The Huffington Post recently published a list of 10 places every child must visit. On the list: The Smithsonian, Yellowstone and Ellis Island. I remember when I was a kid and my parents somehow found it in their souls to take to all of those places.  We were a big traveling family and my parents wanted me to see (and learn about) everything. Unfortunately, instead of taking in the beauty of the Grand Canyon, I sat in the dirt and cleaned up my Tamogotchi’s poop.

In a nutshell: I didn’t let it all sink in, learn something or enjoy it.
And I’m sure I wasn’t the only one.

However, now that we’re all grown up in college, we are presented with the perfect opportunity (and maturity) to do some exploring and really experience some cool things.  Some of these things we couldn’t appreciate entirely when we were little munchkins not old enough to play beer pong at a real, living, breathing frat party.  And some of these things we won’t be able to appreciate to the same extent when we’re out of college.

So while our minds are human sponges and we’ve got loads of time, it’s time to explore the top ten places every college student must see.

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Your college experience flies by so fast that you’re often stuck standing in line for graduation wondering where the past four years went. You vaguely remember meeting your best friend when she held your hair back after your first frat party and you kinda remember that all-nighter you pulled to get 3 term papers done in one night. But the rest is a blur of theme parties, walks of shame, and begging your older sister for her fake ID.

Before you know it, you’re out in the real world, working a real job alongside real people, wondering what happened to no-class Friday and $3 pitchers. And trust me, it ain’t fun.

It gets pretty easy to get caught up in it all and forget to be young and crazy. That’s why, with only a little way’s to go until I hit the big 2-5, I’ve put together the ultimate list of everything we, as fun-loving and fearless women, need to accomplish before we turn 25.

1. Have a really good one-night stand with a gorgeous guy. Forget about your personalities matching up and forget about Facebooking him the next day. Appreciate the smoking hot naked body…and take some Plan B in the morning just in case, because if you did it right, you have no way of ever contacting him.

2. Do an illegal drug. Otherwise your kids will think you’re totally lame 30 years down the road when they’re all like “Mom, I bet you were so wild and fun back in the  ’10s” and you’ll have to respond “well, one time I drank beer before liquor.”

3. Live in another country (even if it’s just for a short period of time). You’ll get an entirely new perspective on our country, on the world, and on how far reaching American scandals go in other countries. Nothing like your Spanish host mom bringing up Monica Lewinsky years after the fact.

4. Travel on the cheap. Pick a destination and do it up, backpacking-style. Stay in hostels, eat unidentifiable food, and make sure to have anti-diarrhea medicine on hand. Once you’re over 25, your body will no longer be able to stomach staying in those places, eating that food, and experiencing food poisoning in front of a ton of foreign strangers.

5. Confront a fear. Doesn’t matter if it’s a fear of heights or a fear of spiders, figure out a way to face it head on just once.

6. Be brave and be bold and have sex with the lights on. He’ll find you even sexier, which will only boost your own self-confidence.

7. Splurge on an awesome pair of jeans that fit you really well. Bonus points if they also fit your completely different-sized best friends just as well and make magical things happen.

8. Apologize to someone you were mean to in middle school. Except for that one girl who didn’t need braces, everyone was feeling insecure and left out in those days. A quick Facebook message apology will brighten her day.

9. Make a real guy friend who is really just a friend. As in you don’t want to ever see him naked and he doesn’t ever want to see you naked. No points if you’re related.

10. Get a job working with food or working with clothes. You’ll never treat your waiters,  your bartenders, your salespeople the same way ever again. You’ll suddenly understand why they ask you to get off the phone when you’re ordering and why they request that you take your clothes out of the dressing room.

11. Figure out what kind of wine you actually like. There is life beyond Franzia and you’ll feel so mature and adult when you can tell a date that you prefer a dry Chardonnay over a sweeter Pinot. The best way to figure this out on the cheap? Go on a wine tour. You’ll sort things out real quick. Oh, and learn how to work a corkscrew. No wine is enhanced by chunks of cork floating around.

12. Take a roadtrip with your friends. The destination doesn’t matter. As Miley Cyrus once “sang,” it’s all about the climb. Nothing brings friends closer than endless games of “Count the Cracker Barrels,” hours upon hours of deep conversations (out come the family secrets!), and Disney sing-a-longs.

13. Try an exotic food you can’t pronounce.

14. Go to a college football game and go all out. Paint your face, lose your voice from cheering, and tailgate like a rockstar.

