{"id":51,"date":"2014-11-25T13:30:00","date_gmt":"2014-11-25T13:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/emlajolie.com\/?p=51"},"modified":"2021-06-11T04:48:37","modified_gmt":"2021-06-11T04:48:37","slug":"on-traveling-growth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emlajolie.com\/2014\/11\/on-traveling-growth\/","title":{"rendered":"on traveling + growth"},"content":{"rendered":"
November 25, 2014<\/em> \u2013 I tend to talk about the lighter, fluffier things on this blog, especially when it comes to travel. I write about my adventures – where I went, what I did, food I ate, etc – but I don’t really delve into the nitty gritty about why I travel. Today, I decided to change that.<\/p>\n I have been to countless cities and countries, and here is what I have learned from it all…<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Many of you know my story, but for those who do not, I’ll give you a brief re-cap:<\/p>\n I grew up traveling with my parents as often as they could take off of work. We drove a lot of places and I saw a good chunk of the United States before I even fully understood the idea of distance. At age 13, I took my first plane by myself and fell in love with solo travel. [Fun fact: Now, I have only ever taken transatlantic flights by myself.] After high school, I packed up my life and moved to Bordeaux, France for a year through foreign exchange. Then I moved to Chicago for college to major in International Studies and travel every opportunity I get. Now, I am in Paris, France for a semester abroad.<\/p>\n 1. I travel because it changes my perspective<\/b>. With each city I find myself in, there’s a different mentality, and it’s hard to not soak that up. Sometimes it’s an earth-shattering, life-changing thing, where I question the education I have been raised on. Other times, it’s a subtle, comfortable change, where everything clicks in the most perfect way. I thrive on hearing others’ opinions and learning about their way of life. There is no knowledge in this world that compares to understanding and appreciating someone from another walk of life.<\/p>\n