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Question: What has been the most meaningful part of your time abroad? Whether it was a lesson you learned, a place you went or a person you got to know, what was the most significant part of your trip overall?
Written by: Katherine Webber
Studying abroad has a lot to do with rolling with the punches. The most important lesson I have learned in my time here has been that things are hardly ever going to go according to plan, so you need to learn to adjust.
In Ireland, mostly everyone is very relaxed and laidback, which was a big shock to me when I first got here. Dublin is a city where nothing works exactly the way people told me it would.
The buses are always late, professors are not as readily available, and the pubs will reject for overcapacity, even on nights when you have to buy tickets to go. Sometimes life and nature just happen. Flights get cancelled, trails get washed out, and clouds and rain interfere with playing soccer in the park.
I am also living with new people that I didn’t really know or choose to live with before coming here. I live in Dublin, which is a city, not a college campus, and life is more “real” and slightly more dangerous.
A big part of the studying abroad experience is learning to adapt to other peoples’ living styles quickly and easily and trying not to fight with them over differences. There is no moving; you’re stuck for the semester with the same people.
Life in another country is an adjustment, more so than going to college or just living on your own for the first time.
You have to learn the culture, the area, the people, and sometimes the language.
You can’t expect everything to go smoothly all the time because it won’t. Plans get cancelled and changed, especially when you’re living with people of varying opinions and backgrounds. Sometimes it’s better to just sit back and let things happen, relinquish a little bit of control so that you can be happier.
The most important thing to remember is to take things as they come. Often times, they are beyond your control, so just run with it. If you can’t find the right bus stop, go to one that you know. If the bus is late, start walking. Can’t find your favorite candy bar? Try a new one.
It all starts with taking a deep breath and then looking to see what other options are available.
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