Almost anyone would say they’d like to travel around the world with the appeal of adventure, allure of the unknown and opportunity to literally broaden one’s horizons.

Few make this lofty goal a reality, but Grand Valley State University senior Travis Rabenberg is currently finalizing his plans to do just that.

With one semester left before obtaining his degree in engineering, Rabenberg has instead decided to embark on an international trip before returning to GVSU to finish the traditional part of his education.

Rabenberg’s love of travel was sparked four years ago when he studied abroad in Australia, where he said one of his favorite parts was getting to meet new people. Since then he has visited 14 other countries.

“It’s such an experience to learn the cultures,” he said.

Though Rabenberg is only one semester from his degree, he said now is the optimal time to go because he can still use STA Travel, a student discount travel agency, to help book the trip. The discounts only apply to students younger than 26. Now 24, Rabenberg will turn 25 during the trip.

Years in the making, now only a few weeks remain before his Nov. 15. departure date. He hopes to return by June 1, 2011 after starting in Australia, ending in England and making numerous stops in between.

To prepare for the journey, Rabenberg sold his car and his motorcycle in addition to setting aside extra money. He also researched different travel options through Rough Guide’s “First-time around the world” by Doug Lansky. He has since signed up for Couch Surfers, a website that matches wanderers with couches in foreign places, and also plans to stay in hostels and with friends along the way.

“You can travel the world. There’s nothing holding you back,” Rabenberg said, as his main message to fellow students. “Travel doesn’t have to be expensive.”

Rabenberg also hopes to work along the way during his seven-month trip. In this way, he hopes to gain valuable work experience and network to help with his post-graduate career.

“I’ve learned there’s always more than one answer per problem,” he said. “Different countries have different solutions.”

He hopes to learn as much as possible about these different approaches to everyday problems during the trip, a goal which Dr. Chris Pung, a GVSU engineering professor, agreed is worthwhile.

“Any of these kind of things, as far as trips abroad, are a big help for giving students new perspective on how different cultures do things,” said Pung, who teaches product design and manufacturing and has had Rabenberg in multiple classes.

The engineering school has a three-semester co-op program, which encourages students to complete one of the semesters abroad to gain more experience.

Rabenberg said his friends and family have also been very supportive of his goals so far.

“My mom says this will teach me more than college,” Rabenberg said. “She says there’s a gap between books and the real world.”

He said others have admired his ambition to tackle the world on his own.

Though Rabenberg will make the trip alone, which he says will help him mingle with other groups and make more connections along the way, some friends will join him in Thailand for the Full Moon Party, an event that draws anywhere from 10,000 to 30,000 people.

Nick Miller, a student at Ferris State University who previously attended Grand Rapids Community College, met Rabenberg during a trip to Jamaica and said he thinks Rabenberg has the personality to make this trip a success.

“I’m sure he will meet many more people, which will open up a lot of cool opportunities,” Miller said. “This kid is about to do what we all dream and talk about doing, but we never commit.”

Along the way, Rabenberg plans to bungee jump, ski, watch base jumping, dirt bike and shark dive.

His trip will take him from Australia to Singapore, Thailand, Nepal, China, Egypt, Dubai, Monaco, Austria, Germany, Ireland, Sweden, Norway and England.

Rabenberg is still looking for support for his trip in terms of airline miles, financial assistance or simply Facebook followers. He started a group, “Trekking with Trav,” on Facebook where he will post photos and weekly video blogs along the way.

“It will follow along the entire trip,” he said. “You’ll experience it with me.”

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