5 Things I Wish I Knew Before Studying Abroad & 5 Things I’m Glad I Didn’t

我知道，毫无疑问，这四个月的国外生活将成为我一生中最美好的时光. Not just because of how fun they’ve been, but also how rewarding they’ve been as I’ve faced inevitable challenges. The fear of the unknown has always been a big obstacle for me, 因为我不喜欢不知道自己要做什么——正因为如此, study abroad was the perfect opportunity for growth. 出国的全部意义在于让自己沉浸在一个陌生而艰难的环境中. 我之所以这么说，是因为虽然有一长串的事情，但在进入这种经历之前，最好能知道, there’s also so much that came out of me not knowing those things. So, the things listed in this blog as “things I wish I knew before 宝博体育” will probably not seem too major, because the major things are what brought the most growth, 正因为如此, I’m okay that I didn’t know them. 这讲得通吗?? 无论如何……

以下是我希望在宝博体育之前就知道的五件事:

1. 家里的生活不会因为你不在而停止，珍惜和家人在一起的时光!

在来这里之前, 我相信我不会有太多的乡愁，因为我周围发生了这么多激动人心的事情. 足球比赛日, 姐妹会约会派对, family gatherings and road trips all still happened but I wasn’t there, 老实说, 这很难. Spend as much time with your people before you go, 因为你会想念他们，当你离开的时候，你需要依靠他们!

2. You don’t need all twenty-five pairs of shorts you packed.

I mentioned this in the first blog post I wrote on study abroad packing tips, but seriously, pack lighter than you think! I’m not even a big shopper, 但是我发现我有一些东西是我不能拒绝的，我还在努力在我的脑海里计算如何把所有东西都带回家. If you’re even questioning it, you don’t need it!

3. A little bit of French goes a long way.

在来这里之前，我一点法语都不懂，在需要的时候当场学习也很好. 虽然它仍然是相当容易沟通和挑选关键短语, some familiarity with the basics of the language would’ve been very helpful. The amount of times I have said, “My life would be so much easier if I just knew French,” since being here is honestly kind of alarming.

4. Three-hour classes are more survivable than you think.

This probably isn’t the case for all study abroad programs, 但是在我的学校, all classes are three hours long, 一周一次. 这对我来说是令人生畏的，因为我在家上的大部分课都很短，也很频繁. 然而，我喜欢它! 我只在周一和周二上课，剩下的时间都用来探险和旅行. There was no need for me to stress about this simple aspect beforehand.

5. 它会飞逝而过.

This pill is the hardest to swallow. 11月初，我坐在法国联排别墅的卧室里写这篇文章, with just a month and a half left of my program. 还有很多东西我想看，还有很多人我想认识，还有很多地方我想去. 如果我能告诉自己什么，那就是接受一切，对一切说“是”. 我认为我在充分利用时间方面做得很好，但我还可以做得更多. 同样的道理, don’t spend so much time regretting what you haven’t done, that you can’t appreciate all that you have done. 我看到了一些非常神奇的东西，虽然我总是希望我在这里有更多的时间, I’m beyond grateful for the experiences I have had, and know how truly blessed I am.

现在，我很高兴自己在出国之前没有完全掌握以下五件事:

1. Public transportation is HARD.

This one might not seem major, but BOY it is. I come from a suburb of Dallas, 德州, where we drive just about everywhere, and public transportation isn’t common. In 法国, not only is it common, but it’s VERY necessary. 这是一个众所周知的事实，不仅对我，而且对那些爱我的人来说，我是他们所说的“方向性挑战”.” While I still turn the wrong direction every time I walk out my front door, I now know how to get around by taxi, 地铁, 公共汽车, 有轨电车, 火车, 飞机, 凡是你能想到的. 如果我能在一个我看不懂路牌或和司机说话的国家里导航(大约75%的时间成功), 我可以做任何事!

2. You’re going to make lots of mistakes.

男孩，我曾经. 迄今为止最大的错误? 我的护照从家里的背包里掉了出来，就在这学期的第一次周末旅行开始前几个小时，我要登上飞往葡萄牙的飞机, 直到登机口的女士告诉我我不能上飞机，我才明白过来. Many frustrating phone calls, 眼泪, hours searching for a new flight and a nice chunk of change later, 我去了葡萄牙! I will never forget my passport again, and neither will anyone who gets the joy of traveling with me in the future. Mistakes are good, even when they hurt.

3. School administrations work very differently in 法国.

开学的时候，不要假设学校的日程安排和以前一样, 上课, communications with professors and administrators and so on. I’ve faced many obstacles in this area, 主要与调度冲突和随后修复冲突的通信有关. My lack of knowledge on the unique school system here, 而刺激, 帮助我与学校里重要的、乐于助人的人建立关系，帮助我认识到在令人沮丧的情况下保持耐心的重要性.

4. Every French citizen does not despise Americans.

确定, I’ve gotten my handful of dirty looks since being here (what for, 我还是不确定), 但我遇到的大多数法国公民都非常友好和乐于助人. 我很高兴我不知道这不是真的，因为我潜意识里对法国人的“恐惧”鼓励我对与我不同的文化格外友好和尊重, 我认为这帮助我和一些当地人交朋友，并理解了拥抱陌生文化的价值.

5. 燃气灶具. 我已经说得够多了.

这里没有太多的详细说明，但这是我学到的一个重要的生活技能.

Some of these may seem trivial, some not. 无论哪种方式, 我总是会回顾我本来可以做不同准备的方式，或者为自己节省一些压力. Regardless of all these things, 他们当中最大的遗憾就是没有追求这段经历，亲身学习. 如果我可以用一个号召来总结这篇文章，那就是:宝博体育! 很俗气，但在做出重大决定之前，总会有一长串的假设. 从这次经历来看, 我明白了出国前的未知(通常会引起焦虑)比从未尝试过的遗憾要值得得多, if you have the capability. 拥抱你的朋友和家人，少带点行李，下载多邻国，然后出发! You’ll never know unless you try.