What is the most important thing you have learned about yourself on this study Abroad? Share the pictures, people, and stories who helped you learn that lesson.
During this time abroad, I learned a lot about myself and how I react to foreign cultures and environments. Not only was it an entirely new country for me, but I came into the trip not knowing anyone, putting myself in a spot I hadn’t been in since going into college where I had very few friends coming to A&M. Through being forced to make new friends, I remembered how fun it is to branch out and invest in friendships with people of different circles. I didn’t know many guys in fraternities at A&M, so getting to many of them on that trip was very entertaining and allowed me to go out of my comfort zone. I’m excited to continue to grow these friendships as we all get to hang out in College Station and take many of the same classes together.
Not only were the people I was surrounded with foreign, but also the environment which showed that taught me a lot about going with the flow. When traveling around the city or in Europe where we were unfamiliar with our surroundings, things often didn’t go as planned. Often people needed to be in control of the situations they found themselves in, but when traveling I discovered how enjoyable it was to go with the flow sometimes. Especially when there would be problems with trains or flights, it would often lead to stories I will never forget. One that stood out was when our flight from Switzerland got rescheduled to the next day, leaving us with no place to stay. Because there was nothing that we could do and had no place to stay that night, we decided to spend the night in the nearest casino and sleep in the airport the next morning. While it ended up being a very expensive extra night, it is one I will never forget. You need to have an open mind and a good attitude when abroad because there will always be problems, and you must learn to make the most of them and usually a fun story will come out of it in the end.