There’s a common misconception that study abroad students are the thrill seeking, let’s-go-skydiving-just-because-we-can type people. I’m not really that type of person. I love traveling and seeing the world, but the idea of spending my summer in another country was intimidating. If you’re afraid of going abroad and having everything unfamiliar, this one’s for you.

After a long flight and over 35 hours of being awake, I found myself in Berlin with nothing but my luggage and printed out directions. I was awake enough to figure out how to buy a ticket at the airport, but had failed to verify it––meaning I could have been fined 60 Euro! Thankfully I met no ticket checkers on my way into the city.

After a week of exploring Hong Kong and getting to spend my last week with the students from my Economy, Business, and Society spring semester program, I’m back in Shanghai! Although Hong Kong was beautiful and full of new adventures and memories, I have grown to call Shanghai my home and am so happy to be back and settled into my new apartment (which is just across the hall from the apartment I lived in last semester).

I take a labored breath in, and decided I’ve had my fill. The past week my throat had been constricting, tighter and tighter. Within the pasts two days, a deep weight settled on my chest. A strange, unknown type of pain that I couldn’t ignore. I needed to go to the hospital.

The problem was, I was in Turkey, at the beginning of a weeklong trip around eastern Europe. My international insurance had run out with the end of my abroad program, and the possibility of an English-speaking doctor was scarce.

Disclaimer: I am not claiming in any way to be physically financially burdened or experience the same obstacles as an individual from a low- income background. If any of this content comes off as offensive or insensitive, that is not my intent, so I apologize if that is the case.

As a New York City kid, I thought I had an appreciation for good food, but life in Salamanca has shown me that in gastronomic years, I’m still a child. At lunchtime, Salamanca winds to a halt as we all find our way home for la comida. Meals are a ritual of animated conversation and mind-numbingly delicious food. At Teresa’s table, my Spanish madre gathers together her husband and an occasional family guest. We savor Teresa’s three-course lunch as we watch the news, discuss politics, and talk about our days.

Week one down- time to reflect. What am I learning? What was it like to anxiously spend my first week in Australia? Fair warning: this is a bit of a stream of consciousness.

Current Mood:

I’m feeling it all. Nervous, excited, hungry, tired, yet energized.

“When you’re traveling with someone else, you share each discovery, but when you are alone, you have to carry each experience with you like a secret, something you have to write on your heart, because there’s no other way to preserve it.” –Shauna Niequist

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5M_BNCbj71Q

Solo soy una extranjera en esta gran ciudad / Una cara nueva / Un acento raro / Y un montón de cuentos que no han empezado

“I'm just a foreigner in this big city. / A new face / A strange accent / And a lot of stories that haven't started.”

-‘Extranjera’ by Claudia Prieto