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Solo Adventures In Our 20’s: A Meaningful Conversation With My Dad

Dan Shafer, young traveler who went to Europe for seven weeks -- solo.

This past December, I lived in Rome for a week playing tourist with my boyfriend and his family. I had comfort people with me in a foreign place as someone who has never been out of the country. This Spring, I will be touching down in London knowing that I will need to call it home for the next 3 months. My family, boyfriend and friends will be home, and I will be away in a new country with very little experience navigating new places.

In Rome, I knew that the experience was going to be very short lived. I took advantage of every opportunity, woke up early, walked nearly 30 thousand steps daily, and spent money a bit recklessly. I knew I wouldn’t feel homesick, because I knew the trip had a quick end date. I knew I was on vacation. I was a tourist.

This Spring, I will be in London, not as a tourist, but as a local. I will become acquainted with a new city, new people, new cultures, and a new way of life. While I am nervous about the adjustment, I am also beyond excited, and I have Rome to thank for that. While abroad, I will be taking classes with London natives who will assist in making it feel like home.

When initially coming to college, I had the same sorts of feelings. As a California native, coming to Oregon was a bit of a jump for me. I was nervous and anxious without my family, but I was simultaneously beyond excited to begin this new life of mine. Balancing these feelings with productivity and the pressure of making the most of my time is not always easy, but it always gets done. I look forward to the new ways of life that I will be enduring while away. The brief taste of tourism I got through going to Rome sparked a new interest and calmed my nerves tremendously. Sometimes, the best part about traveling is making the unknown less scary. Just by being somewhere new and taking in new experiences with an open mindset, I ease my worries of the unknown.

Being in London and learning new ways of life is a challenge I now feel ready for, something I couldn’t say about 3 months ago. Thanks to my broadened perspective through traveling, I feel more ready to take on the world and do so with less fear.