Being an exchange student is something only other exchange students understand. Literally, you put yourself in someone else’s shoes, except you didn’t even know shoes like that existed.
I’ve learned to eat bread every morning instead of cereal, that silence is golden, that sometimes if you can’t say something to someone, it probably wasn’t that important anyway.
I know my adventures for this year aren’t over yet. Sometimes I still find it hard to believe that I’m here and I haven’t died from culture shock. Every passing day I forget a little bit more about what it’s like to live in the United States and I learn a little more about what it’s like to live in Finland.
There has not been one day that I’ve regret taking my trip from the Minneapolis Airport to Helsinki. I love every person I’ve met since I left Minnesota. Every face I’ve passed on the street, every kid that’s too shy to talk to me in my classes. I want to know everyone. Everyone has an interesting story about their life, and I want to hear it.
The most interesting thing about meeting some people is that not one person I’ve gotten to know reminds me of someone else I know from the US. Every personality is different enough that I can’t think of anyone to compare them to, and I don’t want to try.
People are remarkable.
I’ve never been able to wait for the future, and now is no exception. I’m excited to see the adventures ahead of me still in Finland, not to mention when I get back to the United States to attend college. I hope to travel the world someday, and while it might be an expensive dream, there’s no other way I’d like to spend my time. I want to capture the world in my memories, the people, the languages, the lifestyles. I want to influence people in person, not by word of mouth or anything like that.
This past half year has proved to be amazing and I hope that my adventures get bigger during the second half of my exchange.
I think the most important thing I’ve learned so far is that home can be anywhere you make it, and as long as you are willing to talk to anyone, you will always have friends. I know that when I mess up there will always be someone there for me to talk to, whether I’ve known them for years of I just met them on the street.
So, maybe I’ll leave this as a challenge for those of you who aren’t on exchange.
Talk to someone new, maybe it’s someone you see every day but have never talked to, or maybe it’s someone you see at a coffee shop. Make a friend in an unlikely place, you’ll never know where you’ll end up.
I’ve learned to eat bread every morning instead of cereal, that silence is golden, that sometimes if you can’t say something to someone, it probably wasn’t that important anyway.
I know my adventures for this year aren’t over yet. Sometimes I still find it hard to believe that I’m here and I haven’t died from culture shock. Every passing day I forget a little bit more about what it’s like to live in the United States and I learn a little more about what it’s like to live in Finland.
There has not been one day that I’ve regret taking my trip from the Minneapolis Airport to Helsinki. I love every person I’ve met since I left Minnesota. Every face I’ve passed on the street, every kid that’s too shy to talk to me in my classes. I want to know everyone. Everyone has an interesting story about their life, and I want to hear it.
The most interesting thing about meeting some people is that not one person I’ve gotten to know reminds me of someone else I know from the US. Every personality is different enough that I can’t think of anyone to compare them to, and I don’t want to try.
People are remarkable.
I’ve never been able to wait for the future, and now is no exception. I’m excited to see the adventures ahead of me still in Finland, not to mention when I get back to the United States to attend college. I hope to travel the world someday, and while it might be an expensive dream, there’s no other way I’d like to spend my time. I want to capture the world in my memories, the people, the languages, the lifestyles. I want to influence people in person, not by word of mouth or anything like that.
This past half year has proved to be amazing and I hope that my adventures get bigger during the second half of my exchange.
I think the most important thing I’ve learned so far is that home can be anywhere you make it, and as long as you are willing to talk to anyone, you will always have friends. I know that when I mess up there will always be someone there for me to talk to, whether I’ve known them for years of I just met them on the street.
So, maybe I’ll leave this as a challenge for those of you who aren’t on exchange.
Talk to someone new, maybe it’s someone you see every day but have never talked to, or maybe it’s someone you see at a coffee shop. Make a friend in an unlikely place, you’ll never know where you’ll end up.
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