Being in a new environment for the first time can be nerve racking for some people. Whether it be going to a new school, moving to a new town, or going on a vacation, change can be overwhelming. However, for someone who has the “travel bug” change is exciting.

For many people, traveling is a materialistic thing that you do with your family over a holiday break. For people who have caught the travel bug, traveling is something that they will do whenever they have the opportunity.

So for people who have caught this amazing “virus,” traveling is so much more. It is gaining knowledge about different people and cultures. Immersing yourself into the culture of where you are is so important. In order to experience the history and culture of where you are traveling, you must converse and interact with the native people.

This past summer, I went on a trip to India. I have had the travel bug since I was 10 years old. I love getting to know the people and learning about their history and culture. India was probably the most amazing experience of my life. I made so many life changing connections with people that opened my eyes to more life morals and goals.

Traveling gives people a sense of adventure that can not be obtained through anything else. The feeling of going somewhere, where you may not know what to expect is thrilling. In a matter of seconds, after stepping off the plane, all of your assumptions and thoughts you imagined, are defied. You may have expected this place to be one thing, when in reality, it is so much different. Or, perhaps it is exactly how you imagined it would be, but that is no fun!

The fun comes from imagining what a place would be like only to get there and find that you were wrong. I know, it’s odd to say that being wrong is fun, but for someone with the travel bug, if a place is just how you imagined it would be, then why did you go? The fun is going to the place, and knowing that it is a good thing that you went, because if you hadn’t then your imagination and assumptions would have been wrong your whole life.

At ODA, many people have the travel bug. Senior Riley Doyle says that if she could go anywhere in the world, it would be, “Bora Bora, because they have those little huts over the water.” When asked what is so fascinating about the “little huts” Doyle said, “They’re like no where else.” To her, she has never seen something like this in person before, and going to that place, and seeing something that she has been imagining is just what travelers seek.

Junior Libby Grimond said that she has always wanted to go to Australia and New Zealand, “because I want to do all of the bungie jumping and deep sea diving with sharks; all of the adrenaline stuff!”

Sophomore Anne Keen has the travel bug right now! Keen said, “I have always wanted to go to France and all over Europe. I have always loved the people, the food, and the culture.”

For all of you wanderlusters out there, just remember that no matter how many trips you go on, or how many cultures you embrace and learn about, you will never truly be fulfilled. Enjoy and cherish the time that you spend on your adventures, and never take them for granted! Sometimes half of the adventure is just planning what your next adventure will be!