First of all, hats off to you for making the phenomenal decision to study abroad! So why am I making you look at this photo of me any my friend on a boardwalk? To you, you may see two girls at a beach on a sunny, but still very cold day. To me, this is photo is a reminder of one of many extraordinary moments of my time abroad so far. For those of you about to go abroad, I want to be real with you about what to expect when abroad and how to get the most out of it.
Let me preface this post by saying how extraordinary abroad is and that I have truly loved my experience. That being said future abroad-goers tend to be relentlessly bombarded with stories of how amazing abroad is and how it changed everyone's who has spent a semester abroad. While this is true for some, it also isn't true for everyone. Don't get me wrong, I've absolutely loved my time abroad as it really has broken up the monotony of my undergraduate career (8 semesters in one place is just a long time no matter where you are) but I think it's important to have realistic expectations going into abroad. One of the most important things is just to be real with yourself and say "hey this entire semester won't, and can't, be like a fairy tale" but it'll definitely be pretty darn amazing. Living abroad is still just living, it's just in another place. Being abroad can change you, but only if you work for it - it's most likely not just going to happen to you.
For me, my abroad experience became a hundred times better after I realized that I should stop worrying about what I wasn't doing and focus on what I was. Is it true that you're going to miss out on things going on at home? Yes, but if you only think about everything going on at home or wherever it is then you're going to miss out on everything happening right in front of you. (Cliché, I know but it doesn't make it any less true.)
For all those future people going abroad, let me just say I can't express how happy I am for you that you're doing it. For those of you going to DIS, I wish I were in your shoes. I'm only halfway through this semester but I already know I'm not even close to being ready to leave.
The Less-than-Picturesque Beginning
To be honest I wasn't immediately in love with my abroad experience when I first arrived. I was homesick. I missed my friends. I didn't know who to call my new friends. I was disappointed in my housing placement. Lucky for me, this was just a phase. (For all of you at DIS, if you ever feel yourself needing someone to talk to I highly recommend contacting the DIS Care Team. Every single person I've met from DIS has been exceptionally helpful and understanding.) These feelings didn't last.
So what changed?
After a couple of meetings with the DIS Housing Team (who I am eternally grateful for) I was able to change my housing. I met a LOT of amazing people. My classes started and it turned out I really really loved all of them. Copenhagen worked it's magic on me and I couldn't imagine calling nay other city my home.
All of which led me to the Honeymoon Phase...
(* Note: I'll write more about choosing the right housing option in a later post, but if you have any questions about housing or changing housing please feel free to contact me at mallory.haskins@richmond.edu.)
The Honeymoon Phase
This phase for me was characterized by feeling care-free for the first time in a long time. I felt unstoppable. But unstoppable me also ate out too much and spent probably too much money and maybe threw a little too much caution to the wind. Regardless, my classes were going really really well (AKA I was in love with all of them), I had at long list of people I wanted to hang out with, a never-ending bucket list, and life just seemed all too good to be true - but that was the beauty of living in an extraordinary city without the stressful boundaries of my home school. (Please enjoy a photo of some delicious milkshakes from my "throwing caution to the wind" spending money phase.)
The Rut
As we all know you can't fly too close to the sun forever. Following the "Honeymoon Phase," came a normalization of the amazing new life I was living. I'm not saying I became ungrateful but I just became so comfortable in my new city and routine that life abroad suddenly just became life again. In this phase you kind of just think you have all the time in the world left in your semester and you keep telling yourself you'll do everything on your bucket list later. "Let's totally do it this weekend!" becomes your new motto but then the weekend passes and you still haven't crossed that thing off your list yet.
This phase in hindsight makes you want to yell at past you later for taking your days for granted almost but I also think it really is so okay to just relax and not do a million things every second of every day. I know people who have lived in Copenhagen for over five years and still haven't climbed to the top of The Round Tower. And that's completely okay. Every day can't be, and shouldn't be, the best day of your life.
The Denial that You're Leaving
This is the stage I'm in now as I sit here and type this post. And. boy. do. I. hate. it. I cannot emphasize enough how fond I have become of this city. I really don't want to leave and seriously think I'm in preshock about heading back to the States. This paragraph's going to be a little short since I really don't want to think about going home yet.
But on the flip side, I know others who are ready to go home and that's great too. I do miss certain aspects of home including my people but I don't think I fully comprehended how short a semester truly is either. For those people who are ready to go home, don't feel and about it at all or like you're abnormal. I think it's great you were even abroad in the first place.
The Home Stretch
I beg of you to take the time to name those things you still really want to do and have been pushing off until the end of the semester now!! I hate to break it to you but time does keep moving and you can no longer wait to do everything because your flight home is in less than a month (big yikes). So if you want to eat at that restaurant you walk past everyday - by all means DO IT. Seriously, take some advice from Nike and JUST DO IT. This is your chance and don't take it for granted.
So, should you study abroad?
While I'd advocate yes for everyone, realistically you should consider it if you want to truly have a completely new experience.
At the end of the day, I'm not here to tell you how to live your life or spend your time, nor am I a certified life coach, but I do strongly think that everyone should consider going abroad. Your experience may not be as picturesque as someone else's or it may be even better. Either way, that's okay. Also, if you're reading this please keep in mind that this was just my experience abroad and that yours will probably look at least a little different. So don't make any expectations about what your abroad experience should be. Just live your life and enjoy your time living somewhere else. And, I don't think four months spent abroad will necessarily change your forever but at least set some goals for ways you want to develop while you're abroad. Whatever you decide, I support you. To those of you who want to go abroad but don't feel like the semester is right for you I strongly encourage to look into summer abroad programs too! Less stress and more fun?! What else could you really ask for?
Thanks again for tuning into my whirlwind of an opinion on abroad :).
See ya later,
Mallory
