When I was fourteen, I had an unbearable desire to explore the world around me. I found myself roaming the streets from anywhere between four o’clock in the afternoon to four o’clock at night. I was curious about everything that I had been so hopelessly numb to over the years, and when I turned sixteen, I was presented with one of the greatest gifts of all, a trip to Europe. It was only then that all of my unanswered questions would finally come to light.

On April 12, 2013 I took the trip of a lifetime. I packed my bags and headed to the Logan airport in Boston where I would later arrive at my first destination, Dublin, Ireland. Before I could experience the beauty of Ireland, I had to endure the torture of a three hour layover in Chicago. The three hour layover and thirteen hour flight only left me with my own thoughts and ideas of what Europe would possibly be like. When I had arrived, all of my expectations had been blown out of the water. Never in my life did I think I would be first hand experiencing a new country. With the lack of money in my family I thought I would have been lucky to even see the west coast by the time I turned eighteen.

As corny as it may sound, it seemed as if every corner in Dublin was filled with beauty. Every building had such character about it and everything, down to the light posts, seemed to have been planned and designed with such grace and elegance. Even the graphite was a work of art. As if the beautiful scenery wasn’t enough, the people that I encountered had such a glow about them, but who could blame them? The air was so much clearer, buildings and architecture so beautifully designed, and the street performers so incredibly gifted. To this day, I cannot listen to Just Another Brick in the Wall by Pink Floyd without hearing the soothing sound of that boy’s accent singing his acoustic version of the song. In all of the days that I dreamt about my trip to Europe, I had always assumed that Ireland would have been my least favorite country to visit, but it is the one that I cannot wait to get back to the most.

As mesmerized as I was with Dublin, the land of Wales was something so unbelievably breath taking. To some, the idea of taking a two hour drive up a mountain to reach a hotel sounds bland and undesirable, but the view was anything but. The rivers that traced the mountains made the trip seem somewhat soothing and timeless. I had never seen anything so naturally beautiful before, I just wish that the pictures I took could have done it justice. Part of me still wishes that the rest of Wales was as beautiful as the trip up that mountain.

After a peaceful two days spent in Wales, it was time to make our way to London! Boy, was it a sight to see! London reminded me of Ireland regarding the beautiful architecture, but the landmarks were just an entirely different story. It honestly boggles my mind to this day how people who live in London become accustomed to beauty of the Big Ben, the Tower Bridge, commonly known as the London Bridge, and the London Eye and think nothing of it on their commute to work or to their local coffee shops. At times I wish that I was born and raised in Europe, preferably Ireland, but I know that I wouldn’t appreciate it the way that I do now with fresh eyes. The view from the top of the London Eye was something I will never forget and it was honestly the perfect ending to my time spent in London.

As much as I had wished my time in London would never end, my most anticipated stop had finally arrived, Paris! Although Paris turned out to be one of my least favorite explorations, I had discovered the answer to one of my greatest questions there. I had to travel to the top of the Eiffel Tower to finally understand. But before I could reach the top, I had to climb one thousand steps just to make it halfway up. When I made it halfway, I looked at the world around me and absorbed everything. I could see so much beauty just from my trip halfway up, I could only imagine what was to be seen when I made my trip to the very top. When I reached the top, everything I had envisioned had seemed to fade away. I was looking at the world for what is was and I had never felt so happy or fortunate to have been in that moment. At that moment, I realized the answer to my question. In that moment I had realized what it felt like to be genuinely happy with yourself and your life. For such a long time I wondered why we keep going when we reach certain points in our lives where we believe there is nothing left to live for, but I finally understood. I realized that there is so much more to discover and learn, so much more to experience. I could have given up halfway up the Eiffel Tower when I had thought I had seen enough, but there was so much that I would have lost out on. From that moment on, I had a more positive outlook. I am not going to say that my trip completely changed me, because it didn’t. It just made me appreciate everything that much more and to always keep an open mind, because there is so much more in store that I have yet to discover. My trip is something I will always take with me, because it not only holds the most beautiful of all memories, but it also carries my greatest discoveries.