By Lorena Johnson, Talon Staff Reporter

Everybody yearns to travel the world and meet new people. For junior Ellie Smith, dreams are becoming reality, slowly but surely. Smith has had many opportunities to walk this beautiful planet in multiple locations, so I sat down with her to discuss her experiences and what she has learned from journeying far and wide.

Smith has traveled to a total of seven beautiful countries: Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, Mexico, Canada, and Japan. Her favorite thing about the opportunity to travel is simply seeing the world for how it truly is and experiencing all of the different cultures and diverse ways of life. “I also love the wide variety of food,” claims Ellie. One of the only bummers Smith has come across so far is the dreadful jet lag. “It honestly sucks,” cries Smith.

Traveling is such a huge learning experience to whomever chooses to challenge themselves to lunge out of their “comfort zone” and take a leap of faith into the unknown. Smith realized that between her bountiful journeys, she has seen the world from so many different perspectives and saw just how beautiful the world really is. She has learned that whomever you travel with, you will become significantly closer to, and will easily create relationships you wouldn’t think of creating with them.

Ellie definitely plans on traveling in the future. She longs to visit Northern Europe and Thailand mainly because she enjoys the cold weather that the marvelous countries have to offer. She wishes to become a nurse. Knowing that nurses are needed worldwide, Ellie realized that “A career like nursing is so universal, so I could honestly be in different programs that allow me to travel.” She is also planning on studying abroad in college. She gladly realizes that she will probably be a traveling bum after she retires.

I spoke to junior Emily Mason, one of Smith’s good friends, regarding Ellie’s love for traveling. “She is crazy about travel!” Emily said. “Whenever she visits a new place, she could not sing enough praise about her experience, then begins to plan her next trip to a new destination.” Since Ellie has expressed her love of traveling to me, I question, “What propels her deep love of vast travels?” Ellie claims that she also really loves photography, so she enjoys capturing the views with the still photos of her beloved camera.

If the world were to be somehow placed into Smith’s hands, she would simply tip-toe her way around the planet graciously with the lust for breath taking views, and meeting beautiful souls. Happy traveling, Ellie.