I can admit it: I am a food driven person. I love to garden and cook and grocery shop, and I even chose nutritional sciences as my major because I love food (both healthy and not so healthy)! As a vegan, however, in my small town I am lucky enough to have an expensive all vegan cafe and a few Chinese restaurants where I can eat. Although it may satisfy some vegans, as an aspiring nutritionist, I do not consider a whole plate of fries or a salad sans protein as a real meal––thus limiting my dine out options.

You never know how fast time will pass until it's already happened. And boy, being in a foreign country just makes it seem so much faster.

I knew from the start that my study abroad program would fly by – I am doing a summer program, so I only have had around a month and a half here. In many ways, I feel that even if I had done a full semester, or even a year, I would come out of it still wanting more time.

What happens if my depression gets really bad for a couple of days? What happens if somehow lose my medication and have to go without it for a period of time? What if my anxiety prevents me from making friends and doing and seeing the things that I’ve always wanted to do and see while in Italy? How am I going to get a counselor who I can connect with if I end up needing one while abroad? And what will I do if I have a bad panic attack or anxiety attack, and I’m alone but need help?

Interning abroad and studying abroad are two very different things. Luckily for me, I get a taste of both. I have an internship at a modeling agency in Milan, and I am also taking two classes: Beginner Italian and an internship seminar. All students participating in the IES Internships program are required to take the internship seminar, either 3 credits or 6 credits, but the Italian class is optional.

I knew that my life in Salamanca would be different than New York City, and have discovered that these differences are mostly in Salamanca’s favor. If only I could return to New York with my extended midday meals and late night churros and conversation in the Plaza Mayor.

The second weekend of my time in South Africa, I decided to go on the Garden Route tour with the program for a three-day excursion filled with various fun activities including amazingly delicious food, unforgettable views, memorable moments with friends, and appreciation. On Friday, we went canoeing at sunset. My roommate and I found ourselves floating along the way a lot, just trying to live in the moment and soak in our environment. What. an. experience!

There’s something wonderful about setting out for a day in the city without having a concrete plan or a final destination in mind.

Q: So Erin, what’s your experience like abroad, as someone with anxiety?

A: Everyone is different, but this is my experience:

Imagine getting lost on a strange island. It isn’t that different from going abroad. You are on a treasure hunt that brings you from one awe-inspiring moment to another confusing one. Every new city is full of trapdoors and cleft that plunge you into its past and vicissitudes of changes. Look around you; they are everywhere. Each metro stop takes you to a place you haven’t seen before. Behind every corner, local shops and plazas tell the vibrant ways of lives that you have yet encountered.