Something Fun I Want To Share:

I wrote this blog post while I was studying abroad this past spring semester. I thought it'd be great to share as I near the end of this blog because it's an interesting way for me and you as a traveler to reflect on how different it is to be in the middle of your travels and then to look back at them at a later date. I think this post says a lot about what one can expect while studying abroad or extensively traveling at such a young age, and maybe provide you with a few more tips or important things to prepare for before traveling.

April 2010:
When I saw the email from Matt asking that we submit a blog entry on our experiences abroad I became very excited because there is so much I want to share with all of you. When I actually sat down to start writing this though I realized that it is an almost impossible task because I don’t even know how to sum up my study abroad experience so far in a blog entry. I’ll just stick to generalities. In a nutshell since coming to Prague I’ve traveled to Paris, Budapest, London, Vienna, Galway, Dublin, Krakow, Venice, Florence, and Rome. I have learned a few Czech phrases (Czech is a horribly difficult language), tried Czech cuisine, and traveled to various cities around the Czech Republic. I have made bonds with people that will last a lifetime. I have made travel memories with friends that we still love laughing about. I have gone on pub-crawls, I’ve gone spelunking, visited a bathhouse, and seen Auschwitz. I had to endure the coldest day in Prague in 20 years, while touring the Prague castle; it was 9 degrees. I’ve booked numerous flights, hostels, and train tickets. I’ve had to learn how to use the Prague public transportation without anyone’s help. Above all I had to learn to plan a trip completely on my own, acclimate to the Czech culture, deal with the occasional tinge of home sickness, and do my best to stay in touch with friends back home. Studying abroad is like freshman year all over again, you get to reinvent yourself, and as everyone continuously reminds me “everything here is not real.” People go out almost every night, and I have no idea how they aren’t always exhausted. I have loved the cheap prices here, and how small and manageable the city is. I absolutely detest the fact that you have to pay for ketchup, bread, butter, and water. Besides that I have thoroughly enjoyed traveling almost every weekend and meeting amazing people from all over the U.S. and Europe. Studying abroad has really allowed me to take a step back from my usual life and realize what is truly important to me and what I miss the most.

My friends and I in Florence (luckily all of them also go to USC and we've remained very close to this day):