In the French culture, keep your hands on the table at dinner
Belgian Beer, slow and steady. Slow and steady.
French women definitely shave their armpits
I can’t sing Le Marseillaise but its growing on me
Belgium has 5 governments, and none of them seem to be effective
Protests just happen, because they can (beware of angry farmers)
Trains do their own thing, so roll with it
Pretzels really are better in Germany
Don’t go to the French Riviera after massive floods
But if you do, travel with someone you love
Definitely don’t airbnb anything outside of major downtown cities
Every time you travel somewhere look outside and think about it, there’s probably somewhere very similar in the U.S. and that’s probably the reason those people moved there
If you can’t handle being uncomfortable then you’ll never know what its like to be comfortable
European towels are smaller and thinner
You need an Umbrella, a good coat, and some resilient shoes in Brussels
It’s ok to take a break.
Things in Europe aren’t better or worse, they’re just European.
The U.S. isn’t the only country that follows U.S. politics.
I don’t know as many languages as people in Europe do
Levi’s are cheaper in the U.S. by a long shot
Europe needs more Dad jokes
You can buy Frites-sauce in the grocery store
Sweet, not salty for breakfast
Money comes and goes, you don’t. Some things are worth buying.
Traveling alone or with someone or both
Taking the Thallys train is a beautiful thing
Subways are the equivalent of live YouTube, you’re going to end up watching some weird stuff
Europe has supermarkets
I’m never going to be able to describe this experience in its entirety.
Never try to memorize the types of grapes in the Loire Valley
Lyon is the best kept (not so) secret of France
Terrorists will never stop Europe from being Europe
Kebab stands can solve the world’s most difficult issues of diplomacy
Switzerland is really
Skiing Switzerland really is all its cracked up to be
The real Matterhorn is cooler than the Disney one, although it does not have a roller coaster
I don’t like mulled wine; I gave it my best shot (pun intended)
Applying for residency in Brussels is like to dipping your body in peanut butter and walking around town: you can do it… but why?
Inflated grades in the US may be silly but at least they make you smile more than deflated grades in Europe
American politics are funny to watch abroad until you realize that you are returning to those politics
Most meats at a Buchon in Lyon: just eat it and don’t think about.
Don’t put a $20 bill in the Laundromat coin machine (unless you love .50 coins)
You may not be fluent, but you’re in a good spot if you can help an old lady with directions to the bus stop in French.
Spontaneity is great, but have a back up plan
Amsterdam is wild
Hitler is the reason that Alsace wine varieties are so limited and controlled
Hotels and stars: 1-2 shame on you (stay in a hostel), 3 Russian roulette, 4 good times
Space bags are the way of the future
Cornichon = pickle, not a pointed hat *cue confused professor’s face*
People who say carbs are bad for you clearly have not had enough French bread (it’s a lost cause fighting its seductive delicious powers)
The ladies who clean bathrooms all day probably make more money than I will out of college
Oh boy. You’re a returnee. You’ve just gotten home from abroad. Now, you’re responsible for validating your existence and entire experience in a 30-second-or-less recap where you attempt to explain a roller coaster of emotions, a sense of self-actualization, loneliness, elation, and tangible experiences. Good. Luck.
If you’re anything like me, you’ve learned the greatest deflecting tactic on the planet:
Acquaintance A: “How was your trip?”
Me: “It was amazing!!!”
For most people, that interaction will suffice. They’ve engaged you to a surface-level point where they’ve shown enough interest to maintain your relationship, but still remain depth-free, and while you’re stricken with guilt knowing you’re telling a minuscule portion of your experience, you are more than happy to avoid talking about your trip’s pit falls and focus on the amazing parts. Win-win.
I visited the Miyajima Shrine in Japan, which was actually amazing
Acquaintance A: “What made it so amazing? What did you do? Were there any difficult parts? ”
Once the second probe happens, you buckle down. They’re really interested. You’re not getting away scot free. Winter is coming.
You have to understand, I’m extroverted and still hate this part. I like to think of myself as articulate, but have an extremely difficult time encapsulating the holistic nature of a trip abroad. The peaks feed into the troughs, which then feed into the peaks, in an endless cycle that still affects me well after my return.
For example, during my study abroad program, I directly enrolled in the University of Salamanca, meaning I set up my own classes, lived with a host-family, and didn’t have an immediate support group of Americans I saw every day. I loved the freedom of this lifestyle, where I didn’t have to answer to anyone but myself, but simultaneously was driven crazy by the amount of time I spent alone. Working through the loneliness, on the flip side, remains a great point of pride for me, as I found my own inner strength and moral compass, but doesn’t take away from the fact that I was really lonely at times. In short, my experience was a double-edged sword, which was not always easy to explain. Returnee-ism reared its ugly head.
The positive, amazing hike side of my double-edged trip to British Colombia (negative side not pictured)
So, here’s my advice for dealing with returnee-ism:
First, accept the fact that these interactions are going to happen, and are going to happen whenever you come home from an exciting place. I just got home from attending two of my best friend’s wedding in Japan a month ago, and I dealt with the exact same questions I faced coming home from Spain.
Second, if the trip didn’t have a frustrating aspect, then you’re either remembering incorrectly or lying to yourself. Overall, my trip to Japan was one of the best of my life, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t low points. The longer you live somewhere, the more this is magnified. Even if you can’t explain the complete nature of a trip to someone else, be as truthful as possible. Gilding or demonizing your trips can discount what you learned from them.
Third, debrief. I went to Israel during December of 2014 and had an interesting experience, but one that was really frustrating as well. I wrote a blog on it, which really helped me put my trip in perspective. I’m in the process of writing one for Japan, and always travel with a journal. Find whatever mechanism is best for you to debrief, it’ll do you a lot of good.
Finally, internalize everything, and go out again. Each time I’ve traveled after my study abroad experience, either domestically or internationally, I applied what I learned before and gained new skills to boot.
DU Abroad 