I have the amazing opportunity to travel abroad with a hand-picked group of highly motivated students from my high school in the summer of 2016 to the historically and culturally vibrant countries of Spain, Italy, and France. This trip is scheduled through EF Tours, an educationally-oriented travel program that organizes trips abroad that will influence a student's global perspective and allow them to experience firsthand the amazing historical and cultural monuments studied in school. I am especially looking forward to this trip because I love European history and would love to see il Duomo in Florence, the volcanoes of Pompeii, La Sagrada Familia, and the lush lavender fields of Provence. This travel abroad opportunity will really allow me to open my eyes to the beautiful culture that exists in the Mediterranean and also get in touch once more with my strong Italian roots. I plan on attending an in-state four year university, hopefully either UNC Chapel Hill or Duke University, in the fall of 2016 and I know that this incredible experience will get me started on the path to better understanding the complexity and relations of the world.