Traveling has always been a part of my life. In fact, within the first year, I was alive I was put on a 14-hour plane ride from China to America. It was always something my parents found important to pass down to my siblings and me—you could always be happy with materialistic items, but there's nothing that could quite compare to the memories that you make on a trip.

I've traveled to various states across the United States, but it wasn't until I was entering high school that I took my first trip abroad to Paris, France with my mother. It was truly something was unforgettable and opened the door to a never-ending world yet to be discovered. From strolling down the Champs-Elysees to dining under the Eiffel Tower, my mom and I did it all.

Since then I have been fortunate enough to travel to various places like Guatemala, Italy, Ireland, Iceland, China, and will be traveling to Thailand soon.

Traveling has taught me so much not only about different countries and the culture but about myself. The countries itself have so much more to them than just the environment and sights to see. There's so much to learn from architecture to the history it's more than just a famous landmark used for Instagram pictures.

One of my favorite things about traveling is the people. Meeting the locals is one of my favorite things to experience upon traveling. There's nothing more special than a someone who knows the area better than a person who has lived there their entire life. This will lead you to some of the best-kept secrets that typical tourists don't get to see or food as you have never experienced in your life.

Along with outside factors teaching you things you didn't know, I have learned so much about myself.

Traveling forces you to explore outside of your comfort zone and that means with food, just the environment, and meeting new people. Whether that's with people, you are traveling with lon tour, or the people you will meet along your journey. Traveling has made me more independent as a person as well. Never in a million years would I think that I would be traveling to all these different places, some with my family and other trips without—completely alone.

It's kind of weird how you just grow up and have to do these things. If there is ever an opportunity to go out and see a different part of the world rather than just staying at Purdue, do it. I 100% support any kind of study abroad.

If you have the chance to experience something you will never be able to get back then go out there. Life is short so go out and be part of something that you didn't even know was there. We spend so much time in our own little towns and campuses we sometimes forget that there are billions of other people to be met and thousands of cities to be discovered still.

So go out and travel because you won't regret any part of it at all.