Bella Scipione

Jan 10 2024

Part one of two week Europe trip with my best high school friends. (Part two: Sun & moon, best friends).

It has been approximately 48 hours since my return back to London. I said goodbye to my three best high school friends, Caitlyn, Matthew, and Nick after spending two weeks together. Our goodbye was obviously bittersweet. The four of us grew closer than I could have ever imagined and now have stories to share and cherish for many more years to come. This year will be the 10 year anniversary of knowing and loving each other and if you were to tell the 14 year old versions of us about this trip, we would probably all laugh in your face. Our two weeks together was absolutely surreal and a dream that I am having a hard time waking up from.

Matthew, Caitlyn, and I started our adventure in Copenhagen, Denmark, spending Christmas together and walking and eating our way through the cute little city of Copenhagen. My college friend, Maddy and her roommate, Ava, also joined and the five of us enjoyed the luxuries of our hotel at the Villa Copenhagen. It’s always hard being away from family during the holidays so it felt nice being around friends that feel like home and are also family. Christmas Eve dinner was spent at the Hard Rock Cafe (yes, very American of us), while Christmas dinner was at a restaurant near the infamous canal of Nyhavn. The weather in Copenhagen was cold, rainy, and windy, so much of the trip was spent within the walls of our Villa.

On the 26th we all made our way to Berlin, Germany. The five us all had separated at this point, staying in different accommodations around the city. I was originally bummed out to be in a hostel by myself, but I took it as a learning opportunity and chance to explore the city solo. Besides my move to London, I had never stayed in hostels by myself. Parts of me doubted my ability to make new connections without my sister or friends. I always think it’s such a scary and uneasy feeling, but also a moment where I have to remind myself that people will love you for who you are if you let them.

My first solo day in Berlin was spent walking around the remains of the Berlin Wall and taking photos of graffiti in a nearby alley way. I’m such a nerd for our world’s most famous historical spaces; and it’s always such an eerie feeling standing in a place where war, conflict, or destruction has since been overcome with resilience and hope.

It was only 33 years ago when the Berlin Wall was eradicated by the people of Germany in 1990. A place where individuals and families were once separated by unjust politics and tyranny of the Soviet Union has since become a space of powerful art and community. After visiting the Wall, I decided it was a good idea to listen to a podcast to refresh my knowledge of the Cold War and existence of the Wall. I walked around, ate some lunch, and uncovered so much history in a short 45 minute span. This upcoming year I want to listen to more podcasts, and highly recommend that others do the same.

The podcast shared many interesting facts that stuck with me. The West and East sides of the Wall were covered in graffiti, a defiant gesture or statement of unrestricted artistic expression. It was the art, along with iconic Rock ‘n Roll performances that became beacons of hope for the people on each side of the Wall. Most notably, Bruce Springsteen’s four-hour debut of his ‘Tunnel of Love’ tour gave the youth of Eastern Germany the courage to decide what kind of life they wanted to live. He shared, “I am not for or against a government. I’ve come to play Rock ‘n Roll for you in hope that all barriers will be broken down”. His 1988 performance was shortly followed by the teardown of the Wall. And while I obviously don’t credit Springsteen and his epic rock performance to the fall of the Wall, I do believe it made many young East Berliner’s enthusiastic about change. The podcast served as a beautiful reminder that people have the power to be the change they want to see, and in todays world political climate, this is something that remains especially relevant.

I made friends with the people in my 10-bed hostel and hung out with them the next day. Yoni and Adam were friends from Portland who had been staying in Israel with family and decided to go on a Europe trip to enjoy life away from obvious political reasons. I enjoyed breakfast with them that morning, sharing stories and recommendations for future travels. Following breakfast, I met up with my Australian mates, Bianca and Grace, to walk up and down the East Berlin Gallery.

Bianca, Grace, and I bonded over our many similarities of love for music and adventure. I think the girls were definitely a sign from the universe and a reminder of how important human connection and compassion is. I feel like the two of them would be some of my best friends if we lived on the same continent, but for the time being I feel lucky to know them and share my love via Instagram from thousands of miles away.