I've had the travel bug for as long as I can remember.
I've always loved travelling to new countries, meeting new people, and experiencing new cultures; there's a thrill about it that you do not get from staying in England for the summer (or Easter, or Christmas). If I had it my way, I would pack up all my belongings and move to a foreign country for a whole year. In an ideal world, I would take a year or two out of university and fly to a country I've yet to visit, one of the many on my bucket list.
However, that's not a realistic thing to do at present moment. As a first year law student (soon to be second year!), I have a future to consider; a career I have to think about, and unfortunately, I doubt my future employer would be impressed if I decided not to finish my degree, and instead moved to China.
Instead, I settle for those moments I can travel, those moments that I can get away from England, and visit somewhere new. In the past few years, I've visited almost 10 countries, and been to 3 different continents. Within those countries, I try to travel as extensively as possible; there's nothing wrong with visiting just one part of a country, but in less than 100 miles, a country can completely transform before your eyes, with different cultures and traditions emerging. It's exciting, and I take every single opportunity life gives me to take advantage of our beautiful world.
I'm currently sat in Manchester airport, waiting for my flight to Venice Marco Polo. I arrived 4 hours early - partially because I was so excited, but mostly because last time I flew in January, I missed my flight from Dublin to London and had to shell out far too much money to buy a last minute ticket (valuable lesson: always purchase flight insurance). There was no way I was missing this flight. I finished my law exams last Thursday, packed up my room on the Friday, and moved everything from my hall room into three different friends houses for the summer, saving me a bucketload of money that would have been spent on an over-priced storage facility. Anyway, Manchester airport, Terminal 2, waiting for my flight.
What am I doing in Italy, you ask? Well, I'm spending the summer nannying for a family. I haven't met the family yet, however I've skyped with the mum and she seems lovely, her family sounds exactly what I would love to have one day. She has two boys, 3 and 5, and her husband works away from home during the week. It's my responsibility to entertain the children, speak English to them, teach them music, do arts and crafts (if anyone has any good child-friend, boy-friendly, fun arts and crafts, I'd love to hear them!) I'm staying with the family in their house in Padua/Padova, a city sometimes referred to as "Venice's Little Sister". I have never been to Italy, however it has always been on my bucket list. It's always been a country I wanted to see and explore. I'm so excited to finally have the chance!
So far, my summer schedule looks pretty damn good, if I do say so myself.
May 31st - August 20th: Nannying in Padua
August 20th - August 23rd: Visit Naples, Pompei, Mt. Vesuvius and Amalfi Coast
August 23rd - August 27th: Rome
August 27th - 31st August: Momentum (a student Christian festival in England that I'm volunteering at)
September 1st - September 5th: Forum (a student conference equipping Christian Unions across the country)
Looks great, right? I'm super excited for this summer. My aim this year was to visit one new country - I've already visited Ireland so Italy is just this awesome added bonus!
They just called my flight number; time to board the plane. It's a 2 hour flight with Monarch from England to Venice, and I can't wait to arrive and get settled in.
Time for an incredible summer adventure,
Much love,
Jessica
