Starting our trip in the United Kingdom helped out a lot because it allowed us to experience a place with many cultural differences but sharing a language familiar to us all. Since it was my first time traveling to Europe, I gained an entirely new perspective, both from a cultural and professional level. I enjoyed that getting around the city was utterly feasible using public transport, which differs significantly from the U.S. Moving from there, Belgium was the next place we visited. I truly enjoyed seeing the rich history of the cities we were staying because it allowed me to understand that there are a lot of values that are different in Europe. I learned that most things are built to last a long time time. The historic city of Bruges was a wonderful sight to see because the city dates back to the 13th and 14th centuries. After that stop, we went over to Germany. We had a great time there, visiting the central bank and partaking in the city?s cultural festival. After that, Switzerland was our next destination. The Alps were breathtaking, and it was an excellent experience to get on Mount Pilatus and enjoy an afternoon above the clouds. Our last stop was Paris. Paris was a city that was vibrant and filled with energy. I enjoyed trying the traditional French cuisine. Before going on the trip, I thought there would be a more significant difference between us and them. Now, I feel they are just living a different life I greatly respect. Nowadays, a lot of the world is already connected in too many ways to count. I am fortunate to learn about so many cultures in such a short period.
I enjoyed learning about how another part of the world conducts business. In such an interconnected economy, learning about the world’s different viewpoints will be of great use to me when the time comes to go out into the workforce. Our hosts looked at business from a global perspective and thought about the consequences of certain events much more globally. My initial impression was that they would be very closed-off individuals since we were foreigners much younger than them. I was relieved when I started the professional visits because I found that the hosts were highly excited and generous with us. Many of them took large parts of their day just to sit down and talk to us, which I found pleasant. After returning, the most significant change I noticed is how badly I want to learn about the world. I am now considering that part of my career must be abroad in order to enrich myself with the culture of another country. My goals have also changed because I am now interested in starting a business that has offices both in America but also Europe. Our hosts were very humble people that were intelligent and experts in their field. They were so willing to sit down and just answer our questions and I found that so interesting because that was some of their first impressions with people form the US. I hope that the university keeps on taking these strides to become more global because I believe that every student at Mays should have an experience similar to mine. I want to thank Adam Sinn for this incredible opportunity. Additionally, Dr. Sorescu took on this task with such grace and allowed us to embark on the most transformative experience that I have lived thus far.