15. See a Broadway show. Even the most cynical people leave a show happy.

16. Go 24 hours media-free. That means turn off your cell phone and shut down your computer. With the exception of getting tagged in heinous photos that you can’t de-tag right away, you won’t miss anything.

17. Skinny dip.

18. Give back to the community. Whether it’s building houses for Habitat for Humanity, participating in a campus Relay for Life, or standing for days on end for a Dance Marathon, you’ll have an awesome time and feel really, really good about yourself. After a 12 hour nap, of course.

19. Learn to do your own taxes and how to manage your own money. It will make that transition into real life so. much. easier.

20. Take your parents out to a nice dinner. Because they deserve it.

21. Start a blog about your life and update it regularly. Sure it seems self-centered now, but you’ll be grateful ten years from now when you can reflect on your life when you were really living it up.

22. Go to a Pride Parade. There is nothing on earth as fun, happy and memorable than a parade dedicated to gay pride.

23. Go to Vegas and let go. Party hard, then party harder. Then hit up an all-you-can-eat buffet to sober up…so you can party again.

24. Learn to drive a manual car. They’re cheaper and, really, it’s just a cool party trick. Plus, from what we hear, it’s a major turn-on for guys.

25. Donate blood. If you think donating is scary, imagine being the person who needs it during a blood shortage. And if that’s not enough, there are cookies.

Let’s face it: we all make stupid decisions. Like choosing a fifth over a review session, or bringing that guy home…who stole our iPod in the morning. That’s part of college life… and a big part of what makes it so memorable. But there are some choices that have longer lasting repercussions; things we do now that will haunt us later.

So here are the 11 things from your 20’s you will most definitely regret when you’re 40.

11. Risque Internet Photos: What’s the point of having technology if you can’t use it to send a naughty pre-shower photo to your BF? Nothing will turn him on quite like a naked photo popping up in his inbox while he’s brushing up on his Stats knowledge. You trust him, so what’s the worst that could happen? How about a break up? Or the “forward” button? No matter what you think, those photos are going to come back and bite you in the (naked-with-a-spot-of-cellulite) ass. Just show him the real thing and let him turn to his imagination (or internet porn) for a mid-class pick me up.

10. Trendy Tats: You totally love butterflies/stars/unicorns now, but I can bet money that you won’t want them plastered on the top of your foot or your lower back forever. No one wants to see a mom with a rose tattoo on her left shoulder, so think before you ink.

9. Choosing guys over your girls: You get caught up in your relationship sometimes and blow off the girls. Fine, we get it. But when sometimes turns into “What the hell ever happened to Mary?” there is a problem. Especially when Mr. Douche Bag finally breaks up with you and you come crawling back to the girls with a tub of Edy’s and a box of tissues and they aren’t there to wipe the snot from your cheek. Do you really want to spend the rest of your days holed up in a dirty apartment watching your man play Rock Band and chug Natty Light? Learn the balance, honey.

8. Getting married too young: I’ve seen it too many times – people graduate, freak out and hold onto whatever they can of their youth. And they get married.  And become super lame married people. It may be pure bliss now (and lots and lots of kitchen-ware), but just think about all the awesome stuff you will miss by being tied down in your twenties, all that freedom: to travel when you want, to take a job wherever you want, to sleep with whomever you want, to party as late as you want, to discover yourself, to sleep with whomever you want…. Plus, do you really want pictures of your friends doing keg stands in your wedding album? I thought not.

7. Smoking: Mmmm tobacco. It feels so good when it hits (and consequently blackens) your lungs. Especially after you’ve had a few Rum and Diets. And you look so cool doing it. But you know what doesn’t feel good? Chemo. And you know what doesn’t look cool? Your wrinkley face or your kids stealing the pack from your tobacco stained purse and trying it for the first time. When they are 6. This sh*t will kill you, so stop it. Right now! Seriously, put down that Marlboro Light, sister.

6. Not traveling enough: Trust me on this one – you will never have the time, money or freedom to travel like you do now.  Pretty soon you’ll be working late nights and counting down the minutes until the that will be chock full of grocery runs and Bed, Bath and Beyond trips. Try finding time in that busy schedule to jet-set to Europe and “find yourself.” Pack your bags and see the world now, before you’re too old to experiment with drugs in Amsterdam and enjoy a ping pong show in Bangkok.  Pick up a travel book and start planning!

5. Bad Credit: You can’t live without that Coach bag right now. You just have to have that DVF dress for the date party. Everyone else has an iPhone and you want one too. You’ll just charge it and worry about it later, right? Wrong, bitches. Ruining your credit now on stupid stuff (yes, I am telling you that bag is a stupid investment) will totally eff things up for you in the future. Things like getting a house, a car, a boyfriend (bad credit is a total turn-off) and sometimes even a job. Spend wisely, ladies. That bag is going to be out of style in .25 seconds anyway.

