I’m sitting in the third floor study room of Simard Hall, the primary ‘pavillon,’ or academic hall for all my classes. I am working simultaneously on a presentation outline and setting up software for wireless printing (finally!) when I receive a buzz from my iPhone.

I have CNN updates sent to my phone, mostly with U.S. political and breaking news, to keep in touch with what’s happening in America. It would be nice to completely isolate oneself from their home country’s news and be completely and utterly immersed in their country’s news, for me it would be the CBC, or Canadian Broadcasting Network. However, with Trump in office, major climate catastrophes, and terror incidents all around the world, I feel obligated to know what is happening back in the states. I say all this because this morning, October 2nd, I woke up to several news alerts about a mass shooting on the Las Vegas Strip. It happened yesterday while I was sleeping (Las Vegas is in Pacific Standard Time and I’m in Eastern Standard time, so it was midnight when the shooting occurred at approximately 10:00pm). It was a surreal experience, similar to those with the Pulse Nightclub and Manchester tragedies. This shooting also occurred after the terror attack in Edmonton, Alberta, which is in a province of Canada not close to where I’m staying in Ontario. Canadians are rightfully still mourning that incident.

One of things about study abroad that they, as in the International Office or OIE at DU, don’t tell you at these orientations and meet-ups is that there is a huge possibility of terror (either domestic or foreign) attacks. They are not necessarily in your specific destination, but perhaps near where you may be staying or back at home in America. This is most likely done to not frighten the students out of studying abroad. Studying abroad does present a risk of potentially being in a dangerous situation.

However, studying abroad is a worthwhile experience. That’s why the OIE creates several modules on safety abroad and gives it a great amount of time in orientations to discuss safety and security. Just some things I do to stay safe abroad include just being aware of my surroundings at all times, keeping in touch with my family/friends, and being aware of the news in my country of potential dangerous situations. Being aware in general is the most important things to do everyday in order to be safe.

As we mourn the victims of tragedies around the world, your ambitions to live abroad shouldn’t die either. Trying not to live in fear is easier said than done sometimes, but the effort that is being put into the journey from the day you apply to the day you leave for your destination will be worth it in the end. Follow your gut feelings and the ideas from the OIE on maintaining safety. Communicate with them if there is an incident! It will only help at the end of the journey!

Till next time! Stay safe.