Hey all! Sadly, I am leaving Shanghai very soon, and I couldn't be more sad to be leaving this fun and easily loveable city! Studying abroad, you experience some amazing adventures and visit some crazy beautiful places. Everyday life abroad is not always some wild adventure, but you learn to appreciate the little things and take every moment as a little baby adventure and experience in itself. You don't have to travel far and wide to experience these moments, they are a mindset.

There’s a joke about how you can’t get study abroad alumni to stop talking about “The time when I was abroad…” They seem to find a way to incorporate one of their global experiences into any topic of conversation, even when it doesn’t seem fitting. I’ve witnessed that a little bit in my own life with friends and family, but now I know why they do it! There’s so much to digest, reflect upon, and share once you experience months in a new country.

Hi everyone,

I’ve been meaning to write about my experience with healthcare while in Japan. While I won’t delve into the details, I will let you know where I have gone and how the process went.

After a few weeks of what felt like non-stop travel, I’ve spent the last two weekends in Berlin. Berlin has transformed into a seemingly new city these past few weeks, since the grey skies that have loomed since I landed in February have moved aside for blue skies and sunshine. As someone who grew up in Buffalo, New York, I am no stranger to the urban shift that occurs when Spring suddenly arrives. Experiencing Spring in Berlin has shown me a new side of this city.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from study abroad, it’s that no day is the same. Each weekday and weekend brings new discoveries, changes, and events, and the key to enjoying the experience abroad is to embrace all those. In the United States, I find that my life is very mapped out between Google Calendar, meeting reminders, a regular alarm, and almost every hour of the day booked for something. Here in Nantes, it’s completely different.

Back again with more prose from your pro! As my time in Rome progresses, the busier I get with papers and finals. Unfortunately, I only have a couple weeks left in my program. :( However, I still found time to get away and discover new aspects of myself. Sorry dudes, this post is going to be a little selfish.

The wait is over, and the St. Patrick’s Day Festival has arrived! While this weekend is generally synonymous with all sorts of debauchery, the city really embraces the holiday to express its culture—from concerts featuring Irish music to theatre shows about Celtic myths. City buildings are illuminated with green lights and shops are adorned with decorations. There is a general air of merriment, and the city really takes on a multicultural vibe with thousands of tourists pouring in to celebrate.

I. There is a French saying, entre chien et loup, (between dog and wolf) that means twilight—the hour between day and night, that is, when the light is too blue and low to distinguish between friends and enemies. When dogs, clouded by shadows, might be wolves.

I took a little bus trip out to the National Botanic Gardens to catch a glimpse of all their exotic plants. I absolute love walking through gardens, and it was almost overwhelming to walk into the greenhouse and see lush greenery from head to toe.