4. Not finishing school: Do we really even need to mention this one? Could you think of anything you’d regret more when you are 40 and working the checkout lane at your neighborhood Wal-mart? That is, assuming, you can even get that job in this economy.

3. Pre-vacation tanning: You tell yourself that you just want to get a base tan before Spring Break in Cabo. Sure, you will look fiiiine in that white shift dress for the 6 days after you return, but that wrinkley, skin cancer-ed mess is not going to look so hot when you’re 40 and you look like a Sharpei.

2. Stilettos: Part of becoming a woman is rockin’ the hottest pair of the highest heels. They make your legs look sick (that’s a good thing), make the men beg, and your jeans are too long to wear with anything lower. Why wouldn’t you wear them? I’ve got one hyphenated word for you: hammer-toes. You want to spend the later part of your life looking at that in a sandal?  Make your Feet Happy with these ultra comfy and cute socks..

(Editor’s note: I was going to put a picture of a gross foot here, but you Google “gross feet in sandals” and tell me how it makes you feel.)

1. “It feels better without condoms” sex: You’ll probably regret this one right off the bat as you spend your senior year chasing a kid around the dorms, but you’ll seriously regret it later when you look back at your life and realize how much you missed out on because you were busy changing diapers and bouncing a kid on your knee. Oh, and no one likes a woman with a bumpy vagina. I’m just sayin’; those genital warts will never go away.

- I wish I would have known that all the guys I had crushes on would get fat and bald in five years.
- I wish I knew how scary and overwhelming my first year out of college would be.
- I really wish someone would have told me how bad I looked in shirts that showed my belly.

Had I known these things, who knows how my life would have turned out? I know I wouldn’t have spent so much time pining over dumb boys, crying myself to sleep for a year, or hiding my Senior Year photo album (because we had real, tangible photo albums back in 2005) under a pile of old clothes right now.

And that is why I would like to share a few things with you. I am your future (a fabulous, successful, happy, sexy, awesome, etc. girl) and I know what is to come. Allow me to guide you in your choices – based on all I have seen in my 5 years (gasp!) since graduating – to ensure you make the right choices and don’t end up with the same regrets I have.

1. Go Abroad! With only 4 short years on campus I didn’t want to miss out on a full semester by going abroad, so I didn’t join three of my roommates in Australia for 6 months. I ended up having a great time on campus that semester, but after hearing about my friends’ adventures and experiences, I realized what a mistake I’d made. Especially now that I’m in the real world and the opportunity to spend 6 months in another country is no longer available. Studying abroad – even if just for a summer – is truly a once in a lifetime experience and if you have the opportunity and the means, DO IT. I didn’t and that is the biggest regret in my life.

2. Travel! I know this seems absurd – especially considering the economy right now – but everyone should take a backpacking trip through Europe/South America/Southeast Asia/anywhere! at some point during college or right after graduation. Besides not going abroad, this is the biggest mistake I made in my life. I chose spending the summer with my BF over seeing Europe with my BFFs and now I don’t have 3-6 weeks (or any friends who have 3-6 weeks) to take a trip like that. The real world puts a lot of constraints on you (money, time, responsibility); college is the only time you’ll have the time and the crew to do something like that. It is definitely money worth spending.

3. Start Saving Money. Ironic that this comes right after I urge you to blow your money on a trip to Europe, but stay with me. Not only will you need money to take a trip abroad (duh), but real life gets real expensive, real fast. I blew threw my entire savings (which was like $1,000) in my first 2 weeks in NYC. And that was scary. If I had only known how quickly that money would be gone when I was a senior, I probably would have cut back on the Starbucks/Jimmy John’s runs and saved a whole lot more.

4. Take the GRE/GMAT. Senior year is not the time you really want to be bogged down and studying for some dumb test, but DO IT. Even if you have zero plans to go to grad school now, you never know if you’ll want to (or need to) go in the future. Trust me on this one, it’s a lot less painful to study for that test now than to find the time between work and real life later.

5. Live It Up. School should always be your number one priority, but make sure to get out there and enjoy that college lifestyle to its fullest. Don’t let drama or BS ruin your time ; get out there and have fun. Yes, the real world can be a good time too (I am extremely happy!), but it will never be like college again.

