The fear of having a long-distance relationship should not stop you from going abroad, I promise its possible. For me and my partner there was no question about staying together while I’m abroad, and he’s not able to make the voyage here to visit me. We had conversations about being abroad before I left, and I know that I have a supportive partner and a mutual understanding of expectations.

My program ends in a little less than a month and I have already said one of the toughest goodbyes I will probably ever say. My heart aches, and 30 minutes ago I was fighting back tears on the bus ride home after I said goodbye to some of the most amazing people I have had the privilege to meet in Spain. 

This semester, while abroad in Milan, I am taking four classes (15 credits as my Italian class counts for 6 Bentley credits). My classes are: Managing Fashion and Luxury Companies, History of Italian Cities, Venture Capital and Entrepreneurial Finance, and Beginner Italian Language Abroad. All of the classes are really cool (especially the fashion and history ones as we often get to go on mini field trips to check out historical sites in Milan or fashion companies), and taking classes abroad has definitely been an incredibly interesting experience.

I’ve always been told traveling around Europe is easy. Now that I’m here, I can’t help but be whisked away by the ease with which I can cross borders. In the midst of planning big trips abroad, I forgot there is so much to still see in the Netherlands. 

Wednesday:

When “study abroad” comes to mind, we often neglect the first word: STUDY.

Behind all of the beautiful pictures, travels, food, and experiences outside the classroom, we are all still aiming to achieve an education while abroad. 

My primary incentive for the IES Abroad Law and Criminology program was academics. Understandably, not many study abroad programs cater to criminology majors, so I was willing to stay in school an extra semester for this experience. 

Despite my excitement, I did little preparation in terms of background knowledge on the Netherlands. I ignorantly assumed the educational expectations in Amsterdam would be similar to home.

After midterms, there is one week that all the students have been waiting for: fall break! A time where we can finally get a break and travel. Planning was a really difficult time, but it ends up well worth the trouble when everywhere you turn provokes a childlike glee and wonder. Moments like this remind me that I really am in France, somewhere different and rich with amazing new sights.

I honestly don’t know why I expected this time to be different. My track record for things like this is embarrassingly bad, so I must’ve been blinded by optimism. But last weekend I was brutally reminded that I have a catchphrase for a reason: 

    “It’s not really a hike unless Katie falls.”