Meant to be

I like to say that I didn't discover my love for London, or my love for travel. I like to think my love for traveling and love for the capital city of England discovered me.

I was 19 when I got a brochure in the mail from the community college I was attending, offering a spring break trip to London and Amsterdam. At the time, I was not seeking out any trips to go on and was not interested in traveling. Truth be told, I had no idea really what I was doing. I was taking classes trying to figure out what interested me, but until that happened, I was lost. The day I got that brochure in the mail ended up changing my life in so many ways that I could never have imagined.

After finally partaking in the trip in February of 2010, I came back a changed person (as silly as that may sound). The sense of wanderlust that was instilled in me on that trip has only grown more and more in the last several years. 

When my mom came to the airport to pick me up after I had arrived back in the U.S., I remember telling her, "I want to live in London someday." I just knew. I like to think that trip set the ground work for what the rest of my life was going to be, and receiving that brochure in the mail was fate knocking on my door. It was meant to be. My love for exploring the world and London itself was cemented, and there was no going back.

It has taken almost 5 years, a lot of frustration and tears, and 3 failed attempts at hoping to live and go to school in London. However, I am still here, and still trying.

So, almost 5 years after that first trip, (with two more visits to the city I loved) and several more trips to Europe and South America, I'm embarking on my biggest and most exciting adventure yet: grad school in London with a start date of September 2015.

I've already started my application, and I couldn't be more excited.

-Susie