København: A Retrospective Two Years In The Making

Revisiting this blog today as I plan for a new adventure into Canada and Alaska, it pained me to be reminded that I never shared my thoughts, feelings, and new worldviews that came from my time abroad. Please do not read the following unless you go into it knowing that it will not carry the same tone as the rest of this blog. It is the fragile thoughts of a more experienced individual who feels the need to reflect.

 Two years ago to the minute I would have been waking up for a long morning of class, Sustainability in Europe with Kasper, Danish Language and Culture with Nina, Renewable Energy Systems with Carlos. Following class I would have walked down Støget, purchased some China Box, a pølsen, or a wienerbrød, and then done some reading for Danish Politics near the fountain at Gammeltorv. I remember every last detail of my average day. I fell in love. With a place. With someone incredibly special. With an idea. With adventure. It was the first time I ever felt on my own, yet I was surrounded with people that I'll never forget. These were the best days of my life. I do not mean to be sappy. I do not mean to say there aren't better days ahead. But there is a reason I will talk your ear off about my time abroad at any chance I get: It can never be recreated. And as much as this notion pained me for the last year, it now is a source of empowerment.

It is why I yearn to travel. It is the fertilization of an undying wanderlust. I don't aim to recreate; I can't see myself ever returning to Copenhagen with expectations of a similar experience. Nothing would come of that but (hopefully) a positive reflection.

Traveling, to me, is for new creation. Memories to pile on to the old, though at the same time the old don't get buried. Did I apologize for sappiness already?

I figure I have already lived over 25% of my life, and it was largely devoid of experiences outside of Ohio for its first 20 years. Is my need to go new places a reaction to this? Absolutely. In a way, I am thankful for this lack of adventure in my early days, because it let traveling be something new at a time where I could fully appreciate it, opposed to when I was more numb in my adolescence.

So I go onward. Thank you for reading; it truly means the world.

With Intent To Travel

I travel again. In the month of May, 2014, exactly 3 months to the day from now, I will depart New York City for Canada by rail, destination Fairbanks. There is no set timetable, except that I will begin the adventure on May 13th and will be on the British Columbian West Coast by May 31st. This is due to VIA Rail, Canada's national rail system, having obfuscated, substandard travel rules, rendering my 21-day rail pass useless after their "high season" begins on June 1. 

Pictured: Me, in three months (I'm in the second car).

From there, I will likely spend time in Vancouver, Seattle, Portland, and Los Angeles before flying to Fairbanks. My initial hope was to take a ferry on the Alaskan Marine Highway System (AMHS) from Bellingham, Washington to Whittier, Alaska and then take Alaska Rail to Fairbanks, but the ferry, sadly, would cost upwards of $550, which is not in my budget. 

An in-depth itinerary is forthcoming, but my expected journey will be as follows: 

New York, NY > Montreal, QB > Toronto, ON > Winnipeg, MB > Churchill, MB > Jasper, AB > Vancouver, BC > Seattle, WA > Portland, OR > Los Angeles, CA > Fairbanks, AK > ??? 

More soon,

TJE