Where do i even begin! It’s feels so good to be home! After 3 weeks of traveling, I have finally settled back into my sweet routine at home. Last fall I came to my parents and told them I was interested in studying abroad, nothing too long, but long enough to get some credits for school. With no expectations of what to come, I had signed up for several trips to even see if I would get accepted. A few months later I would find out that I had been accepted into two study abroad trips through school. I was overjoyed! I called my parents and knew exactly which one I was hoping to be apart of. Their joy for me in times of exciting moments is something I cherish so much about the two of them. Without much questioning or hesitation from them, I accepted the invitation to go on a 3 week study abroad trip to Sweden and Iceland. The months passed along and the excitement started to set in. But so did my fears. How long will the flight be? Who else will be on the trip? What will we be doing? For someone who loves to plan and think she can control everything in her life, these were tough questions for me not to know the answers to. But i knew the Lord had me and as he’s called me to go on mission, i believe this was a call to let go of fear, experience something knew, and find him in unfamiliar places. What a blessing! After finals were over and I moved back home, the month flew by. It was time for me to go. I had no clue what would be ahead of me, but I was expectant. After a 3 hour car ride, a goodbye from my parents, a 6 hour flight, another 4 hour flight and a 20 minute metro ride, I was in Sweden. A year ago I would have never imagined I’d be here. But there I was. 20 strangers had packed up their lives and traveled across the sea to Stockholm, Sweden. An adventure of a lifetime. I won’t go into all the details of the trip, surprisingly I had to do actual schoolwork part of the time (a bummer, I know), but I wanted to share some highlights from my trip. A way for you all to travel with me and a way for myself to travel back when I start to forget. Bear with me, this may be a long entry! My journey starts in Sweden. Stockholm is beautiful. Populated by about 2 million, it’s a happening place with a lot of people. Nice, lovely people, mostly with blonde hair and blue eyes (i fit right in, minus the noticeable American accent). The streets were lined with colorful houses and the most delicious bakery’s. I ate my weight in croissants and bread. They don’t have many material things in Sweden. No real souvenir places, no “I love Sweden” t-shirts, and I really loved that about it. They don’t value things, they value people and time. Here are some key things and places I took away: •Old town Stockholm, Aka Gamla Stan, is stunning and filled with so much character- my favorite place in Sweden •We need to have Swedish Fikas in the states- “Fika”: Fika is much more than having a coffee. It is a social phenomenon, a legitimate reason to set aside a moment for quality time. Fika can happen at any time, morning as well as evening. It can be savoured at home, at work or in a café. It can be with colleagues, family, friends, or someone you are trying to get to know. It’s basically a break in the day to enjoy company and eat a snack together. We had one everyday! •They’re really good at recycling and taking care of our planet •Soccer is far better there than football is here (sorry football fans!) •The Swedish culture is all about health and supporting each other, they live a very cool way of life A 30 minute train ride to Denmark, an hour wait in the airport, a 4 hour plane ride and a 45 minute bus ride would take me to Iceland. My bucket list travel destination. It was lovely. I don’t know how anyone could travel anywhere in this world and not believe in Jesus. His creation is truly incredible. His creation through nature and through people. I fell in love with Iceland. I could go on about it for days, I’ll spare your eyes this time. I loved so many things about this place. For someone who is constantly hot, I loved the 60 degree weather! Here’s a list of things I loved in Iceland: •The Blue Lagoon- yes, it’s as beautiful in real life as it is in pictures. •The lupine flowers- a beautiful purple flower that populated the country •The fact that only 350,000 people populate Iceland- it felt cozy •The Geysirs, secret lagoon, and the waterfalls I got the privilege to see •All the handmade wool sweaters, hats, scarfs, you name it- there’s such pride and beauty in the work There’s so much more I could say about this trip, words just don’t do it justice. I am so thankful for my parents and family members who made this trip possible for me. To be able to see Gods work in the places and people I met is irreplaceable. Traveling has a way of opening our eyes to see new things- new people, new places, but also the ability to see our homes differently. There’s so much beauty in Virginia, in my backyard, in my friends and my family. It’s been one of my biggest blessings to go on this trip, to see the value in things abroad and to see that same value in things at home where I may have missed them. It’s so good to go and see. I’m so thankful that I got to do just that.
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