There’s a great many things to do and places to see in this world of ours.  As humans, our lives are pretty short (and if you party like I do, it’s probably going to be even shorter).  So we have to prioritize!  We have brains for a reason and that reason is…reasoning (well, at least some of us use them for that purpose: see comment about partying above).  Let me be your voice of reason as I show you all the things you should be doing right here, right now.

Let’s look at the facts – our economy is bad, everyone is cutting back, no one has money (maybe that’s just me), and even the weather is bad.   If there was ever a time that vacations were needed, it’s now.  Whatever happened to the glory days of the traditional random college backpacking trip or the “I need to find myself” adventure to who-knows-where?  Well, go find yourself!  Actually, I already found you – you’re in Japan. And you’re having the time of your life.

Here’s just a few of the reasons why you should go to Japan:

Hot Guys – Scoff if you must, but Japanese guys are very good looking.  High cheekbones, sweet lips, fabulous hair, impeccable style, etc.  They also tend to be edgy (underground music scene and such) and they know how to party (think long nights stomping around the different bars, clubs, and karaoke rooms of Tokyo).  But they’re not all play – these guys know how to put their pretty noses to the grindstone and they come out all sexy and intelligent on the other end (having a job doesn’t hurt, either).

Fashion – If you want new fashion and edgy style, then Tokyo is your city.  They are unafraid to try new things and you’ll see some things walking around that you’d never have thought of…until you saw it next year on a runway in Milan.  Luckily, most of the cool stuff is pretty cheap because they love a good deal in Japan.  Find your way to Harajuku or Shibuya (both parts of Tokyo) and you’ll come out with bags upon bags of happy.  Just expect some serious stares when you get back to the US.

Food – The immediate thought is, of course, “sushi.”  Sushi is amazing in Japan, but much the same as the good-quality sushi restaurants that we have here in the US.  If you really want good food, get yourself to the countryside or some city street vendors.  Can you say “yakitori”??  Well, you will after a couple glasses of plum wine.  Don’t forget – Japan is the place that Kobe beef come from, so you can never go wrong with a beef dish.

History -  If you’re a history buff (or you’re just looking to give some validation to your random trip to Japan by visiting castle and whatnot), then you probably are already aware of all the amazing things that are packed into that tiny little island.  Monuments are a favorite of Japanese people and you will probably notice the massive amounts of schoolchildren in cute little uniforms blocking your view of the giant wooden Buddha or whichever monument you choose to see.

Scenery – To start, the architecture is amazing.  Tokyo is arguably the most beautiful modern city in the world, filled with lights and shiny objects (yayyy shiny objects!).  Kyoto is another amazing city, filled with equal parts old-school temples and buildings as well as the technological wonders you find in Tokyo.  Venturing beyond cities, you’ll find mountains and rolling fields of awesomeness, not to mention the seaside and even a big inland freshwater lake!

Culture – From tea ceremonies to karaoke, you’ll never want for an interesting cultural experience.  More often than not, you’ll feel like a fish out of water, hopelessly opening and closing your mouth while you gape at whatever is happening in front of you.  But don’t worry!  Japanese people are, for the most part, very friendly and warm and they will do all they can to include you in their culture…even if that means pushing a prayer stick  in your hand and then making you walk across a pile of burning logs.  But I digress…

When you come back from Japan, you’ll be stylish, experienced, well-traveled, and sporting a couple of hot Japanese boy toys.  And, if you were a good little traveler, you’ll be able to impress your friends with some sweet Japanese phrases (“Watashi no nihongo wa heta desu!”) while you make them look at all your photos.

1. Get a job.
2. Go to grad school.
3. Live at home and freak out about the future.

I don’t know about you, but none of these options sound very appealing to me. I prefer an option that is a bit outside the norm: travel.

That’s right. If you’re graduating, I’m here to convince you to put off getting a job and spend at least three weeks (and preferably more) in a new place or country. I went to India for five weeks right after I finished my post-grad fellowship, and it was one of the most amazing trips I’ve ever taken.

There are always reasons not to travel. It costs too much. It’s impossible to get that much time off. Your best friend won’t go with you. But those aren’t good reasons, and there are definitely ways around them all. If major post-grad travel is cost-prohibitive for you, consider doing a volunteer program in another country that will cover the costs of your airfare and lodging (surprisingly common).

If you already work a job and don’t have high hopes for getting time off, sit down and have an honest talk with your supervisor. If you seriously want to travel, your enthusiasm will come through, and as long as your supervisor isn’t a jerk, he or she should be willing to work with you to figure out how you can do it.

And if your best friend won’t go on a trip with you, compromise. Invite them along for just half the journey, or bring an adventurous acquaintance who you don’t know very well (yet).

