There’s one daydream that’s slowly beginning to formulate itself as a plan: six months abroad.
I never spent a semester anywhere overseas when I was in college. My family couldn’t afford it, let alone the expensive education I was already getting. So I stayed in New York City. I don’t at all regret it: I fell in love with the city during my time there.
But I want to go abroad.
Six months: Spain, France, and Italy. Two in each.
I would learn the language, learn to cook, learn the people. I would write and dream and spend long slow hours in cafes and new friends’ kitchens.
Mornings would be devoted to watching the shops open, to secretly following around chefs in the marketplace, to breathing the dawn.
Afternoons I would explore, wandering down side streets, stopping into little shops to look around and into little restaurants to try their food.
And every day, in discovering these countries, I’d discover more about myself.
Next part of the plan: figuring out how to finance it.
If you were to take six months, where would you go?
{first image here, second image by Carlos Rodrigo, third image by CubaGallery}
Fantastic plan! I think you really oughta go for it, if you can somehow finance it! You’ll love Europe! x
Brandi this is such a wonderful dream – you have to do it, anyway you can. And you can do it very cheaply if you want, small pension-rooms for accommodation, little towns and southern Italy and Spain are much cheaper than there northern counter-parts.
Can I go with you if I find a sugar daddy to fund the whole thing?
You could help finance it by getting odd jobs while you are in each country! Granted, I think I’m romanticizing the idea of going a broad and being the foreign waitress in a cafe… but hey, it really could work!
*kate
brandi love, where did you attend college?
oh my gosh!! you should totally do it!!! that would be awesome!! and that pic of the alley looks strikingly familiar as i walked down a similar looking alley a few years ago when i was in rome!!!!
Hmm…I think I’d go to Australia- always wanted to go so bad- or New Zealand…although I could always swing for Paris or Italy…
What a great response yesterday on your tattoo post- loved reading everyone’s thoughts.
Brandi! I really hope you get to go on this trip! I bet you would also get the opportunity to connect with some European blog followers like Eva. That would be too cool and a lifetime experience you’ll never regret. I’m excited for you.
Of course I’d love to stay in London, Venice or Paris, but the one time I went to Switzerland my family and I stayed in a hotel in front of a lake surrounded by mountains so I would put that on my list as well. We have friends doing missions work in Portugal, Italy and Ukraine and it’d be so neat to visit them and love on them! Greece has also been a long time dream to visit!
We share the same dream! I’ve always wanted to take time to live & study abroad. Now it’s become an even bigger dream of taking 6 months to a year to travel the world! There’s something about getting to actually submerge yourself in the culture and the language – my idea of bliss!
i hope this happens for you. i spent 6 months abroad in college with a 2 week trip to thailand with people i had meet in Oz. it was the most amazing learning experience to be *really* on your own. best of luck to you in fulfilling this dream. i fantasize about running off to europe or southeast asia daily. you can make it happen!
i startled my beasts with my “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH” with envy/agreement.
you’ve got the syllabus down perfect: language, food, people.
i’d say take me, take me, but these types of vacançes are best experienced stag. just you, camera, and journal.
oh, how i hope this comes to fruition.
wednesday happy to my new favorite.
i’m still trying to figure out a way to go abroad for a semester. i have my heart set on ireland, so fingers crossed that happens next spring, and fingers crossed you get to do some traveling of your own
xo Alison
Oh, Brandi…..this sounds absolutely heavenly hunnie. And I am going to keep every single one of my fingers and toes crossed that we figure out a way to make this happen for you! I am starting ruminating on it….now!
xo
Melis
DO IT! DO IT!
have you thought about working while you are abroad? maybe do some freelance writing or volunteering? I’m sure there are places that if you volunteer they have housing for you to stay and feed you a meal or two. or get in touch with a non-profit group that does work in Europe! those are some ways that you could go abroad, make some money, or at least work for your roof and some food. that would lessen the burden of just going abroad and taking care of all the expenses yourself. what do you think?
and I HIGHLY recommend spending time abroad and traveling before you settle down in the work place. you won’t have time to take a big trip like this EVER AGAIN! trust me!! and if you come back with a bit of debt on your credit card… again, totally worth it. once and a life time experience!
seriously… I’ll help you plan. I’m great at this stuff, that and packing. i could pack you for 6 months in one bag! hehehe
xo
Kirby
YES!!! Do this!!! Do it, do it, do it!!
