My first week in Paris could not have gone any better. I have a fantastic host family, the metro system is incredibly simple, and I am already starting to learn Paris from a local’s point of view. Even though I have participated in around-the-clock activities, I know I have only scratched the surface of what this incredible city has to offer.

After 5 movies, 3 hours of sleep, and airline food that was better than expected, I’m in Shanghai!

I’m in my native country! Even though I am Chinese, everything was really strange and unfamiliar at first. Shanghai is a huge city, and everything is in Chinese of course. I try to understand what signs say, but most of the time I only recognize a few characters. Plus, people on the streets talk in rapid Chinese. It makes me wonder what it is like when Chinese people try to listen to people speaking English. Do we speak fast too?

It’s been exactly one week since I landed in Beijing. Orientation and getting accustomed to the in and outs of the city felt like I was in a dream. I’ve met new people, gone to new places, asked the locals for directions, ordered food (basically pointing at pictures on the menu), and have just started classes. The city is bustling with activity and I have quickly learned how to avoid any moving vehicle. Cars definitely have the right of way here!

There is something indescribably massive about life in London.

London is multifaceted in a way that I can’t even begin to explain. The city itself is an enormous labyrinth of streets, Tube lines, and bus routes. It’s also massive in a cultural sense: home to millions of people, dozens of universities, and hundreds of languages. Greater London encompasses quaint Greenwich and bustling King’s Cross. It spans the upscale shops on the West End and the impoverished neighborhood in East London where I go for my service-learning placement.

In seeking to be completely transparent with this blog, I would be kidding myself if I said that my first two and a half weeks of study abroad have been a breeze. What I’m doing is hard. For many reasons. And I was probably a bit over-zealous in my anticipation for this independent experience. Not only is living in a foreign country intrinsically difficult, but I eagerly sought out a program that had a few culturally rewarding, albeit challenging, factors. For example, I decided to live in a homestay.

It’s been over 5 months since I arrived in Italy. From barely being able to order a coffee, my Italian has come a long way. However, this wasn’t without a serious commitment to do everything possible to learn the language (Word Reference has become my best friend over the past few months). Although I still can’t say nearly everything I’d like to in conversations, the language barrier has become a daily part of life and I've accepted that this is a reality that comes with living in a foreign country.