The fact is, there are too many reasons why you should travel right now for you to ignore them. As you get older, more and more obligations will pile up for you, and you’ll have all sorts of things tying you to a place or a person or a career. Now is likely as free as you’ll ever be, so take advantage of it. Get out and see the world!

What’s a girl to do?

A few years ago, I backpacked through Greece with a close friend. We spent eight days traveling throughout the country, taking ferries, visiting the islands, lounging on the beach and shopping. It was a fabulous vacation and we both managed to spend under $1000! How did we save so much money? We didn’t eat huge meals, took transportation during off-peak hours and stayed in hostels.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: hostels are gross! And to tell you the truth, they are. But, if you’re traveling in Europe and want to save a few bucks, you’re going to have to stay in them. Keeping that in mind, here are a few tips for hostel survival and general vacation budgeting from someone who’s been there:

1) Never travel alone- It’s always best to have a buddy with you, especially if you’re staying in large communal rooms. Although I traveled with a girl friend, having a boy around definitely couldn’t hurt.

2) Book ahead for your first night- Even if you’re planning on winging it and staying wherever your feet (or that strange European train) take you, you’re going to want to have a guaranteed bed your first night, so figure out where you’re staying before you leave the country. For the remainder of the trip you can use the hostel’s computer or go to a local Internet cafe to book your stays the day of. By booking last minute, you can choose your next destination based on the price of a room…

3) Think about going suitcase-less- If they’re making me pay $15 a bag just to fly from Boston to Baltimore, I can only imagine how much they’ll charge to bring my suitcase all the way to Europe. Instead, try to consolidate your clothing, toiletries, etc into something you can carry on the plane. Think about it this way: you’ll not only save money but also have less stuff to schlep around from place to place.

4) Bring shower shoes- Even if you’re packing light, you can re-wear them on the beach. Communal showers are disgusting. End of story.

5) Take the top bunk- My second night in the hostel in Athens, I found myself tossing and turning and unable to sleep. I kept having this dream that the guy in the bed next to me was watching me. Well, it wasn’t a dream. When I opened my eyes, the creepy guy was staring at me. Plus, his feet were in my bed. Now, I realize that creepy guys can still watch you sleep when you’re in the top bunk bed, but they’ll definitely be less likely to try to climb in bed with you. Another option would be to ask ahead and see if they have an all female room. Yeah, you could run into some crazy ladies, but they’re a lot less threatening than creepy stalker men!

6) Skip the communal room and “splurge” on a private one- If the above story or that awful movie Hostel (which I refuse to see) freak you out, you should definitely get a private room. The night after the incident, my friend and I opted for a hotel. But honestly, you don’t really have to do that; the price of private rooms is not all that much higher than staying in a communal room, especially if you’re traveling in a big group.

7) Take advantage of the hostel’s knowledgeable staff- Want to find the hottest beach or the best place to get a cheep beer? The people working at the hostel are your best bet. Sometimes they can even give you restaurant coupons; I know we scored 10% off our first Greek meal simply by asking for restaurant recommendations!

8 ) Don’t go to Starbucks- It’s not like you don’t have 5 of them on your campus already. Why spend money on an already overpriced drink at a boring American location, when you can discover a little cafe unique to your destination?

What are your money saving vacation tips?

Then my dreams are dashed when I realize that I do, in fact, have responsibilities that need to be attended to…and even if I didn’t, I don’t have thousands to throw away on a trip around the world. So, what is this 20-something to do? Well, realistically…I go on Facebook and check out the pictures my friends took back in 2005 when they went abroad.

Then I stumbled on an application that looked a bit curious…Trip Up CouchSwap!

It’s perfect! It merges reality and fantasy and wraps them up into one attainable goal for us travel-loving college kids. Poor college kids sleeping on other poor college kid’s couches…for cheap (or free)? Sounds like a typical Saturday! What more could we need?

I’ll tell you: CouchSurfing.com

Here the idea branches out even further into it’s own little social network where people around the world document and rate the travel accommodation they’ve received by traveling backpacker-style.

Now, I’m the first to admit to a little too much trust in my fellow man (or woman, whatever) and the idea of getting murdered while taking a nap on some person’s futon doesn’t really cross my mind…while you may be thinking there’s no way you’ll ever allow some random to take you in. Well, I’m officially calling you out.

Sure, you gotta be careful, but loosen up!

I think it’s high time those of us too stressed out to think about anything but getting away take full advantage of sites like these. We deserve a vacation…even if it means sleeping on a sofa.