My parents sometimes worry that my nomadic childhood was too much, and sometimes it was hard but I wouldn’t have traded all of that traveling for the world! I’ve told them that many times, it was absolutely worth it and I can’t imagine not having done everything we did. I wouldn’t be me. Not by a long shot. There is absolutely no way you will ever regret traveling.
I wonder if you could get temp jobs while abroad to help with the cost? There must be demand for people who speak English in hotels as receptionists etc. Teach English maybe? Volunteer somewhere that will give you a place to stay?
Oh! Go to yesandyes.org . Sarah travels long term all the time (she is on an amazing long journey right now) and has an incredible network of like minded women you could connect with. They might be really helpful with planning this. Good Luck!!
Yes, yes, yes! Six months abroad sounds like exactly the thing the doctor ordered! I would love to live in Italy for 6 months or France. Definitely someplace European with great cusine! I didn’t get to study abroad when I was in college either, so this has always been a longing of mine.
Need a sidekick? Cause I’m totally in.
hmmmm. i took 3 years of french in high school with the intention of visiting someday so definitely France – for the museums, architecture, history. The Galapagos Islands because I once wanted to study animals and they still fascinate me. Although I’d like to keep the islands pristine so I’m put off by humans setting foot on a place that’s untainted by humans. Well, clearly they’re tainted now that tourists are allowed. Africa-The Singita game reserve would be one place.
two of my close friends quit their jobs just as the recession was starting and took off for an entire year, traveling around the world. i thought they were nuts at the time, but became TOTALLY jealous when i started receiving emails and photos of everything from snow monkeys in japan and bath houses in turkey and kangaroos in australia. to help cut down on costs, they participated in the WWOOF program, where they worked on organic farms in exchange for food and housing with native hosts. it was definitely an unbelievable experience for them, and they came back with the most hilarious and wild stories imaginable!
you should absolutely go and find your own adventure!!
Sounds very Eat Pray Love (which is a very good thing)! : ) I hope you don’t mind, but I am inviting myself to come visit you in whichever place you choose! I just hope it becomes every part of a dream as you imagine it to be and that you get to do it! What places in Spain, France, and Italy were you thinking?!
This is going to delay your return to NYC…but I’ll have to get over it. Best. plan. ever.
Brandi, I can absolutely imagine you doing something like this. So adventurous! I truly hope you can find a way to finance this dream because I can even see you writing a book about your journeys and I will definitely be one of the first to buy it!
My kitchen will be waiting!
i have a friend who just did something similar. she took five months and rented an apartment in spain as her “home base.” from there she spent a month in vienna, a month in belgium, & several weeks in several other european places. it was the trip of her life! i’m like you, never having had the college semester abroad experience, but i think i would love that opportunity at some point.
i regret not doing something like this in college. can you believe i’ve never left the US?? i would go to somewhere ANYWHERE in europe. italy for sure.
i hope you can make it work. how about an old school bake sale or car wash GLEE style?
Carpe diem, my friend!
I had a few good girlfriends and former roommates who did short stints overseas, and they loved it. They came back full of stories, insights, life and a deep appreciation for the things and people around them. I’ve always wanted to do the same, but with upcoming responsibilities, I’ll have to live vicariously through others {perhaps you!
}
I think I’d meet you in Europe. I’ve always wanted to get lost in the south of France, among lavender fields and small towns with cobblestone streets. I want to farm and fish for my own meals, learn to dance from a neighbor, and bargain like a grandmother.
Here’s to hoping you get to go overseas!
i actually had planned to go overseas when i was in college – to france. i took 2.5 years of french (and was awful at it). then 9-11 happened, and that shook me. i gave more thought to my plans & decided i would be better off staying in the states to focus on my degree – since the french programs didn’t offer strong courses in art (ironic, no?) i was sad i didn’t go, but looking back, that semester was the most fun i had in college.
i was on the same boat in college, finances were tough so i could not go abroad. but if i could finance it, i would love to spend six months in paris, greece, and italy
Oh man, you have me dreaming again! I would do France, Italy, then England. So many dreams now!
I think this sounds amazing…and you should do it! I didn’t travel abroad when I was in college either using the excuse that this country was my “travel abroad” (I grew up elsewhere), but now that I am working and have money, I wish I had done it back then. It is really difficult to get off the work train.
If I had six months… I would spend the first month at home, a few weeks each in Thailand and Australia before going to Spain and France.
Oh to dream!
