One Year Later
Ciao Friends!
It is me again, Hailey Jo! My study abroad trip ended last May and I was so sad to leave my Rome Home. A lot of stuff happened during those last weeks and throughout the rest of 2018, yet I never updated my blog about it. Fear not, for I am here. Below are my highlights:
Temple of Zeus
Athens- Oh my Zeus: After London I used my last big travel weekend to hop over to Greece during the Easter Orthodox weekend. Thats right, I got two Easters! Athens was beautiful and it was full of history. I went with my roommate and we explored the ruins and the streets of Athens. Probably the thing that I remember most is the food. Greek food was some of the best that I had while abroad. While in Athens I also did a one day cruise that island hopped to three different islands, Hydra, Aegina and Poros. I especially enjoyed Hydra because there were zero vehicles on the island. you had to walk or could ride around on a donkey.
R.I.P. Laptop- Athens was memorable for a lot of reasons, food, sights, the friendly people…etc. I will also always remember Athens because it is where my laptop computer got stolen. The best advice I can give to young travelers, always lock your hostel locker. Writing my final papers on the google docs app on my phone was not fun.
Arrivederci Roma- Listen, study abroad had a lot of highs and lows (haha- this is partially a joke for my diabetic friend). I got to see so many different places and have life-changing experiences. Doing this program helped me realize how much I loved to travel. I now have this passion to learn more about different people and their cultures. I am so grateful that I did this trip. It gave me forever friends and cherished memories. But, there was a few things that I was happy were ending. I ended my trip with some roommate drama and I was happy to escape that. I wanted school to end and was ready for summer vacation. I was starting my senior year in the fall and was at stage where you just want school out of your life. Plus, I missed my family and my dog. Four months was great and a small part of me still believes that I could have stayed a full year. That didn’t stop me from rushing to hug my parents at the Springfield, MO airport. I spent my last day eating gelato and walking around my favorite places in Rome. Not a bad ending.
Summer-I was very happy to reunite with Frankie again, although she had a lot of fun staying with my parents and collecting postcards. I spent my summer as an editorial intern with 417 Magazine in Springfield, Mo and as a hostess at Nakato Japanese Steakhouse. I turned 21, took an online class and tried to remain busy before the new semester started in the fall.
Austin City Limits- In October I had a mini Rome reunion with some girls in Austin, Texas. Hailey Jo was very glad to be back on the go. Road trips are lots of fun, Dallas traffic is not. Still, this musical festival was a blast and made for a memorable fall break.
Yeehaw- I spent this past New Years Eve in Tennessee once again with some of my Rome friends. It was a time, and I think they would agree with me when I say what happens in Nashville stays in Nashville. The most jarring part of this trip was the realization that during that time last year, we had been preparing to go to Rome. A year really isn’t a long time.
So happy to reunite with Frankie!
And thats all she wrote folks… well for now. Don’t worry, I don’t plan on staying still. In January I visited out nation’s capital for the 3rd annual women’s march, that post will be up soon. In May I will be graduating from Arkansas, and who knows where I will be after that? Thanks for sticking with me guys :)
Talk soon!
