Winding Down Abroad

As the semester comes to an end, I wanted to share some specific reflections I have on wrapping my head around leaving such an amazing experience as well as advice for this part of the journey!

Spring break snorkeling in the Amalfi Coast

Finals

Giving your best effort up until the end isn’t as hard as you think when you’re having fun abroad. The issue is balancing it. You want to go to all your favorite spots one last time and maybe even have some class skips left. Finals still matter and are some courses’ biggest grade!

Packing

A humbling nightmare. You always leave with more than you brought. Having to check another bag isn’t fun, but it’s cheaper than shipping internationally. There are lots of donation bins in Barcelona to use, and likely some across Europe in other countries as well!

Goodbyes

A lot of students have been saying “I can’t wait to be home” to see friends, drive a car again, and hug their parents. These are great things to want to return to. Some people imply they can’t want to “get out of here” and that they’ve done what they wanted to do, seen what they wanted to see, and prefer to be home. This comes across negatively sometimes. The easy way out is to want to go and be ready to leave just to avoid the bittersweetness of actually saying goodbye. I have definitely felt this way, but having sat through some of my last classes abroad, I found it satisfying to thank my professors and say see you somewhere to my peers. The closure it better than the regret, even if it comes with a few tears.

Last sushi burger at Norico in Barcelona

Reverse Culture Shock

Though I haven’t yet experienced this, it’s something we talk about a lot in my classes. Preparing to adapt to life once again seems like just “going back to normal,” however for some people it really is a process of learning another lifestyle again. Being prepared to deal with the highs and lows of being home is something everyone has to think about towards the end. There are always things you can’t wait to return to and always things you’ll hate to get used to without again.