I'm turning 24 in a few hours, and I think this is the perfect time to reminisce and look back on the year that was.
Great things have happened and I experienced a lot of firsts this past year, and thinking about them now made me realize how incredibly lucky and blessed I am (and that I should be thankful more often!).
Great things have happened and I experienced a lot of firsts this past year, and thinking about them now made me realize how incredibly lucky and blessed I am (and that I should be thankful more often!).
This year, I...
...lived on my own in another country!
...met people from different countries.
...had a white Christmas in England (and tasted a snowflake).
...learned to eat Korean, Indian, Moroccan, Turkish, and bad (a.k.a. English) food.
(In pic: my friend, Neha, to whom I owe my love of the paratha )
...stood under the Eiffel Tower (Paris is croissant heaven!).
...sang my heart out at a karaoke contest in Greece (and won).
...swam in the clear, blue waters of the Mediterranean.
...climbed up a volcano in 32-degree weather.
...heard mass with the Pope in St. Peter's Square and went up the never ending stairs to the basilica's cupola.
...tasted real Welsh beer.
...went shopping on Oxford Street in December.
...saw Stonehenge up close.
...posed for pictures outside Shakespeare's house.
...learned how the ancient Romans bathed.
...visited Robin Hood in Nottingham.
...had a Wicked day in London.
...saw the hills in Austria come alive with the sound of music.
...stared in awe at the Swiss Alps.
...slept in a botel cabin in Amsterdam.
...tried not to piss at the Mannekin Pis in Brussels (lol).
...stopped outside the 3 Towers in Luxembourg.
...joined a heart-wrenching tour of a concentration camp in Dachau.
...drank from a humongous glass of beer (and lemon) in Munich.
...ate a palate-pleasing (but not-big-enough) McRib sandwich in Nurnberg.
..watched glassblowers do their thing in Bodenmais.
...decorated an Easter egg tree in Pommelsbrunn.
..watched glassblowers do their thing in Bodenmais.
...decorated an Easter egg tree in Pommelsbrunn.
...fulfilled my lifelong dream of being able to make a wish at the Trevi Fountain in Rome.
...raced down the Spanish Steps.
...raced down the Spanish Steps.
...explored the Colosseum.
...leaned at the Tower of Pisa.
...leaned at the Tower of Pisa.
...shopped for Murano accessories in Venice.
...shooed the pigeons in Milan.
...window shopped at Florence's leather market.
...watched the sunset at the caldera in Oia.
...met Marika the Donkey in Santorini.
Whew. This list is not even half-complete, and I know He has a lot more in store for me. Although I'm unsure of what will happen in the next few months or so, one thing's for sure: this is just the start of a whole new adventure.
