BY CASSANDRA LITTLEWOOD                                                                                                                               ONLINE CONTRIBUTOR

Image courtesy of Maugli

The salty water eased in and out of the shore. Sometimes it skimmed my toes while other times it enveloped them, swirling sand around my ankles and toes. Breathing in the fresh, salty air of the Amalfi coast in Italy, I was completely relaxed...Haha, just kidding! I spent my summer cleaning and cutting grass and not having the Italian ocean swirl sand around my feet. In fact, I did not get to travel this summer (and haven’t had the chance to for a couple summers now.)While I am SO thankful that I was able to work full time this summer, looking at pictures of my friends who were having fun travelling, seeing new places and overall, thoroughly enjoying their summer I felt a little disheartened.Seeing that I’ve only left Canada once (on a road trip to Michigan so not that far outside our borders) I have a long (long) list of places that I want to visit. I joke with my friends that when I see Michelangelo’s painted ceiling in the Sistine Chapel I will cry real tears of joy over such a marvellous work of art and being able to experience it (and this is only one site that graces the list).Seeing your friends see amazing locations while travelling feels like a distant dream can feeling disheartening. So if you’re like me and have reached the end of summer without another stamp in your passport, there are some fun ways to get out of the no-travel funk.Whenever I feel that I’m disappointed by my lack of travel, I just take a step back and look at what I do have. This goes for whenever you have the green eye of jealousy over anything (this is actually a lesson I learned from the Bernstein Bears- proving this children’s show has relevancy long after I’ve stopped watching it). I like to remind myself that I was really lucky to find a full time job this summer and that it really helped pay for school. This is one big thing I was thankful for this summer among other things like being able to spend time with family, friends, pets (!!!), the list can go ON.Remind yourself that you have YEARS to travel (YEARS I tell you!) Your current situation is not your forever circumstance and one day there will be an opportunity to see the wonders of the world. You have different prioritizes now but one day, travelling will get to be higher on that list.Get off your friend’s Instagram who just travelled the whole universe and experience something for yourself. Whether it be a restaurant you always wanted to try or an activity you always wanted to do, do it! Start crossing off some items off your list that are more local to your area.Sure, maybe travelling wasn’t in the cards for this summer but why steep your tea in that when you could be soaking up the last of the summer rays and making the best of summer 2017? (There’s no reason, go have some fun ya’ll).