Geology: A Possible Career Inspired by my Travels

Since the age of nine, I had always loved natural beauty. I could not resist smiling the moment my eyes met a mountain range or a large waterfall. When I was nine, I went to Switzerland with my family and I just couldn’t stop looking at the beautiful Alpine Range everywhere I went. I used to say “The beauty of mother nature” even though I had absolutely no clue how these enormous mountains were formed.

However, it wasn’t until sixth grade where my love of nature started evolving into my passion for geology. I had my first full year earth science class, in which we spent the first three quarters studying the basics of geology. We covered several topics including plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanoes, rocks, and erosion. Studying these were really interesting, even though it required a lot of effort and hard work. The thought of studying geology further did not come to me until I saw what I learned come to reality.

This was exactly what occurred during April vacation week later that year. We went on another trip to Turkey, in which the first stop was a region called Cappadocia. We saw several interesting rock formations, including mushroom-shaped rocks which were my favorite. Our guide explained that there was a volcano eruption many years ago and the rock eroded over time to create these formations. I was amazed at how I could use my recently acquired knowledge to piece together this information and understand which forces contribute to the magnificent masterpiece before my eyes!

We continued going to different geologically active places including the Grand Canyon, Cancun, and Peru. Therefore I have had a chance to see a variety of geological features. One of my favorites is the Atunci cave which we toured in Cancun. Each of these trips made me recollect, apply, and enrich the basic geology skills I learned in sixth grade, making me more fascinated in this field. I also started reading various articles on how geology influenced places that I have not visited and recent research/advancements in the field. Even though these activities are academically related, they serve as a break from my regular schoolwork and aid me in learning complex geologic processes, which I hope to study further in the future.