Remembering My First Trip To Europe

Today is my birthday…I’m 32 years old. As I look back over the last 12 years of flying, I cannot help but to be incredibly thankful.

In 2006 the only countries I had ever been to outside of the USA were Mexico (for an hour into Tijuana) and Canada (for an hour onto the Canadian side of Niagra Falls).

But in 2006, I finally left the nest and spent the month of September in Europe…oh what an eye-opening trip that was.

The trip included Germany, the Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy, Belgium, and the Netherlands. That may sound like a lot in a month, but we took it easy, taking in some of Europe’s most historic cities. About half our time was spent in Germany.

As I look back 12 years later, I am grateful for that opportunity. I traveled with a friend from UCLA and the military on the trip, Tim, who recently passed away. He was far too young to die. He grew up in Berlin and we enjoyed a wonderful time exploring new places and trying new food (for me at least).

Our car was broken into in Geneva and all our luggage stolen, another first for me.

12 Years Later

This trip helped me to understand, for the first time really, that there was a whole world out there just waiting to be experienced. I may fly for the sake of flying sometimes, but the sights and smells and personal interactions in the 130+ countries I have visited over the last 12 years have been one of the biggest blessings of my life. Travel is far more than a job…it is a conscious lifestyle choice and deliberate engagement with the world.

Now I have a young son at home, who I look forward to taking to Europe when he’s old enough to appreciate it. He’s already been to Europe four times, but I want to show him the Berlin Wall, the canals of Amsterdam, the Acropolis in Athens, and the Eiffel Tower. Oh how I look forward to showing him Europe, just as Tim showed me Europe. 

We went to Europe without a plan. Each day was a spur of the moment trip. And I loved that. While carefully-planned vacations have their own advantages, there is nothing like winging it for a few weeks in Europe. We never went to bed hungry nor found no room at the inn.

I guess what I’m trying to say is how thankful I am for all the blessings in my life. My faith, my wife, my son, my friends, but also just the simple pleasures of life in this beautiful world. There is a duality to this world: hatred, strife, and sin…yet beauty, grace, and forgiveness. It has been a fun ride thus far and taking one day at a time, I look forward to what is to come.