Being abroad is one of the weirdest sensations I’ve ever experienced. I feel as though I’ve been in London for years, yet at the same time it feels like just yesterday I was landing in Heathrow and moving into my flat. After hours of reflection trying to put all those feelings into words I’ve found a way to describe my semester abroad: a prolonged vacation.
Everyone is familiar with the feeling of being on vacation. You’re aware that that is not you’re real life; it is a temporary moment, which means you’re not too concerned with comfort or stability. In London I do things I wouldn’t at Rollins, such as sharing a bathroom with 4 other people and going to the movies on a Monday night. But this is all okay, because I know it is all temporary. It feels as though the life I’m living is not really my own. At the same time, I’ve settled into a routine which makes my London life feel like home.
I’m not quite sure if anything of what I’m saying makes sense, but it’s the best way I found to put my feelings into words, feelings I don’t quite understand myself.
In exactly 9 days I will be jetting of back to the States, and I can’t deny my excitement to see my family and return to what’s familiar. I am also struck by melancholy and sadness to say goodbye to the most amazing city I’ve ever been to. I’m going to miss being able to casually lay on Hyde Park on a uncharacteristically sunny day, walk around Oxford Street like it’s no big deal, and plan spontaneous weekend trips to Barcelona. Besides the city, I will miss my roommates. Over these 3 months we have all become very close, and not in the “well…they’re my roommates, it’s best to get along” kind of way, but in a way in which we are all genuine friends. One of my roommates even bought a ticket to visit us at Rollins in the spring!
9 days still feels a world away and I’m uncertain about what I will feel the day I leave, but all I can say right now is that studying abroad has been the most amazing, life-changing experience of my life and I urge anyone who has the opportunity to do it, to do it.
I definitely understand what you mean–a semester abroad can feel almost surreal!