music monday + an announcement
by zoe
music:
friend loaded this onto my computer a few weeks back. cannotcannotcannot stop listening. i love anything sufjan stevens. so, obviously, i lovelovelove this. in the car, on walks, writing, dancing. any time. it’s lovely.
announcement:
i was waiting for the appropriate time to share this and, well, the time feels right.
a month from today i will be in germany, starting a two and a half month long travel journey.
though i will spend roughly the first 10 days with my dad, we will leave each other in london on april 21st, at which point i will embark on a solo trip. I AM FUCKING STOKED. traveling abroad is a childhood dream, one i’ve been saving for since i starting collecting birthday money before i hit the double digits in age. i am going everywhere i can. every where my bank account can take me. my rough plan puts starts me in england, leads me to ireland, to spain, to southern france, to italy, to switzerland, possibly up through germany again, to belgium, and back to paris, france where i fly out of.
one more time: I AM SO FUCKING STOKED.
for a really long time i thought and believed i needed to travel with another person. for safety purposes, for loneliness purposes, for but i encountered a few problems with that plan. i met two types of people: ones with money but with no balls, and ones with balls but no money. no one ever seemed able to travel with me. i got tired of waiting, of sitting on my steadily growing unrest.
about a month ago my dad told me about a brewery tour his company was flying him out to germany for. the restless creature inside of me perked up. and, well, that was that. i hopped on that trip, not waiting for the consent of my parents because, oh, yeah, i’m an adult and don’t need to do that anymore. i forget that sometimes. honestly, i feel lucky to not be traveling with anyone. there is a freedom in solo journeys you can’t get while traveling with others. i am bound only by my loose plans and the breeze of curiosity. i like to believe that all this time i’ve been spending alone has prepped me some for the quiet days i will face.
am i terrified? yes.
am i excited? fuck yes.
i anticipate learning a lot. i anticipate a few tense moments. mostly though, i anticipate not coming back the same person. that’s all i can really ask for.
i am telling you all this because i am not bringing my computer. i doubt i will blog much, if at all. this trip isn’t about sitting in front of a screen. it’s about exploring sleepy towns, foreign cities, and the depths of my self. it’s about expanding and learning. it’s about fulfilling my 2012 intentions: doing things that scare me the most.
please share any traveling tips, places to see, hostels to stay at. share anything. and know that yes, i know to be safe. i ask you to not scare me like everyone is trying to do.
namaste
zoe
(p.s: why are egg yolks like, so fucking good? mmm dinner.)
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That is all.
ZOE. This is AMAZING. Travel is amazing. I can’t say I’ve ever traveled fully by myself, but I can only imagine it would be an incredibly rewarding experience and a period of complete self-growth.
also, I SWEAR I will email you as soon as I get a chance. Promise promise.
Amazing!!! I travelled a lot through Europe with my then-fiance, now-husband, and it was really, really, awesome. But I spent one little day and night in Paris by myself and it’s one of my fondest memories. Just having to figure things out by yourself, eating in a sit down cafe by yourself, enjoying a glass of wine by yourself…it’s like nothing you ever do in your life otherwise. And I bet you’ll learn a lot about yourself – and of course, you’ll meet people on the way.
The people trying to scare you are just jealous! lol. Anyway, if you need any tips/recommendations for certain places I’d be happy to anwer questions. We were based in London and just went out for weekend or up to two-week jaunts, but we did it really cheap, so I might have some helpful advice.
i am interested in anything really cheap
Prague! It is so cheap. But beautiful and amazing and the best beer ever.
hey! what places will you visit in germany? I’m german and if you want to, I can give you some tips
unfortunately, i’m not even really sure! we’re brewery hopping through germany and brussels with my dad’s company so that part of the trip is pretty set. i’m not sure i am going to make it back into germany after that. if i do, where do you recommend hitting?!
you should just go to the bigger cities. really. don’t go to the really small ones. they all look the same. go to Munich or Berlin or Hamburg!
everyone is trying to scare you? probably cuz everyone is MAD JEALOUS and wishes you were too scared to do things that make them jealous. haha.
sounds like a stellar, stellar time. blow a kiss to a German vista for me.
and if you go from Switzerland to Germany…go by way of Lake Constance!
Congrats! This will change your life, guaranteed.
Don’t want to be redundant, but I didn’t hear about couchsurfing until I moved abroad, so I’ll leave that as a tip! Airbnb is great for lodging as well; I’ve used it in almost every country I’ve traveled to and have had only positive experiences.
Also, beware of getting charged for glasses of tap water in Italy, Germany and Switzerland (maybe other places, but those are the ones that got me…)
And visit Edinburgh if you can!
ah thanks so much for the tips! especially about the water. i can’t believe that! really good to know, thank you!