This program was unique. We had the opportunity to visit six different countries in Europe, all within 20 days. It was truly the trip of a lifetime.
At the beginning of the trip, I was quite nervous about going abroad, to be completely honest. Having never been out of the country, I was scared of how different these new places would be, as they were completely new and foreign to me.
One of the largest things I hoped to gain from studying abroad and from this experience specifically was the chance to immerse myself in the culture of another country. Being in another country and immersing yourself in their culture allows for a much richer and deeper experience of their way of life and being.
For my trip, we began the journey in NYC, then we visited London, United Kingdom, Bruges and Brussels, Belgium, Frankfurt, Germany, a one-day trip to Poland to visit Auschwitz, various cities in Switzerland, and lastly, we finished off the trip in Paris, France. To have the opportunity to visit this many countries in such a short time.
While it’s hard to generalize all the countries together, I’ll specifically talk about some of the biggest things I noticed being different between the United States and London & Paris, as these two were my favorite cities we visited on the trip. The most notable thing was the presence of people everywhere. People were walking to work, to the grocery store, to go have fun with their friends, all while taking various forms of public transport. Something that is almost foreign to us in the United States. This was something that struck a chord with me and made me realize just how much I like walking around cities and going from place to place without the need for a car. Additionally, I liked the fluidity between work and life in French culture, people were far more open to discussing and having family interconnect with work, such as one of our speakers having his wife stop by with the baby, I liked that a lot.
Overall, although I was nervous to go abroad overseas, it was truly an incredible experience that has truly changed my life.