Those who have never travelled, are an underprivileged bunch. They will never know the thrill of new things, and discovery, and the wonders of the world.
I know it's a bit of a bold statement, but that is truly how I feel about it. I have done it whenever time and money have permitted it, and even sometimes when they haven't. Being young and a student also makes things easier. I live in Toronto, but our university has always offered exchange programs with European and south-American schools, which I have found are the easiest way of travel, in that they are very cheap and you really get to be immersed in the foreign culture.
Last year, in fact I had a three month stay in Paris. It was one of the most amazing times of my life. I'm a history major, and there are not too many places in the world with more history than Paris. And so I was very excited when I found out that had been able to secure my place in the exchange program. It was to go from April until June, and we'd be studying at one of the numerous Paris universities. Now, I don't speak much French, nothing more than what we'd done in school, but the prospect of being thrown into a new environment without anything really to hang on to, was a tantalizing one, and so I counted the days until our departure.
The European lifestyle is so utterly different from our North American way of living that I was so surprised (mostly pleasantly) by what I was seeing. The people dressed differently, they walked differently, they thought differently. Everything looked so much more old and had so much more history. After all this is a city which still has some old building left from the days of the Romans.
However, being a 20 year old one of the things that really caught my eyes, were the women. They were so different from what I was used to. The best way I can put it, is that they are so much more feminine than north American women. And that is not just because of the way they dressed, which is far more chic and attractive, but also in the demeanor, and the way they walk and carry themselves. They are in general much more petite, they are much more graceful. Contrary to popular belief, they are NOT hairy (I think that's only in germany), they take care of themselves, and they look good and comfortable wearing what they do. They don't look they are dressing to be seen, or to show off; it all seems more natural. And they are much more friendly.
I remember it was my first day of classes, and I was walking around aimlessly with a map in my hand of the campus trying to find out where I had to go. I was utterly lost in fact. And as I stood there, one eye on the map, another eye on the buildings and trying to keep track of the lovely young ladies that were walking in all directions, I heard a voice "Tu as besoin d'aide?" I turned around and saw that one of the girls who had just walked by had stopped and was talking to me. She was beautiful. She light brown hair, and green-blue eyes. She was tall and thin, and with a lovely behind, which was well-displayed in the tight jeans she was wearing, and she had on boots (women wear boots much more often in France that in north America, which is a great thing). On top of she was wearing a form-fitting V-neck sweater and she had a black scarf around her neck.
I muttered something incoherent in my broken French. She turned back and came over. "tu ne parle pas francais?" I shook my head. "Maybe, English is easier then" she said in a lovely and relatively strong French accent. "Yes, yes" I said and nodded vigorously. I quickly explained I was an exchange student from Canada and that I barely spoke any French, and I had to get to this building. She looked at my piece of paper and laughed. "Good, it is same place I am going to. Come, walk with me". I quickly slung my bag over my shoulder and obediently followed her.
"What is your name, I am Sophie" she asked as we walked to class. I shook her hand, and savoured its softness. "Michael". "enchante mee-ka-ehl". I savoured the lovely manner she pronounced my name. Then she started to march and I started to tag along. I glanced over at her, drinking in her lovely form while she finished talking on her cell phone. I think that the woolly sweater v-neck was all she had on, because her nipples were pressing defiantly against the fabric of the sweater, and she had a small pendant around her neck which fit snugly in her lovely cleavage which was visible. Her hair had been done up, in a messy little bun on the back of he head. She finally finished her call and turned to me.
"I know that it is very hard to find your way around here if it is your first time. Let me see your sheet again". She took it from and then gave a light laugh. "In fact, you are in same class as me. Great!" By this time we'd reached the building and obviously she knew most of the people we passed, because she was saying "bonjour" and "salut" left and right. Finally we reached the room, and went in. It was a big class, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't quite intimidated by the fact that the whole thing would be in French. "Here, we can sit here". She led us up the stairs until we were half-way up the auditorium and then she went and sat on the seat near the isle, and motioned for me to take the seat behind her because most other seats were full.
"salut Sophie!" "hey, sebastien, salut"
She said this to the guy sitting next to her, and then leaned over and they kissed each other on the cheek two times. "Great" I thought, I guess that's her boyfriend. Then another guy who was sitting in the row in front of her turned around and they greeted each other and then she leaned forward and they kissed on the cheek as well. This afforded me a great view of her lovely behind once more and leaning forward the low-cut jeans revealed the pink thong she was wearing underneath. The little triangle of fabric as it ran between her cheeks and the two straps which went around her hips and waist.
I soon learned that kissing on the cheek was a very normal way of greeting each other in Europe and had nothing to do with being in a relationship. Despite knowing deep inside that I really didn't have a chance with this lovely angel, I still felt happy that the guy next to her wasn't her boyfriend.