Ciao! Bonjour! Hallo! These are just some of the ways I learned to say hello while I studied abroad in Europe. The two weeks I spent traveling through Italy, France and Germany were the best two weeks of my life. I saw things I had never thought I’d see in my life; from the Sistine Chapel to the Berlin Wall. Everywhere I went, I was surrounded by centuries of culture.
It was the most rewarding experience of my life, and I would do it again in a heartbeat. Longwood offers many programs to aid students wanting to study abroad, and it is an opportunity that everyone should take advantage of.
The different cultures that studying abroad exposes you to are amazing. You envelop yourself in their culture; you eat their food, speak their language and pass time the way they would.
While I was in Italy, I ate margherita pizza and gelato every day for a week straight, and it was amazing. People always say food over there tastes better, but I didn’t really believe them until I went over there and tried some real Italian gelato.
Not only was the food amazing, learning to speak another language was so much easier in a place where everyone else spoke it as well. I may have only been in France for a few days, but my French accent got so good, a woman at a bakery actually thought I was from France. I learned more French in the three days I was in France than I did in four years of French class.
Studying abroad also opens so many doors for you. If you’re looking to get into a graduate program, admissions offices find those who study abroad to be diverse and able to take on challenges. This gives you an edge when applying to programs and even future jobs. Especially if you take classes in your area of study, it shows you have experience in your field.
Perhaps the most amazing part of studying abroad was seeing the world. Seeing monuments that have been around longer than our own country is a unique experience.
The paintings inside the Italy’s Sistine Chapel left me speechless. It was the most awe-inspiring ceiling I have ever seen.
Then, there’s the breathtaking view from the top of Germany’s Wartburg Castle.
I took in everything because it was something I probably will never do again. Once graduation rolls around, I’ll be too busy trying to get a job and paying back my student loans to afford to go see the world.
Studying abroad is an opportunity that only comes once in a lifetime and everyone should consider.
A view of the Coliseum in Rome on Easter Sunday.
This is the view from the gardens at the top of Palentine Hill, the home of the emperor in Ancient Rome.
What the city of Eisenach, Germany looks like from the top of Wartburg Castle.
