Prior to graduating from university, I decided that I would take the trip of a lifetime and backpack my way through Europe. It took all winter to plan and psych myself up for it, and was well worth it. I took this trip with two cousins of mine, and realized quite quickly, that you get to know quite a bit about yourself, and those you travel with on such a trip.
As the trip wore on, I began to discard of clothing and toiletries to take some of the weight off my back !!!