I am now around the mid-point of my time at the University of Limerick in Ireland. It feels insane to be saying that, but also exciting. I have overcome, experienced, and learned so much in my time abroad, and I have even more to look forward to. In this blog, I am going to reflect on my time here in terms of homesickness, friends, travel, classes, and more. I will also give you some insight into my hopes and plans for the time I have left here.
Candidly, when I arrived in Ireland, I was mentally a bit of a mess. I missed home, felt overwhelmed, and wanted everything to be simple again. It is hard to look back on the first few weeks to a month when I was here and felt so unstable. I wish I had had more perspective, but I now understand how even this rough time is a part of my journey. All I can do now is use what I have learned from those feelings and make the most of the time I have left. My homesickness battles were intense and still appear again now, but much less frequently. I finally understand more about how to miss and appreciate home while simultaneously creating and enjoying a life abroad.
I hit the ground running when it came to making friends in Limerick. I tried my best to connect with other international students at every event and gathering. Some of these people I do not talk to anymore, and some I wish I had not been as close to. However, now I have some solid, amazing friends I know I can reach out to for plans, support, and more. They were not the first people I met, so have faith that your fastest friends do not have to be made immediately. One of my favorite things I have started doing with these friends is becoming foodies and trying restaurants in Limerick, so I definitely recommend that. When I first got here, I feared I would not click with anybody, but I am glad to have found my crowd now.
I have always been beyond eager to travel outside of the country. At the beginning of the semester, I was anxious and impatient about making plans and finding people to go with. However, I was not able to go on my first overnight trip until over a month after I arrived. This originally stressed me out and seeing the posts of other friends abroad traveling every weekend made me feel self-conscious. However, I now realize that everyone’s study abroad experience should be unique. It does not matter how many countries I travel to, what matters is that I tailor my experience to myself. Now I do have many trips planned, but I try to be lenient on myself and enjoy living in the moment versus looking ahead. So far, I have taken various day trips across Ireland and traveled to Paris.
Classes have gotten a bit more complicated for me over time. I feel comfortable in the class environment, now, but I do struggle with some assignments. It is difficult to balance the adventurous pursuits of studying abroad with actual classwork. However, the best way I can counter this problem is just by making the most of my time. If I am not doing school work, then I try to write these blogs, exercise, eat, spend time with friends, or plan trips because those are all productive too! When I need to get an assignment done, I turn on some music and try to find a new study spot on campus to focus.
I am beyond excited for the rest of my time studying abroad and have many plans! This past Saturday, March 15, my best friend from home landed in Ireland. Showing her around Limerick and taking her to Dublin for St. Patrick’s Day has been a blast, and it is nice to show someone from home what life here has been like for me. While she is here, we are also flying to Edinburgh, Scotland for a few nights. Some other weekend trips I have planned are to Barcelona and Seville in Spain, and Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina. My trips to Seville and Sarajevo are to meet up with some friends from home who are also studying abroad. I am also currently planning a Eurail trip with some friends for spring break so we can train across Europe. In addition to these plans, I hope to spend some time doing some solo day trips around Ireland. I might do a weekend trip up to Belfast in Northern Ireland to see Giant’s Causeway as well.
Outside of travel, my future plans here are simple. I want to make the most of my classes, alone time, friendships, campus, and other unique things Ireland offers. I plan to work hard to do well in each course and get the most out of the different teaching and assessment styles. I want to have more outings with the new friends I have made here so I have more memories to take home. I plan to continue going on my long runs and walks along the beautiful trail through my campus and along the Shannon River. I want to take advantage of cheap public transportation, groceries, and other commodities. I plan to find out more about myself and embrace the good and bad that have and will come with studying abroad.
My main takeaway so far is that studying abroad is not the perfect picture people present it as, and that is okay. There are normal, exciting, and boring moments and I want to feel them all. I hope that these reflections help you see what studying abroad may be like for you.
Comments