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I don't think there's anything, besides Jesus, that has changed my view on life more than traveling.
My first trip abroad was with my high school Spanish class when I was 17. It was one of the best things that's ever happened to me. I will forever remember coming home and saying, "That was worth every penny."
Here are my top five favorite moments from traveling, in no particular order because I couldn't decide on a favorite.
5. Standing in front of the Final Judgment painting in the Sistine Chapel. Everyone loves the ceiling, as did I, but something about the Final Judgment drew me in. I stood there feeling like I was in one of those videos where I am standing still and everything is moving in double-time around me, tears welling up in my eyes. Before I knew it, thirty minutes had passed and I was about to be left by my group.
4. Coming up over the mountain and seeing Machu Picchu for the first time. The bus was super loud as my students were chatting, but I had my nose glued to the bus window, just waiting for a glimpse of it - and there it was. It was seriously one of the most breath-taking moments of my life.
3. Hiking Volcan Pacaya in Guatemala. It was a long and difficult hike. The hardened lava was still warm from 2014's eruption so we stopped to roast marshmallows over it. My shoes were filled with ash, but I learned how to "ski" down a large hill of ash and rock, and made a new friend at the lava shop. Watching boulders being thrown from the crater was also pretty awesome.
2. Hiking to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. To be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect because I'd been twice and wasn't sure what else there was to experience. But hiking it for the first time was a life-saver for me at that point in my life. I needed so badly to get away from the busyness of life. It was hard and I've never been that sore, even after my marathon - but it was so worth it. Watching the sun set and rise from the bottom of the canyon is something I'll never forget.
1. Okay, maybe I do have a favorite. My summer working in Mexico was the best summer of my life so far. I made a good friend who cooked for me every day, whom sadly I found out had passed away several months later when I came back with a Christmas gift for her. I met families who walk so closely to Jesus even though they live in cardboard boxes. But my favorite moment of the summer was meeting a woman with diabetes. She had come to pick up some free clothing at a drive we were running at a local church. Her diabetes was so bad that she could hardly walk, let alone carry a sack of clothes. As I carried her clothes home for her, she told me, in Spanish, that I had beautiful feet for serving the Lord. And it's those words that carry me to school every day.
I've seen a lot of places and have a lot of favorites, but those ones take the cake. What are your favorite travel moments?