I think your trip sounds perfect! You’ll do it…make a budget, go to the city, make the money, bank it..then take off! I highly recommend you do this. xo
I think you dream sounds amazing and you should definitely DO IT. without thinking twice. I packed my bags and moved to Paris for a year without any plans other than to enjoy life and experience everything I could. and while I paid for it for a few years afterwards it was a life changing experience and something I think everyone should do at least once in their lives.
If I had six months now, I would take my man and travel through Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia….
I am right there with you! I’d love to go abroad and live for months. Unfortunately our photography business means we have to be in town to meet and shoot couples. But I’m hoping we can get away for a few weeks in a row to explore somewhere new … maybe in 2012!
Good luck! I hope you can figure our your finances and go for it!
that’s beautiful! I would go to Argentina. I am trying to figure out how to finance my trip too!
this sounds so nice… I would definitely spend time in Paris, but I’m not sure where else I’d want to go. Maybe just hope on a train and see where I ended up?
seems those “live the language” videos have taken a good toll on you! Good for you-I hope this plan works out because that would literally be the best memory of your LIFE. I was only over there for a month, spending 3 days in each place-I Definitely don’t regret it, but would have loved more time to spend in each spot, so, I say, GO FOR IT!!
i’ve been wanting for a while to go to Europe again and seems this summer is not going to happen…… but you never know the surprises you might find out there!
Oh Brandi, I hope more than anything that you’ll get to realise your dream to spend time abroad. I’ve always dreamed of it too, and I still can’t believe I’ll be going to Australia this summer. I always wanted to study abroad in Ireland too. I know I won’t study there now with only a year left in my degree, but maybe I’ll work there. There’s always time for dreams to become reality.
Oh goodness, what an inspirational idea! This would be the epitome of the perfect adventure.
Wow, crazy… I literally got the idea today to try and spend the month of July cruising around France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, wherever! I started research this morning to try and figure out how to make it work money wise. I will let you know if I come across anything stellar.
Yes, you should definitely do it!
Brandi, this is exciting and I can see you in all of those fabulous places! {Oh my gosh, while you’re there, tutor English on the side!} I’m on board to help get you there!
your dream = my dream = everyone’s dream
I love it, simply put. Admittedly the cynical side of me is all “WELL isn’t THAT a bit Eat, Pray, Love?” But still. There’s nothing bad to be said about studying or staying abroad (money and culture clash aside). I was actually thinking to myself today how much I wanted to stretch myself out of this place and country and go someplace like I had the fortune to last summer. But I have no idea how/where. That’s the biggest step and it’s daunting to me. Much less, where would I even go!
Also, I totally forgot to comment on your post awhile back where you said “Don’t forget to be awesome.” Have you heard of Nerdfighters or the Vlogbrothers? Because I thought you got the phrase from that, but I guess it’s really a universally awesome thing!
I’d be happy traveling anyplace in Europe–can I live vicariously through your travels abroad–wherever you go?
Sounds good! You should definitely do it. I’v been to all three and the food is amazing! The language is like music. So really no reason not to go right? Hope you do it soon. You will love it.
xoxo Hannah
Oh easy peasey! Id go to Japan to mnt Fuji, then to Greece, then Sweden, and Ireland.
Also You might notice your bag in lump and heavey as I am sure to hide in there to hitch a ride and come with
Love it! I’ve always wanted to spend a few months experiencing Europe, but if I had 6 months I’d want to visit all of the UK, especially Ireland and Scotland; France, Italy, Greece, Switzerland, and Egypt. Those are the places I want to see the most besides New Zealand, but that will have to be a separate trip, I think.
Ooooh fantastic idea, Brandi. You should do it! living abroad is such a growing and wonderful experience. And if you go to Spain I will totally put you in contact with many of my friends there…I have known them since childhood
I’m doing a six month study abroad programme this year. I’m in France right now and I leave in May, just before my seventeenth birthday. It’s not like I expected it to be: it’s better in some ways and worse in others, but I’m so glad I did it. I’ve learned and changed so much already. I’m not homesick and have gotten used to being alone a lot. (I saw a video on another blog called “How to Be Alone”. It’s on Youtube and it’s just so beautiful and helpful.) Traveling is such an amazing opportunity and I really hope you find a way to fund your travels. Also, I love your blog.
you should absolutely 100% go for it. It sounds perfect. If I could spend 6 months abroad it would be Italy. I would travel and eat and eat and eat and eat.