Keeping An Open Mind

It is almost impossible to travel without having some sort of expectations.  I always have an idea of the way that I think things are supposed to be like.  One thing that I have really learned through my trip is to try my hardest to get rid of expectations or pre-conceived notions and just have an open mind.  For instance, a lot of people who went to Paris on a weekend trip came back extremely disappointed.  They talked about how dirty it was, or how rude people were, and that it just did not measure up to their expectations.  This put me in a bad mind set because I had been seriously DYING to go to Paris my entire life, and I was no longer excited for it.  However, I absolutely loved Paris!  The sights were literally breathtaking, the food and wine was mouth watering, and people were above and beyond friendly and helpful to my friends and I!  Not only was I overwhelmingly happy that I did end up loving Paris the way I always dreamed I would, it helped me to really start embracing just going with the flow, and learning that often times that leads to being pleasantly surprised.