“Studying” Abroad

I went straight out of high school on a study abroad across the world. I felt I was not ready to go on this adventure, and begged my dad not to make me go. In high school, I was much less of a socialite, and much more of a head down in school and extremely cautious. This was a huge leap of faith, to go completely out of my comfort zone and move to a different country by myself. I didn’t know anybody going, and had absolutely no idea what I was in for. I came from being such a home body, and loving what was familiar to really blossoming and finding a real passion for traveling.

I had traveled a lot growing up, but never alone. I was always with my family, following their itinerary and going where they went, opposed to doing it all myself. During study abroad, it really opened my eyes to what was out there and what was possible. There was so much I could learn and discover through different countries and cultures and I really thrived in that environment.

I moved across the world by myself, with no familiarity. Though this could sound fun to some, it could not have been more terrifying for me. The first month I wanted America, my family, Chic fil a, my car! However, I got over my homesickness and had the best four months of my life. We were there to study, but why would we take the time to do homework while in one of the coolest cities in the world? We would skip class and attend London Fashion Week. We would sacrifice an entire night of sleep to attend a One Direction concert and follow them around all night long. We went to the best Shakespeare plays, concerts, amazing Broadway plays, and events. Why sit and write a paper in our flat when we could go meet Prince Will and Kate? We went to every Christmas market in the city, every restaurant that had decent reviews, we hopped on trains anytime the destination sounded appealing. What was supposed to be a mind stretching, growing, and real learning experience, definitely was so. But not in the way that most people would have expected. I did not spend more than five minutes focusing on school and spent time exploring the coolest parts of the city.

I discovered more about myself in those four months than I did the first eighteen years of my life. Hands down. I met the most incredible people, found things I never thought I was capable of doing, saw places and cultures that I never dreamed of visiting, and experienced the best of memories. Most people do not have to go on an extravagant study abroad to gain this type of realization. However, for me, it took throwing me out of my comfort zone and forcing me to immerse in a whole new culture, to really help me blossom and find what life was really all about.