first place. It was nearly a year ago that I bought her camera for her to provide her cash to get a Vietnamese visa so that she could go teach English in Ho Chi Minh City, where I met up with her and her friends Cecilia, Jen, and Andrei a few days later. From there, she stayed to teach and I traveled north with her friends, and I hadn’t seen her since. It was great to hear about her teaching experiences and life in Vietnam, and so strange to think a whole year had passed since that day we met at the border of Thailand and Cambodia.

Conquered the Incline

                The next day I was picked up by one of my best friends from elementary school, who was living in Colorado Springs and I had only seen for about three hours in the past three years. I spent the rest of the week in the Springs, keeping busy at her apartment while she was at work, then hiking with her when she got off. The second hike we did was the hardest hike in my life, topping Machu Picchu by a mile. It was called “the Incline,” and is favored by coaches and trainers at the nearby Olympic Training Center to throw their athletes at for training. Ouch. A mile of intense vertical incline at high altitudes did not agree with me well. I knew I wasn’t out of shape, as I had just finished a half marathon a couple weeks before, so I was astounded at how ill I felt due to the altitude and the sheer intensity of the climb. I applaud everyone who makes it up that thing, and decided if I lived in the Springs I would do it once a week (like Amanda does – I’m so impressed.) On top of hiking, we maximized our time together by going line dancing and cooking delicious meals, then had a fun night out in Denver when she had to return me to Ceci.

                The weekend was spent catching up with four of my fellow UWGB swimmers, all of whom have relocated to Colorado in the past two years, and none of whom I had seen since I left in May 2010. We had a fun night playing cards, catching up, and going out on the town with Ceci and Andrei, and it was fun to have my friends from different times in my life interact together and get along. My last full day in the state I spent with my cousins, whom I had barely seen since we moved from Colorado nearly twenty years ago. Our ‘brunch’ turned into an all day affair, and we didn’t part ways until late afternoon as we were having such a great time catching up and chatting. By the end of the week I was exhausted from all of the talking and emotions that accompanied seeing loved ones after such a long time. I was also thrilled, however, that in one trip I was able to see so many people, so I predict another visit to Denver isn’t too far off in my future.

                My last day in the States I spent zipping around Chicago in a sporty little red rental car. My excessively long layover between Denver and London proved to be extremely convenient in that it saved me a separate trip to Chicago over the summer to visit two grad schools there that I will be applying to. I was lucky enough to meet with a grad student at the Univeristy of Chicago and a history professor at the University of Illinios-Chicago, as well as tour the campuses and get a feel for what going to school there would be like. Both meetings were really helpful to me in terms of how to direct my applications, and I’m looking forward to applying to both schools to see if I might end up at one of them next year.

                Looking back on the summer, I realized just how busy everything was, but I also wouldn’t change a thing. The amount of people I was able to see and catch up with, to hear about their lives and update them on mine, was priceless, and I doubt I’ll ever be able to spend a summer like that again, nor will I probably ever get a room with a view like this. It was the perfect way to end my year of traveling (which, ironically enough, included even more traveling) and a great start to one final year abroad. This time around I have an end date for coming and I’m looking forward to being back in the States next year. But first, I have a fantastic opportunity to experience yet another new culture, lifestyle, language, and country that I can’t wait to get started in. I’ll be blogging from abroad as always, so check in every so often if you’re curious! Enjoy the rest of Labor Day weekend and have a great start to the fall everyone! 

It's That Time Again.

Hey everyone,

                It’s that time again. I’m living out of my backpack. I overslept for my early morning flight yesterday but still made it. I won’t be staying in the same bed for more than three nights in a row for a couple of weeks. I'm armed with an ample supply of emergency granola bars hidden throughout all of my bags. And once I have a place to stay for the night and know where I'm going to get my daily coffee, my day will be made. It’s time to start traveling again.               

Today marks an official year since I took off from South Korea for a year of adventure around the world. In the past year I was lucky enough to travel to 25 different countries. Two I had been to before, the rest I hadn’t been to but only read about. Three countries I spent less than a day in, but two I spent two months in. There will never be enough time to spend exploring a new country, therefore I’m grateful for the precious little time I was able to have in each new place, because I still learned more than I would have from not going. I’m often asked which has been my favorite country over the past few years of traveling, and I always reply that I can’t answer that straightaway. I have to qualify it more, because I can’t possibly choose a favorite. For best food, prices, and beaches I’d say Thailand is my favorite. For history and intrigue, China was one of my favorites. For learning about and experiencing modern history in the making, South Africa was my favorite. For atmosphere and cultural vibe, Brazil was my favorite. The list goes on. 

Ipanema Beach, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

I feel like I can't truly comprehend how much I've done in the past year because I haven't had much time to reflect, but looking back on each place, I realized that my primary motivation for traveling has been, and still will be, to learn. As long as I keep learning, it’s worth the time, the money, and the inevitable rough patches. Some of my most spine tingling moments of the past year have been when I’ve seen for my own eyes things I’ve only heard about and never fully understood until then, such as in the China National Museum, when I saw the posters of Mao and his Communist propaganda statements, as part of a national ideology that has been responsible for the death of millions of innocent lives in China. Or sitting down on a bench at the Vietnam War Memorial Museum with tears streaming down my face as I realized how much I never knew about my own country and its role in the effort to contain Communism.  Or taking a boat to Robben Island, and seeing Nelson Mandela’s former prison cell as he lay ill in a hospital not too far from where I had been staying. These moments have changed me, and changed the way I view the world as I learn the significance of each place.

