If you ever have the opportunity to travel, DO IT. If it
means pulling 10 – 12 hour shifts at work, and being the first one to arrive/last
one to leave, do it. If it means running two 4-day protocol experiments
back-to-back in a week, do it. Even if traveling means sacrificing your weekends,
don’t think twice, JUST DO IT! Yes, I am guilty of all three – 12 hour days,
back to back experiments, and even the loss of having legit weekends. BUT,
within the last two and a half weeks, I have been blessed with the opportunity to
travel from Florianopolis to Rio de Janeiro (by myself to attend an
international conference – a story of its own) only to come back for 3 and a
half days and leave again for Buenos Aires, Argentina and Montevideo, Argentina
with Cari. So, even though 12 hour days, running two experiments in one week,
and not having weekends sounds horrendous, in all honesty, it was worth the extra
effort to accommodate for my travels.
In addition to traveling, while you are young (or not) and
brave, you should at least try the
hostel life. It’s incredibly different from living in a hotel. While it’s
really difficult to find a hostel in The States, in South America, it was extremely
easy to find good, cheap hostels. Throughout my trips to Rio, Montevideo, and
Buenos Aires, I stayed entirely in hostels. I won’t even lie – going to Rio by
myself had me a little nervous, especially since I had only stayed in a hostel
once in my life – and that was with my mom and sister. But as I walked into the hostel lobby and my
room, I was instantly greeted by friendly strangers that were all around the
same age as me. Each person had their own story to tell. Maybe you’ll meet
someone like Boris from Belgium – a guy who came to Buenos Aires to learn
Tango. Maybe you’ll meet a woman like Shinye from Los Angeles, who quit her job
so she could travel for 5 months before she “got too old”. Or maybe you’ll meet
a guy like Matt, an energetic Brit who published on circadian rhythms (my exact
research in TN).
Finally, whenever you travel, there is no time for sleep.
There is far too much to explore and so little time. Even though time seems to
lengthen when you’re experiencing new things, (http://www.spring.org.uk/2011/06/10-ways-our-minds-warp-time.php)
the amount of time quickly slips. I know I’ve felt that while in Floripa.
Traveling = hit the ground running and exploring as soon as you get there + no
sleep + using every possible moment to experience new things. Be a tourist, but
also live like a local. Try new foods, learn new skills, see the landmarks, and
try your hardest to speak to locals! It’s not every day that you’re in
a different city or country!
- Veronica
(Here's me in front of one of the most beautiful theaters in Buenos Aires AND in the WORLD :))
(And here's a group of British boys I met at my hostel in Rio)
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