Roos van de Logt, bachelor’s student in Biology
‘I visited Ecuador before I started studying. Now that I have finished my bachelor’s, I will travel back to South America, to Peru and Colombia. I am both better and less prepared for this trip: I have a better idea of what to expect, but I have less planned out. I feel that this way, adventure is easier to find. I can decide on the spot to stay longer in a specific location and perhaps even find some work.
I really want to learn how to be a traveller, instead of a tourist who merely checks off a list of Lonely Planet recommendations. That’s why I want to get in touch with the locals: it is the best way to get to know a country and its language and culture. Establishing contacts is important and informative, but I am a bit shy by nature, so there’s room for improvement there.
There are many other things I want to do as well: improve my Spanish and learn to surf and dance salsa. But what I want most is to gain a lot of experience in practice: when studying, you are taught how to devise plans, but not how to execute them. There are so many practical aspects that you are unaware of. I want to experience these, so that I can integrate all that knowledge.
I really hope I will get very bored. At home, you have a life: there is always something to do. That is nice, but that background noise is ever present. By leaving all my belongings and worries behind, I hope to have more freedom. To allow me to draw a tree for three hours, if I feel like it, for example.’