On our last day in Cape Town before the Garden Route, we hit up some amazing historical sites.

First, we visited the Heart of Cape Town Museum which is nestled in the old wards of the Groote Schuur Hospital. Being a class of health interested people it was like taking a kindergarten class to a candy shop. Along the tour we learned the history of the first human heart transplant in the world and got to touch some special wax models (they are actually plastic due to the summer heat).

A trip within a trip.

We’ve all seen the movie Inception, right? The one where Leo goes into a dream within a dream within a dream and so on. Well that’s what my traveling experiences have felt like.

These past couple weeks I’ve gone from Amsterdam to Berlin back to Amsterdam and then off again to London. It’s been quite the adventure, and an interesting form of traveling that I’ve never experienced.

I lied… I guess this should be called my Mid Departure Post. I’m currently sitting on a plane somewhere over the Atlantic, and, like the good American I am, eagerly leaving the country on its birthday (I should mention that I’m flying with a UK-based airline… sorry America!) My abbreviated summer has largely been in preparation to study abroad. I spent the first 6 weeks of my summer in Rochester, leaving only 8 days at home to do last-minute prep, packing, goodbyes, etc.

After that trip in Senegal, coming back to Morocco really felt like coming back home. Senegal was great and all but I missed the sense of home that Morocco had given me for the first two weeks.  But being back in Rabat gave me the opportunity to see the differences across the two countries. Even though they are both in Africa, the differences can easily be pointed out.

“Don’t call it uncertainty- call it wonder. Don’t call it insecurity- call it freedom.” -Osho

As the countdown begins for when my journey here in Milan will end, I feel frantic questions swirling in my mind. How am I going to be happy with the life I was making back home? What if I never get the chance to come back? What if I forget all of the Italian I’ve learned? How am I ever going to eat pizza in the states again? And geez, what am I going to do about coffee??

This past week has brought several outdoor adventures that have highlighted the natural beauty of Brazil.

The first big adventure was our hike last Friday to the top of Pedra Bonita. The hike was only 30 minutes long, but very strenuous. We did not realize that were supposed to keep a certain distance from the guide, so our pace was very quick because she thought we were pushing her to go faster. Meanwhile, we all panted and pushed ourselves up the steep mountain.

As I write this, I am grappling with the fact that my flight back home is scheduled to leave in exactly 24 hours. I am procrastinating on the whole packing situation—I am slightly terrified that all the wonderful things I have collected here have added up to a monstrous pile of souvenirs. I’ve briefly thought about the amount of bulky clothing I should wear to the airport in order to save space in my luggage…but that’s giving me anxiety. So I thought I would make a list of the things you should and shouldn’t bring to Buenos Aires.