This past weekend was our farewell meal, the last time all 40 of us were brought together as a group before we depart back to the states in 3 weeks. We spend Saturday afternoon at a bar down town enjoy a buffet of Italian foods and a free drink. We all chatted and said hello to the people we hadn't seen in a while since everyone has been so busy working on finals. I looked around the room as everyone gathered in the friend groups that have been formed during our time abroad, people who were once strangers now laughed together as if they had known each other for years. It is strange how quickly this time has gone by, but at the same time it feels like i have been away from home for quite a while.
Big Bob, a worker there in charge of the karaoke machine played us songs and started off the karaoke singing some song i had never heard before. People slowly started signing up one by one to put on a little performance of their own as they grew more comfortable. Everyone cheered and sang along with tons of laughs accompanying them. I always wonder what other study abroad groups were like, if they were close like ours had been in its own unique way sharing experiences that only we would ever truly know, with tons of jokes and laughs as a whole through long bus rides together and group tours. My roommate Katie who has been studying abroad in Copenhagen this past semester said she barely talked to any of the Loyola students on her trip and spent more time with her roommates who are from different colleges all over the U.S.. I felt fortunate to have been apart of this group though. We always reflect on how majority of us didn't know each other when coming abroad, many of these people i had never met before in my life. After just a few short days of abroad though we realized this to be true with majority of people on this trip. However i think that only added to benefit, it left more room for new friendships and clean slates. These once unfamiliar faces were now people i shared experiences with, had inside jokes with, traveled across Europe with, they knew a part of me, and i them, that no one else from home would truly know.We spent a few hours there singing together, cheering one another on like we were giving concerts at Madison Square Garden. It was a great last memory together.
We still have 3 weeks remaining here in Newcastle and i keep avoiding the thought of leaving. It will be great to go home, see my family and my friends, be in my room and reunited with my full wardrobe, but leaving here will be anything but easy. As i see many of the study abroad programs count their last days abroad, some already over and returned safely to the home land, i am thankful that this program runs until June, something i wasn't totally crazy about at first. I am thankful for every last minute i get to spend here in Newcastle since my return from Spring break. Of all the countries i have visited while here and the cities i have explored, i am so certain that no other place would have suited me better than Newcastle has. When i was first accepted into the Newcastle study abroad program i remember being so excited that i was really going to get the opportunity to travel again, something that i have learned fills my core in a way nothing else can. However i remember also thinking, ...England...hm.... unsure if my decision to study in an English speaking country that i had already visited twice, was too safe and too similar to what i was familiar with at home compared to my friends accepted to go to Thailand, Copenhagen, China, or South America. However looking back on the way the pieces of my life have fallen together, i could never imagine having this experience in any other place, with any other people, all i feel is an unreal amount of gratitude that life can come together in such wonderful and unexpected ways, even when we let ourselves doubt the outcome.
So, to my fellow travelers, i will leave you with a few pieces of advice that a highly recommend you take if you want to make the most of your travels or of your study abroad experience...
For starters, always go in with an open mind. Don't let your fears or anxieties ruin any experience for you. Don't assume things and try not to have expectations. Studying abroad or traveling can be scary for a million different reasons, diving into the unknown can be terrifying. However that is the beauty of it all as well, not knowing, leaving your world open to more possibility than you ever could have imagined.
Don't only keep an open mind with your destination and your travels, but the people you are traveling with. As college students, especially coming from a small school where many people know someone who knows someone, we make connections very fast. Realizing that your new friend is best friends with that girl that your best friend hates because she stole the cab from her that one night 2 years ago. Try your hardest not to let what other people tell you dictate what you think about these new people or shape the way you look at them. Especially in an experience like this, it is best to come in with an open mind and an open heart. College is for learning and we have all done things we aren't proud of. However you are in a new country and everyone deserves a chance, get to know someone before you are so quick to judge or decide you don't want to get to know them. Try not to hold their past over their head as i'm sure you wouldn't want them to do with you.
Be friendly, be kind, take an interest and make an effort when getting to know others. The best thing you can do in an experience like this is to push aside your sometimes shy persona and walk over to someone with a smile on your face and introduce yourself. If you have never met, there is a long list of questions that can be asked, so why not start now? Don't be the girl in the corner waiting to be approached. Be outgoing and be yourself, what do you really have to lose?
Allow yourself the time to truly get to know these people and this place. Try not to let yourself get lost in feelings of home sickness or missing your friends and family because sooner than you think you will be right back with them and your abroad experience will be over. It is a once in a life time opportunity that not everyone is fortunate enough to have. Take advantage of your time and savor every moment.
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