Pre-Depature Blog

I just got back to College Station from being at home to spend time with my family. After my conversation with my parents last night I am even more thrilled about this adventure. I have never flown alone or traveled without my family. My mother has prepared me with advice that would fill the library of congress. Yes, we are all very excited but a little nervous as well.

I signed up for the study abroad class because I love to travel, meet new people and study their cultures. I have traveled to Italy, Great Britain, Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Alaska and Canada with my family and each time I have learned more about different cultures and about myself. Before making my decision I read a lot about it on the internet and one reoccurring theme was what a life-changing experience and one of the most rewarding things students have ever done kept coming up. That information helped me make my final decision to apply to study abroad.

My first challenge is to fly alone. Of course my parents are taking me to the airport but once I pass that security area I am on my own. Am I scared? No. Am I nervous and anxious? Yes! I am not very good at talking to people I don’t know but that is one of my personal challenges for this study broad program. It is also one of the reasons I chose to live with a host family. I want to force myself to connect with people I have never met before and I also want to be as involved with the culture and language as much as possible. My German is bad but I know if I immerse myself in it I will learn much faster. This will also allow me to experience the food, appearances and personal habits of a typical German family. Living with a host family will let me experience their culture in a deeper way by seeing their beliefs, value and perceptions as we all interact.  I have contacted my host family and sent them a picture of my family and me. I also Goggled their address and learned that I will be living on the Rhine River. At least that is what it looks like from the map views.

I am excited about learning in a new classroom setting. I have always learned in a traditional classroom setting and being able to have hands on opportunity for learning is very exciting. I think I will learn more about how I learn and retain information in a different way. I will have to learn how to quickly adapt and be effective at the same time. For example, I have never blogged before. After this trip I can check that one off my list.

Overall, I feel privileged to have this opportunity. The meetings that I attended prior to this trip helped so much in the preparation but mainly in making me feel comfortable. I feel that not only my educational experience is going to be great but my personal safety and wellbeing is going to be taken care of as well. I hope to make some new livelong friends during this experience and I look forward to working with everyone.