Final Thoughts

Since coming back to the States, I have been in a daze that I am only starting to shake off. It has felt like nothing in my day to day life could ever compare to the beauty and wonder of Europe and the amazing things I got to see every day. My experiences in Germany and Europe as a whole can only be described as some of the best times of my life. Every day was a new adventure and I think I can honestly say that I was taught something new every single day, whether it was a new part of a Tai Chi sequence, new academic material, another German word, how to use another form of transportation, or a different way of looking at the world. This program had so much to offer, and it affected me in ways that are still manifesting now.

The first thing I learned after the program: change creeps up on you. I didn't feel like I was changing throughout the program, at least not in any way that would be immediately perceptible from looking at me. However, that was not the case. The minute my family saw me back on Houston ground, they instantly told me that something about me was different- the way I looked (my tan), the way I carried myself, the look in my eye. And that really got me thinking- had I really changed? After I started talking to them about all of my experiences and the things I learned, I realized that I truly was different, particularly in the way I thought about things.

For example, this program helped me to get drastically better at entertaining ideas or other ways of life that I might normally have rejected in a normal, every day setting. For example, public transportation. Here in Texas, we love our cars and are generally not used to public transportation, so I did not think much of it. However, after depending on public transportation, and seeing it used in an extremely successful way across Europe, I gained a deep appreciation for a good train or bus system.

This experience also ended up giving me a pretty big confidence boost, and helped me come out of my shell a bit, which was quite unexpected. I am normally a very reserved person, not prone to taking many chances. However, now any time I doubt myself now, or feel the urge to back away from something new, I think to myself that if I could figure out how to traverse a foreign city using transportation I'm not used to, and find a place to stay in a foreign country, I can do anything. This program was big in taking me outside my comfort zone- something I do not do very often at all. It got me more comfortable in being outside my comfort zone and being more easy going. Life can be an exciting adventure no matter if you're in Prague, Czechoslovakia, or College Station, Texas. 

This experience also changed my view of the world. I was amazed at how many similarities I found between cultures, instead of the vast differences I expected; I didn't think about how seeing people go about their everyday lives in a different country would affect me before starting this program. Since I had always dreamed of going to Europe, I think I had this silly and unrealistic view of how Europeans lived- that somehow there lifestyle would be perfectly ideal and better than the American lifestyle. But, after about a week of living in Germany, I found that it was not that different from how we Americans live, in fact, it even felt mundane at times, which was shocking.  Everyone still meets for coffee, goes to the neighborhood pool, has dinner with their family, and goes to work or school. In just about every country I visited, I somehow managed to interact or find a connection with at least one of its residents. This helped realize that people are people, no matter where they are from or what language they speak. We all want the same general things out of life, and that made the world feel a lot smaller to me.

Finally, something huge I took out of this trip was the friendships I made. It was wonderful to be surrounded by so many great people, and to have peers to lean on when difficult situations arose, or when everything felt too foreign. And now that I am back in school and seeing many of the familiar faces in my classes, it is like we have brought our experiences in Germany back to Texas. I will never forget the experiences I had and the friendships I made during this program. I can confidently say that when I am older and looking back to what shaped me as a person, this experience will be at the top of the list.