Hi everyone! First blog post of the semester! I really am excited to be running this blog and keeping up with updates on how this semester abroad is going to go. This week, starting with August 30th, I am spending most of it at home here in Baltimore, MD because my program in Alicante does not begin until this Saturday. My flight departs Friday afternoon (New York time) and I will arrive in Alicante on Saturday afternoon (Madrid time). Since I cannot yet make posts about my Spanish experiences, this week’s post will be about my journey choosing to study abroad! In all honesty, the program in Alicante was not my first choice; however, what happened over time to lead me into being part of this program solidified my belief in the saying, “Everything happens for a reason”. Last school year during the GO Long application period, I chose Salamanca, Spain as my first program choice- and I got in! I chose Salamanca because it is a smaller, quieter area of Spain, which is more akin to the surroundings I am used to, and it had lower program costs due to being in less of an urban area. With my acceptance to Salamanca flagged in my email inbox, I spent the rest of my sophomore school year set to go there come fall. However, those plans got severely changed when the SUNY school running the Salamanca program cancelled it less than the two weeks after I had come home for the summer. My feelings in reaction to the Salamanca program were confusing. I felt sad because the excitement about going abroad had begun to bubble. I felt nervous because I had nowhere and no one to live with if my fall semester was to be spent in Selinsgrove. The most surprising emotion I felt, though, was relief. Even though going abroad and spending the autumn months sunning in Spain and practicing Spanish sounded amazing, my homebody tendencies had often kept me up with anxiety about my decision to leave for 4 months. Then, all of a sudden, the decision was off my shoulders and the door was opened for me to stay close by my family and friends and everywhere I was comfortable. Despite this relief flooding my heart during the first read-through of that cancellation email, I couldn’t quite get myself to jump through that door into staying in my well-worn in life here in the States. In the days following while grappling with the decision to either stay or go to another program, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I would be disappointed in myself if I gave up on the idea of studying abroad for a whole semester. It had been a big leap for me to make that decision to leave for so long, and resigning to a shorter, though still potentially incredible, trip felt like it would be a big step backward on my progress. With all these thoughts swirling around, I made the choice to join the program going to Alicante, Spain for the fall! Going back to that “everything happens for a reason” idea, Salamanca being cancelled and my risk taking choosing to go to Alicante ended up being the best course of action that could have happened for me. Although Salamanca’s romantic and historic buildings and the quieter country atmosphere would have been a very valuable and enjoyable experience, Alicante is a Spanish town right on the beach- who doesn’t love the clear blue waters of a Spanish beach? The Alicante program was also made shorter so that the participants did not have to go through the arduous visa process, which also means coming home to family sooner! I also have a friend that will be participating in this program with me, all the way through our flights there right down to coincidentally getting placed in the same apartment together for our host stay! Salamanca is a lovely city that I hope to be able to visit while abroad in the coming months, but the benefits I will experience with being a part of this new program demonstrates that endings are usually beginnings, even if we can’t see that at the time. If anyone has an experience that relates to this lesson, please comment below! Soon you will be seeing pictures and reading stories from my days in Alicante. Until Saturday, hasta pronto!
4 Comments
Katie
8/31/2021 11:12:12 am
As your Aunt, I could not be more proud of you. You are sure to have a blast and a plethora of stories to tell. I cannot wait to hear all about it!
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DAD
8/31/2021 01:51:41 pm
Though we will miss you, the pride we feel for you taking on this adventure out weighs those feelings greatly. I hope you will take this experience along with your experience in Kawasaki as just stepping stones to the beginning of great times trying new things and new cultured to enrich your mind of how great this world really can be.
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AyA
8/31/2021 05:52:59 pm
I am so happy, anxious , nervous for you all kinds of emotions hit me when I think of my godchild / first grandkid getting to experience this amazing journey of new things, I cant wait to hear all about it . I love you and will miss you and pray for you . Be safe .
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Terry
9/10/2021 10:33:11 am
Sorry to have missed you before you flew away!!!!
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