Lessons between train stations

DiscoverEU opened my eyes to what it means to handle what others interpret as the small things in a travel bag, but what came out of this experience was what you have of the important things in life – namely, what remains in your soul.

My name is Sonia and I study in Cluj Napoca, Romania. If until I started my journey I was a person who was reluctant to ask questions and get involved in as diverse communities as possible, DiscoverEU was a real lesson that I don't need a lot to be happy. I started with only a backpack and, best of all, I didn't feel like I was missing anything. I learned that "home" is an inner feeling, not a specific place. Still with my backpack I returned home and, looking back, I realized that I collected so many things that really matter - more precisely, the moments lived. Because those remain, the memories and the people. At the same time, I redefined the concept of "Who am I?" after some conversations with people who, after a few hours on the train, became my friends.

I traveled to 4 countries: Italy, Switzerland, Holland and Belgium. My itinerary was well planned and planned: I experienced the old cities of Italy and its hidden beauties, the turquoise waters of Switzerland and the landscapes that cannot be photographed by the phone camera, but admired with the eyes (as is natural, living in the present moment), and in Belgium I tasted the history of the capital and ate French friends. In Amsterdam, the Netherlands, I had a particularly introspective experience, the place impressing me the most because of everyone's openness to the new. I can say that was the place where I thought the most about what I want my future to look like and what lessons I have to integrate in this journey, of life.

If I were to ask myself what I took away from this trip, I would talk about the idea that I reconfirmed after thinking about what this experience meant to me: it just seems that we are different as people. It just seems, but at our core, we all want the same things, we have the same needs and so similar stories that we carry in our hearts. That being said, I also discovered how easy it is to make friends as a young adult, because as the years passed, I realized that separating one from another based on labels is just an illusion, and life is more than a journey about "us". Until the next destination you end up thinking about these aspects. That's why I call this chapter of my life "Lessons between train stations" - because, between destinations, you have time to look out the window and think about all these things.

I didn't come back from my DiscoverEU trip with any souvenir magnets, but I left there parts of me that no longer served my development. I chose to relate differently to people, to myself, to life in general. And I know one thing for sure: I would repeat this story in a heartbeat.

Updated on Tuesday, 25/04/2023