This weekend marks three weeks since I got on a plane and before I knew it, the most incredible, life changing, eye-opening experience of my life was abruptly over, just as suddenly as it had begun. I would be lying if I told you that I was not feeling nostalgic. In just a few short months, London, one of the world’s major cities, had become my home. The city that I once thought of as 3,000 miles away, over 8,000,000 people strong, speaking over 300 different languages, was suddenly not so big and scary. Not just my flat, but London itself, had truly become my home, and that is more apparent than ever sitting at the kitchen table I grew up on, the same 3,000 miles away. Studying abroad is liberating in every sense of the word. Now that I have had a few weeks to reflect on my trip, I am more grateful than ever. The majority of people go their entire lives without the experience that I got to have, all before my first legal beer in the States. I have to thank my incredibly supportive parents who made it all possible. As well as all seven of my roommates and everyone else who made it the experience of a lifetime.
For some the term study abroad may be considered an oxymoron. How can a twenty-year-old college kid possibly live abroad and focus on studying? That’s just it though, abroad is not just about learning in the classroom. To quote one of my all time favorite Brits,
“Don’t think. Just let it happen.” - James Bond, The Living Daylights.
Sure, my parents might not be so comfortable with the “don’t think” part, but abroad is all about “letting it happen.” Studying Abroad is experiential learning at its finest. Whether it is breaking out of your comfort zone, or in some cases getting rid of it completely, study abroad lets it happen.
Less than one week after my flight touched down at Heathrow, I found myself no longer in possession of my iPhone5. What at first seemed to be a disaster was actually a blessing in disguise. Not having a phone was eye opening. For the first time in recent memory I found myself not trying to keep up with the constant stream of notifications, social media, text messages, and emails. Instead I found myself living in the moment, soaking in everything around me. While my Philosophy of Technology class certainly helped me figure this out, technology is changing us. “Generation Y,” as we are called, has become dependent on the technology we have, to the point where it can control us. This hit me especially hard when we would welcome guests into our flat and without even making eye contact, without an introduction, the first thing some guests would do when they walked through the door was ask for the Wi-Fi password. On a trip where you were supposed to see the world, meet new people, and experience new cultures, I was amazed at how many people spent so much time on their phones. Then I realized how easy it was for me to say that, not having the option to pull the phone out of my pocket. Now I’m not suggesting that you get rid of your phone completely, but maybe turn off those notifications for two or three hours, and see what a difference it will make.
Now that my rant about cell phones is over I can say that it wasn’t the incredible trips to foreign countries, or the wild nights out exploring London, or even the memories that I will have for the rest of my life that made abroad so life changing. It was every single second of the last four months. It was the feeling of being at home in a place that had surprises around every corner. It was finding myself doing something I had never done somewhere I had never been. It was learning, about culture, architecture, history, language, people, society, even myself, all without even realizing that I was actively learning. In my opinion, Study Abroad is the best thing a college student can do. James Bond said it best,