When I checked into my first hostel I’ve ever stayed at, I was excited to begin my semester abroad in the UK. I was planning to spend three days in London and travel to Scotland. My first hostel experience left me wanting to do another solo traveling trip. Traveling alone in London for the first time led me to explore so many new places simply because I was by myself and was able to go anywhere I wanted.Â
My favorite part about London was that every corner had something new. I remember stumbling upon a revolving cheese restaurant similar to revolving sushi, crossing the London Bridge on a double decker bus for the first time, and buying a new sketchbook finding new places to simply sit and draw outside. Kicking off my study abroad trip with my time in London left me excited for the future travels to come. My main regret was not socializing with the people in the hostel, which felt like I was missing a large part of the solo traveling experience. I was sure to book another solo traveling trip in the semester and was ready for my next hostel.Â
Leaving London, my flight was delayed for four hours, resulting in me arriving in Scotland in the pitch black dark and foggy weather. I had so many doubts and worries about not knowing a single person in a new city, especially as I was lugging my heavy carry-on suitcase to my new dorm by myself. Upon arrival, I was greeted by four students who invited me to their flat and ended up having an amazing time meeting new people. As the week went on, I met more international students and started creating friendships with people from different countries as we shared different parts of our culture with each other.Â
After three weeks, I began becoming more familiar with the city as I spent some afternoons sketching outside and exploring different tourist destinations. It’s almost been a month, and I still feel like a tourist, but I can already tell that by the end of the semester, Edinburgh will always be a memory to look back on from my time in college.