Another year has passed and while I try to look back I realize it brought many opportunities, changes, happy memories, challenges and everything in between. Travel-wise it wasn’t a very crowded year, as I took a little time to breathe and start some new projects for my personal and professional development. I went on my travels mostly with family and friends, rather than going solo and that made everything fun in a relaxed way.
Just like every year, before I start to write this roundup post, I browsed through the previous Year in Review. The funny thing is that I set one single goal for 2019… and I didn’t go through with it. I’m talking about my wish to travel somewhere outside Europe. But considering how many things happened along the way last year, I’d say it’s ok. Maybe I can do it in 2020. fingers crossed
What happened in 2019?
As I said, 2019 was a laid back year in terms of travel. I decided I wanted to start a Ph.D. and the whole applying process was stressful and time-consuming. Still, I managed to travel to Greece, the Czech Republic, Sweden, and Poland, as well as to some places from my home country, Romania. To compensate for the number of trips I took, I chose to make them a little bit more lengthy than usual.
Highlights of 2019
- I visited 4 different countries (except for my home country), two of them for the first time (Greece and Poland).
- While in Greece, my friends and I rented a car and we found its window broken just a few hours after we got it. A whole Odyssey followed – pun very much intended.
- I visited Sweden for the second time, which was the best thing ever in 2019!
- In Stockholm, I went to a bar that served everything with garlic. I tried beer with garlic and a vodka cocktail with garlic. Hated the first (couldn’t drink more than half a pint), kinda loved the second.
- Also in Stockholm, I tried reindeer meat for the first time. (Yes, I apologized to Santa before Christmas and yes, he forgave me).
- For the first time ever, I traveled abroad to attend a concert. I went to Prague to see my favorite band of all time – Poets of the Fall – and it was totally worth it.
- Besides the Poets’ concert, I had the joy to see Metallica live! Another notable concert was Apocalyptica when the crowd vibrated at the sound of four cellos playing only Metallica songs. Oh, and I also went to a festival with exclusively tribute bands, where… Uhm, there was also a Metallica tribute band. Without a doubt, my friends and I will forever call 2019 the Metallica year.
- Since October, I started a Ph.D. in marketing because apparently having no free time suits me well. Also, now I’m some kind of scientist and I’m not gonna lie, I’m waiting for the day I can call myself a Doctor.
- My fridge magnet collection has gotten so big that my fridge looks like the uniform of a very zealous boy scout. Therefore, I started to buy only magnets representing the whole country I’m in, rather than every particular place I visit.
2019 in photographs
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Because I celebrated New Year’s in Poland, I can already say I started 2020 with a blast. Besides, I already have a trip to Cyprus planned in March, which is going to be an opportunity for a lot of first experiences for me. For the rest of the year, I would really want to go back to Sicily and explore more of it than I did last time, then maybe go back to Stockholm to have another drink with the Vikings and then go to Spain to explore the beautiful city of Barcelona. These wishes are pretty do-able, but you never know where I will end up eventually. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.