Gap Year to Explore by Keaton

Gap Year to Explore by Keaton - August 2019 Scholarship Essay

A gap year is a time to learn, explore, and understand the world and yourself in a better light. Given the opportunity for a gap year, I would make the most of it by exploring and seeing the world. I would go off the beaten path of touring through Europe and get a more defined and in-depth experience of countries cultures and ideology. I would begin starting with the East on a country that has a mixed history of European and Asian descent Turkey. I would spend a few days exploring the local cities and dining on local cuisine like Keşkek a delicious warm stew. I would travel to the not so visited town of Kayseri and learn from its thousands of years of history and changing culture. I would follow my self-guided tour by stopping by Athens a city littered with mythology and amazing architecture dating back to before 1200 BC. Following that brief excursion, I would go North following the trail of the Black Sea, passing through Bulgaria, Romania, and Ukraine making sure I see the historical landmarks left behind by Soviet control and visiting the beautiful medieval towns nestled in the rolling hills. My next destination I would travel by train through the rough terrain that stopped many great invaders like Napoleon and Hitler to Moscow. While in Moscow I would visit one of the greatest architectural feats at the time the Kremlin that has been standing for over 534 years. I would continue north, stopping through St. Petersburg to see the rebuilt Amber Room, for history buffs they will know that the original was stolen by the Nazi Army during the war and lost to the sands of time. When I am done is St. Petersburg, I will take the land bridge to Finland, Sweden, and Norway exploring the magnificent beauty of Scandinavia on the way and exploring magnificent sights like the Oresund Underwater Bridge and hopefully trying the fresh-caught Herring that has been a local stable for hundreds of years. When I am finished visiting Scandinavia, I will catch a plane to Poland and while visiting, I will pay my respects to the holocaust by stopping by the Warsaw Ghetto and other historical landmarks in the area. After Poland I will visit Germany, hopefully being able to join the local festival of Oktoberfest and practicing my German in the process. From Germany, I will take a train down to Italy, where I hope to visit some of the amazing places of the birthplace of the. Renaissance and amazing landmarks that have stood the test of time like the Colosseum and the Leaning Tower of Pisa. I would continue my tour of Italy by visiting the country within a country Vatican City and the home of the Pope. My last few destinations on my trip through Europe would take me to France more specifically Paris to see the Eifel Tower and try some of the best French cuisines in the World. After visiting Paris, I would head a little farther West to Spain and visit the magnificent historical and cultural ideas that helped change the culture of the world. I would follow Spain by heading North on a plane to England, where I would make sure to visit London, where I would visit the Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, and see the magnificent river Thames. I would conclude my tour by visiting a place that has historical roots in my family tree Scotland and Ireland, I would visit the great castles that have been standing for over a thousand years and explore the Cliffs of Moher to conclude my gap year tour. At the end of this amazing self-guided tour, I would reflect on how much human civilization has grown and how significant I seem in comparison to the wars, the thousands of years of history, and the birth of modern civilization. I feel like after this experience I would realize that throughout all these places and cultures that we aren’t so different in this big crazy world. Taking a gap year would allow me to grow and experience the amazing world and the history that took place on its surface.