The Great Wall of China, China

And now, as I prepare for yet another adventure, I can officially look back and say “I did it.” I did what I set out to do last August: to travel around the world for a year. It has been an incredible journey, and I still can’t quite believe it’s all really happened. I’ve seen so much, learned so much, and experienced so much more than I ever expected. It’s a little sad to think that I’ll likely never be able to travel freely for a year again, but at the same time that’s what made this year so special – now that I’ve done it, I’m ready to move on and start a new adventure, after taking some much needed time on my own at home in Minnesota the past two months. I’ve caught up with lifelong friends, reunited with my extended family members, met up with people I hadn’t seen since before I left for South Korea, took a road trip to Wisconsin, and had some time to myself to enjoy living in downtown Minneapolis. I landed safe and sound in Colorado yesterday morning, where I will be for the next week, then a quick stop in Chicago, a visit to Prague, and even a layover’s worth of an afternoon in Stockholm en route to Moscow, where I will arrive on September 1^st to begin a 9 month teaching contract. I’m very excited for the new experiences Russia will bring…and I’m pretty excited to see a paycheck again. So that’s what I’m up to next. As always, I’ll be connected via e-mail and Facebook, and I’d love to hear from you. Even if it’s just because you were thinking of me on a cold Minnesota winter day and took comfort in the fact that I was probably colder than you were, so things could have been worse.  I’ll still appreciate the thought.

Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

But before I close, I have to qualify something. I can’t actually look back and say “I did it. I traveled the world for a year,” because although I was the one who made all my flights (okay, most of them) and survived overnight bus rides and got to where I needed to be in the end, it wasn’t an individual effort. I was able to travel the way I did thanks to the pure kindness, generosity, and hospitality of so, so many people. From the people who graciously opened their homes to me, like Steve and Mary, Megan in Shanghai, all of my ‘second families’ and friends back in the United States, my aunt and uncle during our vacation in Costa Rica, Rosy in Chilamate, Chelsea in New York City, Jason and Katie’s families in South Africa, and even my friends and family back in Minnesota and Wisconsin who graciously hosted me as I made my rounds. But it’s not only thanks to them, it’s thanks to all the helpful people who gave me a smile, or treated me with kindness during a frustrating time. From the little old ladies who couldn’t speak English but were able to point me in the right direction to the people who took the time to draw out a little map on a random piece of paper to show me where to go. From the bus drivers who remembered where I had asked to go to and alerted me when we’d reached my destination to the people at the train stations who helped me get on the right train. From my travel companions Sara, Roxy, Cecilia, Jen, and Kate to all the friendly people I met along the way, who invited me to share a meal, take a picture, or explore a new city with them. From the elderly Australian man who walked with me for a half and hour to keep me company and show me the right way to the airport in Sydney to Ken and Susan, the Canadian couple who offered me their cell phone for a quick call, then bought me my first American meal during a layover on my way home. And of course, to the consistent support of my family, who have never done anything but encourage me and believe in me. To all these people and so many more, I owe a lifetime of gratitude and as always, I only hope that in the future I can be ‘that person’ who helped someone else along their way or offered them a place to stay if they were passing through. If traveling has taught me anything, I think the most important lesson I’ve learned is that people are the same all around the world. And most people are pretty great.

Machu Picchu, Peru

So with that, take a few minutes to think about and thank all of the wonderful people in your lives that have helped you along the way, who have shown you the right way when you were lost, or simply just given you a smile when you needed it the most. Then, try to be ‘that person’ for someone else. Because with people like that in our lives and a dream in our minds, we can do anything. 

To all of those that I was able to see back home this summer, each minute of your time was so precious to me and I thank you for it. To the rest of you, think about booking that ticket to Moscow! Maybe avoid the winter. But if not, best wishes for the last few weeks of summer and hopefully I’ll be back in action next year for graduate school – location pending on how well I complete my applications this winter. Take care, and feel free to check out the following pictures – some of my favorites from the past year of travelling.

Leaf Lake, Minnesota, USA

Hoi An, Vietnam

Koh Chang, Thailand

Pilanesberg National Park, South Africa

Pilanesberg National Park, South Africa

Shanghai, China

Koh Chang, Thailand

Angkor Wat, Cambodia

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Playa Ballena, Costa Rica

La Fortuna, Costa Rica

New York City, New York, USA

Camps Bay, South Africa

Hout Bay, South Africa

Pilanesberg National Park, South Africa

Pilanesberg National Park, South Africa

Hong Kong, Hong Kong

The Bund, Shanghai, China

Angkor Wat, Cambodia

Banyan, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Koh Phi Phi, Thailand

Bali, Indonesia

Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Sydney, Australia

Melbourne, Australia

Nadi, Fiji