An exotic Vacation

Some people , when asked to imagine someplace exotic , are prone to think of places in the South Pacific , where native girls wear coconuts , the bugs are as big as footballs , and the tropical rainforest seems like it will swallow up every instance of civilization if given the chance However , for me , an exotic place is any place outside of my small little American existence . So , when I got to take a trip to Europe in the summer , it was not only exotic , but a life-changing experience . I learned that even though I consider

myself relatively worldly and educated , there are so many things I need to learn about history culture , and human psychology fortunately , my trip was a fine crash course on each

I took my trip to Europe with my older brother , making it a little easier and safer for me to enjoy it . I originally had plans to do the trip alone , fostering notions about backpacking through Europe and finding romance and adventure around every corner , but it took very little convincing to make me realize that going with him would be better for so many different reasons . He said we would be each other 's battle buddy ' and that was good enough for me . After the long plane ride , on which I slept most of the way , we landed at Heathrow Airport When I got off the plane , it surprised me a bit to see security guards walking around with machine guns , but I guess it is just something to get used to after September 11 , 2001 . Even with the ominous image of machine guns and reminders of terrorist violence , the feeling of being in a new country proved to powerful to ignore

My brother and I took the London Underground from the airport to Victoria station , which was close to where our hostel was located . For only twenty British pounds a night apiece , my brother and I stayed at the Curzon House Hotel , sharing a room with two other young vacationers from Germany . They spoke English very well and were about my age , so we got along very well together , despite what seemed like a very cramped situation . I was not used to the communal living of the hostel , which included having to walk down the hallway to use the bathroom , but it definitely had a dorm-type feel to it , which I could relate , and we would not be spending very long in it . In just a couple days , we were to get on a train and travel across Europe all the way down to Italy

After we got settled in a bit , we both decided to grab something to eat and went out into London to find a burger and a beer . Being able to drink legally was one of the great perks of going to Europe . On the first night my brother and I just wanted to relax and rest from the trip , but ended up visiting at least three pubs , which was a...