My final day started Saturday night. On this trip, I found that alcohol makes me very sleepy, specifically wine and champagne. Our first stop on the food tour was at a Lokál location, where I got a glass of wine. This was a mistake, as the rest of the tour, I was getting sleepier seemingly with each step.
So, after the tour, I headed back to the hotel, sat with some friends, and chatted for about half an hour before heading up to my room. Throughout the week, I was packing as I was wearing my clothes, so it was just a matter of getting everything together and making it fit. I ended up going to sleep just after midnight and slept for 10 hours straight, eventually getting down to the lobby around 11.
I originally had plans for the final day, I was going to go to Vyšehrad and walk across Charles Bridge, but those plans obviously got thwarted. In a way, I’m glad though, because I think that if/when I go back to Czechia, I’ll have something to look forward to.
So, after getting nearly everything packed, I headed down and we braved the rain to get to the dinner cruise. The meal itself was quite good, and I appreciated the options on the buffet. After getting my final aperol spritz of the trip, I was ready to go home.
Waking up Monday morning was, very surprisingly, not the earliest I have gotten up for a flight. I was just as awful, however, because I’m now getting a sore throat and a stuffy nose. On the bright side, on my first flight to London, I had a window seat and no one was sitting next to me.
I had an extremely long 5-hour layover in London, in which I found a quiet corner and relaxed for a few hours. My second flight, my flight home, was upgraded, which was both a blessing and a curse. A blessing, as I was in economy plus, and has extra legroom and some extra amenities, but also a curse, as I wasn’t in a window seat. Nonetheless, I got through my journey and arrived in Philadelphia a bit earlier than expected. After getting through customs, I found my parents and was in my bed within 3 hours of arriving home.
This trip changed me. I don’t want to sound dramatic, but I learned so much about myself in the span of one week. I found out just how emotional I can get over being alone. I found out that I get extremely homesick. I found out that I love traveling.
On our final night, I was talking to my table on the dinner cruise and we discussed the bittersweet feeling of having to leave. At that moment, I realized just how fortunate and privileged we all were to have gone on the trip. Many people will never have the opportunity to do what we just did, and I’m incredibly grateful to my family for encouraging me to do this.
I made some lifelong friends this week and I’m forever grateful for them. Yes, I miss everyone and everything, but I’m so glad to be home. I’d like to end my series of blogs by saying thank you to Dodge, Dawn, and Murray for giving all of us this opportunity.