Nov
19
Traveling outside the United States
November 19, 2023 | Comments Off on Traveling outside the United States
Experience in traveling to multiple countries:
My first international travel experience was during the summer between my freshman and sophomore years of high school. Organized by Clover Hill High School, the trip consisted of roughly 17 students exploring Ireland and the UK. While chaperones accompanied us, this trip was my first outside the United States. My second time outside the United States was just before my freshman year at Longwood. This time, the exploration spanned Germany, Switzerland, and the Netherlands. This trip, I did entirely on my own with nobody to oversee.
Ireland and the United Kingdom:
Ireland:
The first few countries I traveled to were Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and England. During that trip, we first landed in Dublin, Ireland, which was such a nice country. We stayed in Bray, just south of Dublin, and rather than having a beach of sand overlooking the Irish Sea, it was instead a beach of small rocks, the waves would roll over the small stones and create a sound almost similar to a Lego set falling apart. We spent about four days in Ireland, two in Northern Ireland, two days in Scotland, and then three days in England.
Northern Ireland:
In Northern Ireland, we spent a day in Londonderry and Belfast. Londonderry was nicer than Belfast since it was more spread out and you could see remains of the Peace Lines, which were walls erected to separate British loyalists and the Irish Republic at the time. When we walked through Londonderry it gave the impression of a town from a few hundred years ago, with not many upgrades and renovations within the small city.
Scotland:
After leaving Belfast by ferry we arrived in Scotland where we made our way to Edinburgh, where they have a huge roughly mile-long street of stores, pubs, restaurants, and gift shops. We were also able to visit Edinburgh Castle, the street where J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter, and Loch Ness! We spent a little less than two days in Scotland unfortunately before we had to get on a train to London.
England:
Our final destination on this trip was London, England, and honestly, it could have been more impressive and more unremarkable. The city was covered in trash and had a large homeless population felt insanely cramped, and the buildings and food were bland. The only memorable thing I can think of when I was in London was when we went to see Spiderman: Far From Home, which was a funny thing since we were all far from home.
Switzerland, Germany, Netherlands:
In the summer of 2022, between high school and college, I went on a memorable journey through Europe. I planned and navigated my way across Switzerland, Germany, and the Netherlands. Although my parents covered the cost of my airfare, I managed to keep the entire trip within a budget of around $3,500.
Unexpected challenges arose, such as an unplanned layover in Frankfurt, Germany, thanks to United Airlines which caused a hiccup that my remaining budget fortunately could accommodate. Navigating through three countries, I encountered plenty of language barriers. My broken French and basic level of Russian helped me get to my destinations. However, grappling with Spanish, German, and Dutch presented a challenge. Thankfully we have pocket translators who can help us out of a bind, most of Europe speaks English, and with the assistance of my friend in the Netherlands, I was able to get around the various countries.
Switzerland:
Switzerland shares the top spot with Ireland as my favorite country that I’ve had the pleasure of visiting. During my time in Switzerland, I dedicated three days to exploring the city of Geneva and another two days in the atmosphere of Zurich. What struck me most about Switzerland was its unique architectural approach, particularly in Geneva, where the city seemed to sprawl outward rather than reaching skyward like many other urban centers. While traversing Geneva, I wanted to cover most of the city as possible. I was able to visit the Red Cross Museum, the United Nations, the Jet Water Fountain, Parc de la Perle du Lac, and some small stores along the way! After my escapades in Geneva, I hopped on a train to Zurich
One of the captivating features of both Geneva and Zurich is the stunningly blue water that graces their surroundings. The transparency of the water allows you to peer right down to the bottom, and in fact, the water is so pristine that you could even consider taking a sip directly from major water sources such as Lac Leman in Geneva and Zurichsee or Limmat in Zurich.
When I reached Zurich, I was able to meet one of my father’s friends who graciously let me crash on their couch for two nights before getting on another train to Germany. While in Zurich, I visited Uetliberg Mountain, Rennweg, Lindenhof, Waiana Tiki Bar, Flussbad Oberer Letten, and walked the streets of the city. Zurich posed a much larger challenge for me since most of Zurich is in German rather than French, which posed another language barrier to overcome. Thankfully the people of Europe are very patient and helpful, allowing me to get to my train quickly.
Germany:
My next stop on this trip was Berlin, Germany. Germany was really interesting to see, with all the monuments, scarring from the Second World War, and leftover pieces of the Berlin Wall during the Cold War. While in Berlin, I visited Check Point Charlie which separated East and West Germany, the Topography of Terror, remnants of the Berlin Wall, the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, the Soviet War memorial, and Tier Garden. My trek throughout Berlin was to see more of the places of history due to my fascination with conflicts and I only spent two nights there but worth the few days.
Netherlands:
The final destination of my escapades in Europe was the Netherlands where I got off the train at Amsterdam Centraal to meet one of my friends. I honestly did not do too much while in Amsterdam, mostly just walked around the city for the day and went into various shops with my friend. I spent the night at a hotel next to the airport for ease and got to the airport six hours before my flight so I could get through customs and security. The airport in Amsterdam, Schiphol is a nightmare. I spent five hours and 50 minutes in the line alone and had to sprint to my gate where I was the last one to get on the plane. If you ever go to Amsterdam and have to fly out of Schiphol, get there at least seven hours in advance.
