It has been a considerable amount of time since my last update, 47 days to be exact.

Four weeks ago I landed back on US soil. My parents greeted me with smiles, hugs and numerous sighs of relief as I exited the international arrivals hall in Boston, Massachusetts with my luggage in tow. Over the days that followed I began sorting through the numerous items I mailed home during my time away. The time has come to document and provide a few stories that happened during my final three weeks circling the globe.

After a few days walking around the streets of Paris gawking at landmarks and museum artifacts, I boarded a high-speed train to Brussels, Belgium. Belgium was scheduled to be my final country in Europe before I flew to Morocco on the northwest coast of Africa. During my short stint in Belgium, I made a day trip to Gent and managed to avoid the raindrops as I walked along the photogenic canals that attract locals and visitors alike.

Two days prior to departing for Morocco I attended Rock Werchter, a four-day music festival that occurs every summer south of Brussels. I purchased a ticket to the final day whose headliners included Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and Florence and the Machine. With heavy rains forecasted, I packed a raincoat into my backpack and set out for the festival grounds. Torrential downpours on Day 3 turned the grounds into a soupy mess of mud and soggy grass. Outside of a few quick showers, the weather cooperated and rays of sunshine poked through the clouds at times. Two of the early bands that caught my attention were Vintage Trouble and Bear’s Den, hailing from the US and UK respectively. Other highlights included Beck leading the crowd in a rousing rendition of “Loser” and Iggy Pop showing his age yet still drawing a massive following. Florence and the Machine closed out with night and weekend with a sixteen-song set that included their popular hits.

I was a bit worried about the modes of available transport available to me after the festival. The last train from Leuven to Brussels ran at 12:15am with the next departing at 4:42am. I was prepared to wait for the first morning train but hoped I would be able to share a taxi with other festivalgoers. The show ended and I walked with an eager pace to the awaiting buses for transport to the Leuven train station. I glanced at my watch and it was after midnight; I was too late for the 12:15am train. I departed the bus and walked to the front of the train depot hoping to jump in a group taxi. I milled around and was approached by someone asking if I needed a taxi to Brussels. I nodded excitedly and he invited me to join himself and three friends in a nearby livery.

There was a bit of confusion as we walked forward. A fellow concertgoer pointed down the road and informed us a group of buses were shuttling people to Brussels free of charge. We decided to forego the taxi and head towards the buses. We climbed aboard and I sat back happy to have avoided waiting for the 4:42am train. It took two buses and a short taxi ride but I eventually arrived outside the main Brussels train station shortly before 3am. From there it was a short one-mile walk back to my hostel in the city center.

It was now early Monday morning and my flight to Morocco was just over 24 hours away. I needed to checkout of my hostel by 11am and proceed to my reserved hotel room near the airport. This room would allow me to sleep a little later the following morning and avoid catching trains and buses to the airport. Everything went as planned and I settled into my hotel room in the early afternoon hours. The following hours passed in a blur as I prepared my belongings for Morocco. As I settled down in bed I pulled out my guidebook to research accommodations in Tangier and Chefchaouen, two cities in Northern Morocco. Satisfied with my quick research I closed my reference book and flipped off the light. It was time to leave Europe behind and head off to Africa, my sixth continent visited in the last twelve months. Little did I know that my biggest travel faux pas during my nine months on the road awaited me in the early morning hours.