Home Away from Home

But it is so exciting and gives the feeling of freedom! Especially if it’s another side of the continent with a completely different culture, climate and mindset. Now I can forget everything from “previous”, “other” life(s), and completely immerse into the new world. Right here, right now! This can be really mind-blowing, intense, although quite challenging from time to time.

Open mind, curiosity, experiments, new friends, new flavours… But one day even the most extravagant and unusual things turn into routine and habits. Time matters; humans can get used to everything, or almost everything.

“I” and “me”, not disturbed anymore with daily masquerade, also come back to life with all their old luggage of features and questions, for better or worse. Nope, no escape from self; at least this trick doesn’t last long.

“I want to go home…” phase might bring to a discovery that the home, which was left, is not the same anymore. The same people, the same walls… same same but different. Time didn’t stop there, and meanwhile a lot of changes took place inside “self” as well. The past has passed. It’s time to move on.

“Before I used to travel a lot, but at some point I realized that wherever I travel, I actually move in only one space – myself.” – Victor Pelevin

Yet, traveling can be very addictive. Something is always calling to go ahead, experience something new and leave notorious “comfort zone” to discover new horizons.

“Home is not where you were born; home is where all your attempts to escape cease.”

And I cannot say better. I cannot stress enough how this experience is changing and shaping me into the person I wish to be. If you’re stuck somewhere and it seems there is no way out, do EVS. You will find things about yourself that you never knew were there…

P.S.: Where is your home? Where would you like to be for your year abroad?