Telling Bournemouth locals that I chose here to study abroad always elicits the same reaction, "Why Bournemouth? It's so small, I don't see why anyone would travel so far to just come here." This reminded me so much of what I'd heard throughout my years growing up in Roxbury. This is what my peers and I had said for the entirety of our adolescents, making ourselves and our town out to be so small and insignificant- but now I know better.
Yes, New York can be exhilarating, morning croissants in Montreal are the best indulgence, the architecture of London is something to marvel at, Paris will be a dream and Dublin is going to be like visiting an old friend... but nothing is like a Sunday walk atop the cliffs of Bournemouth that overlook the beach.
The back roads of Kentucky feel like the hidden grottos from storybooks, the Roxbury diner will always feel like a little nook of home in the world, and sunsets in Montclair are like watching the world ignite in a smattering of vibrant color.
Traveling is an unequaled part of the human experience, but ultimately I find that it's not where on the map that I happen to be or any big name places I go that I find these things, but the way in which I choose to see them.
So why Bournemouth? Because it is positively magical, you just have to look.
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