The End

"Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things - air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky - all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it."
- Cesare Parese

Well, this is going to be my last post.

It has been an unbelievable and life changing adventure ... none of which I thought I would be able to encounter. Words can't describe how much I have enjoyed this trip and I can't even to begin to describe my feelings towards everything I have experienced. None of it could have been done though without the amazing backing of my family and friends, and of course the immense amount of strength that I gained from God.

A couple days ago, I was in Barcelona. I went with Elyse and we spent some much needed time in the sun. The architecture of Barcelona blew my mind and I absolutely loved the city. It was hard to leave Elyse though, knowing that I was parting from this new amazing friend and not knowing when I would see her again. That has become the hardest part about traveling for me ... meeting so many incredible people and most likely, never seeing them again. I wish I could have kept all the guardian angels that I came across.

My last trip, and where I am now for a couple more hours, was Salzburg. Salzburg was my Grandmother's favorite place in the world. Perhaps it was because of the breathtaking scenery, the Edelweiss flower she so adored, or even the memories of the Sound of Music. Whichever the case, I had to come to Salzburg to be with my Gramere. I felt her and I saw her everywhere ... in the Alps, in the flowers, in the people, and all throughout the hikes I took through the city. Salzburg was everything I dreamed it would be and I am so saddened that I can't spend more time here. I did stay an extra day though instead of trying to pack in Vienna as well ... so now I just have another excuse to come back to Europe and of course, Austria.

I have so many emotions right now just thinking about going back to Roma for a couple days because that means I am only less than a week away from going home. If any of you have seen the movie Almost Famous you will know how I feel. Remember at the end when William has to go home? You know he doesn't want to leave but at the same time he knows home is where he belongs and he knows it's calling him back. Remember the part when he comes home and just collapses onto his bed because he is too tired to even process what he has just been through? That's how I feel right now. Maybe it's just an excuse to compare my life to my favorite movie but in any case, that's how my life can be summed up right now.

Thanks to everyone for reading my blog. However, if any of you would like some true entertainment, please read my friend's blog. Make sure you start at the beginning because her trip was a semester long adventure as well. www.christineprice.blogspot.com

You are loved and prayed for,
Kaitlin

"Adventure is a path. Real adventure - self-determined, self-motivated, often risky - forces you to have firsthand encounters wit the world. The world the way it is, not the way you imagine it. Your body will collide with the earth and you will bear witness. In this way you will be compelled to grapple with the limitless kindness and the bottomless cruelty of human kind - and perhaps realize that you yourself are capable of both. This will change you. Nothing will ever againbe black and white."
- Mark Jenkins