One of my favorite travel stories is the one that shaped me the most as not only a traveler but as a person. That is when I traveled to Germany (flying alone for the first time) at 17 years old. For some that doesn’t sound so absurd. Many kids fly alone. And then there are those exchange students that go abroad alone at 15! Then there are some that think, “Wow that is really brave,” as well as those that think it is crazy. I couldn’t imagine the reaction my mom got from people. Now, how did this come about and why was it so impactful?
Before this trip I had only been overseas once. It was on a school trip to Germany and Eastern Europe almost two years before. I didn’t really know how to do international travel. I just knew I wanted to do it. That’s why after my great aunt and uncle had just come back from a trip where they saw Paula, one of the exchange students we had hosted a few years prior, I decided I needed to visit. It really was a great first step to solo travel, because all I needed to do was get to Germany and then I had people to look after me.
It did terrify my mom. We did a lot of preparation for the trip, probably more so than I have done for any trip to Europe. Now its just second nature going to Europe. One of the things we had to do was get a notarized note from my parents giving me permission to go to Germany alone and stay with what I would consider my German family. The biggest aspect of the preparation was the excitement. I never have had a build quite like this to a trip. Other than when I studied abroad and had to plan very specifically, I pretty much plan my trips a month or two before I go. For this trip I bought the tickets in September of 2018 for April of 2019. The build up and anticipation was insane.
I remember one of the first people I told about the trip was my friend Zoë who was an exchange student at my school at the time from Stuttgart, Germany which is about a couple hours south of Frankfurt where I was going. She was excited for me and it was fun to tell her all about my plans as they were being made. For instance, Paula and her family wanted to take me to Heidelberg which is in Zoë’s state and is somewhere she has gone to many times to visit family friends. She even gave me a frozen yogurt place I had to check out, which we did! We had fun preparing me for this trip and even did a German cooking day where we made Maultaschen.
Then there was the fact that I got a postcard from Paula and her family for my birthday (which is in January) and they wrote me they were thinking of taking me to Strasbourg in France. France!! I literally ran around the house in excitement. I was going to go to France!! So I did lots of research and within a month had a French playlist created on Spotify that I was listening to consistently before the trip.
This build to the trip is part of what made this thing so special. It was the most excitement I have ever felt for a trip. I had finally had a taste of Europe on my first international trip and I yearned for more and I was going to get it! Suddenly fitting in at school didn’t matter or all the homework I had to do either. This is what truly mattered and I can say that is exactly how I look at things 7 years later. And yes, I did actually take time off of school for this trip. I wanted to go during spring break, but that didn’t work for Paula’s family so I went during Easter break which is only really a few days off for us, but I really wanted to do this trip so thankfully my parents saw this as the opportunity it was and let me miss some school. I was a good student so I would be fine in my classes. I did some work ahead of time, while I was there, and when I got back. My teachers were all happy to see me go on this trip as well.
Not many 17 years have experiences like this and it really separates you from everyone else in school. Let me tell you the things I experienced on this trip and you will understand. Luckily when I arrived at the airport my mom was able to go through security and wait at the gate with me since I was a minor. That good bye was intense though. I didn’t really know what I was getting myself into. I didn’t do much by myself. I didn’t even go into the grocery store by myself let alone travel across the ocean. Things already weren’t going to plan as per usual for travel. I was flying Icelandair and my flight had been cancelled due to weather in Iceland. I was rebooked on Lufthansa with a connection in Chicago. I don’t know if I have talked much about my dislike for O’Hare but that stems from this trip as well as other inconveniences on trips and let me just say I am not the only one. Others share this disdain for O’Hare. Sadly it is a pretty common connection for Minneapolis.
The problem was when they rebooked me, my flight to Chicago was just fine, but I didn’t actually have a seat on my next flight to Frankfurt. I immediately called my mom because my ticket was for standby. She was freaking out! She told me to go to the counter and essentially demand a seat on the plane because I was a minor. I didn’t want to, but I learned to advocate. While I did this she was texting her brother who’s family lived in Chicago at the time to see if he could pick me up if I didn’t get on the flight. Luckily I did make it on the airplane. It wasn’t the most ideal spot as I was in the middle seat, but at least it was in one of those front rows near the bathroom where you don’t have to ask people to get up to go to the bathroom.
I eventually landed in Frankfurt which felt like a fever dream. I can probably thank my Benadryl for that though. I followed the signs in the airport to Passport Control but it didn’t seem like there was anyone else there which felt really suspicious but it all worked out so I must have been right! I got a really scary German man checking my passport. I offered up my note from my parents which he took very sternly. I was terrified, but it all was ok, so I got my stamp and continued on my way to where I was immediately met with excitement by my German family.
It was the most unforgettable 10 days of my life. Even 7 years later and many amazing trips later, this one still sticks with me. I remember so vividly the feeling of being here: what it was like to eat breakfast and look out the window, biking around the city, and hopping into the car for a new day trip. Every single food I tried was amazing and made it onto my list of German foods you have to try. My German Easter will be one that won’t ever be forgotten. You would think that a teenager would maybe be a bit homesick on a holiday like this, but I wasn’t. I felt right at home here. This is partly due to the fact that they were basically my family at this point because Paula was my sister. This is also because I was in my element.
In Strasbourg I remember so vividly Paula asking me if I missed my mom. It was the longest I had ever gone without seeing her. I believe my reply was somewhere along the lines of, “I guess, but I am so happy to be here right now that I am ok.” And that is how it has always been. No matter how far away I am or how rough the circumstances are, as long as I am in discovering a new country, I am completely myself which makes it all ok. That is what gives me the strength to do brave things like move to a place where I don’t know anyone (ahem Ireland.)
So now let talk about the impact of this on a high school junior. I was so done with school. I liked classes! But I was ready to get out into the world. I had lived in this same small town my entire life with the same 30 people in my grade. I was ready to meet new people and find myself. On one of my last few days in Frankfurt I remember texting my mom and literally telling her I did not want to go back to school because those people would never understand. My world had just been ripped apart and opened up at the same time. How do you go back to worrying about your prom date and the baseball game when you just traveled to another country by yourself, stayed with people who’s first language isn’t English, and tried apple wine for the first time. I just couldn’t do it.
I mean I did go back to school and made the best of it, as I did have my exchange student friends after all, but I was very disconnected during my last year of high school. Because yes, there were times people at school really let me down, but I had the hope of the world to get me through it all. The little things are easier to look past when you know what really matters, even if they don’t seem so little as a high schooler.
I honestly think of this trip as the moment I became an adult. Even though I was only 17, this trip set me up to be the person I really am. It set all my priorities straight: where I want to go in life and what relationships to cherish. That is why I always preach the power of travel. I know not every high schooler has this kind of opportunity, so I am really grateful for everyone that made it possible, but no matter how old you are, just hop on that plane and fly to another continent by yourself because that is how you will discover who you are. That is what this trip taught me.
If you want to read more about what I did on this trip to Germany or my other travels around the country, please check out my Germany page!
The Journal of Wanderlust 