Studying abroad is inspiring! With a blog, you can revisit these moments and give yourself a boost on a rainy day.
Study abroad was such a magical learning and growing experience for me. I found my second home in 2011 in the coastal city of Valparaíso, Chile. The experience was one of the most significant ones in my entire life, and I can still say this with confidence five years later. But starting out was tough, to say the least…
Even after years of college-level Spanish under my belt, I was lost in even simple conversations. Anyone who has been to Chile will confirm the difficulty of the accents and the very frequent use of slang -- I would estimate at least two or three in a one minute conversation! This made even a simple trip within the city feel like a mission worthy of a seasoned explorer. Once I was ushered on to the wrong bus not one, not two, but three times before I actually managed to explain where I was trying to go.
Following classes was nearly impossible, and I was living with a family that I couldn’t understand. In my photography class, I was completely lost when my teacher explained the process of developing photos. Let’s just say I ended up with more than one set of overexposed, totally white photos! But believe it or not, I am nostalgic for this time of jumping into the unknown. By the end of the trip, I couldn’t believe how much I had been able to challenge myself and how much I had come to love Valparaíso. I was throwing around slang just like a young Chilean, and I surprised locals by striking up conversations with them.
Not only did my language skills grow, but I also grew as a person. I learned to be open to striking up a conversation with someone I didn’t know, and developed a curiosity for other people’s stories. I surprised myself as I began frequently chatting with shopkeepers and neighbors and learning about their lives. I was confident that I could try new things, fail a few times, and still try again and succeed. Let’s just say that I finally got a successful round of photos developed in my photography class. I became more independent -- I could navigate challenges by myself, like traveling alone. After awhile I became accustomed to wandering around alone in the safer neighborhoods of the city, looking at murals. Most significantly, I learned that “home” is more than just the place you grew up. I found another home in Chile, and moved back there after study abroad-- and hope to move back in the future.
I am not the type to keep a journal. I have notebooks from when I was younger with two or three days’ worth of journal entries followed by empty pages. Adults and former study abroad classmates told me I should really keep a blog while abroad, and I blew them all off. I told myself that it wasn’t worth it to start something that I would probably end up giving up after two weeks. Plus, who would want to read my blog anyways?
Maybe if I had had a blog, I wouldn’t have had to keep repeating: “I’m not kidding! The street dogs are so friendly it’s ridiculous!”
If only I had known how much I would regret this decision! So I am here to tell you, before you depart on your own adventure, or even if you are already there: write a blog while you are abroad! Your future self will thank you. Here’s why:
- Writing is an outlet. You’ll have tough times while abroad, just like I did. Writing about your challenges is a way to reflect and put things into perspective. I used to get embarrassed whenever I had a total language fail, which was every day for the first month or so. Like when literally every time I got on the bus and tried to tell my driver that my stop was “Reloj de Flores,” I would butcher the words so badly that the bus driver had to ask me: “Von Schroder?” “Reñaca?” “Recoleta?” Yes, it was that awful. I wish I could have written about these moments in a blog not only to get some perspective as part of my journey, but also to get some support from my readers back home. Suffering silently tends to make things worse, not better!
- You’ll please your people back home. You could spend all day talking to people back home, but the best times you’ll have will be when you’re living in the moment. Some personal messages are great, but it takes a lot of time and energy to stay connected with all of your friends and family. Rather than sending out individual messages about your incredible weekend trip and writing the same blurb 19 times, invite all your friends and family to read about it on your blog. They will be thrilled to follow your adventures, and they’ll also rest easier knowing that you’re doing well. You’ll get to show your friends what you are up to along the way, so you can catch up easily when you get home.
- You’ll record your victories, big and small. Give recognition to all of your accomplishments, from making your first local friend, successfully chatting about culture with a member of your host family, or participating in a class discussion (in another language!). Writing about this in your blog reminds you that you are reaching milestones. You’ve earned it, so give yourself some props on your blog.
Show off your photo-taking skills! You’ll impress yourself with what you can capture on your camera. This impressive shot of a helmetless and saddleless horse race during “patriot week” would have been up on my Chile blog right away.
- You’ll use all of those awesome photos you take. Photos are always attached to a story and shouldn’t go to waste. If you use social media, you know it’s easy to post a few pictures on Instagram and leave the others sitting in storage on your computer. I have thousands of precious photos from 7 months abroad. Photos are best when they are put to use, and a blog is the place for that... since I am pretty sure that no one is sitting at their host family’s house scrapbooking (though if you do, more power to ya!). Even if you are not big on writing or don’t want to share journaling on a public blog, keep a photo blog and let your pictures tell the story.
- You’ll have a keepsake that you’ll never lose. I have some pairs of llama socks missing their partner, some broken keychains, and a faded mug. Anything you buy in a market won’t do your trip any justice. I had a hard time leaving Chile and all the friends I made there, and I wish I had had a blog to reminisce about when I got home. Whether it is the day after your return or years after, you’ll have the blog to look back on for a little slice of the country you called home for a few months.
Everyday stuff is just as important and fun to write about as sightseeing. I could have done a whole post on just the many carnivorous cookouts just like this one!
- You’ll stay inspired! Remembering time abroad will remind you of the self-discovery and magic of living abroad and getting to know a new culture. Most likely after going abroad, you’ll be inspired to travel and expand your horizons even more. This can get lost in the transition to college, trying to get a job, and the humdrum of the day-to-day back in your home country. Even if you can’t travel for many months or years after, the blog will remind you of what you got out of seeing a new culture and will inspire you to keep on exploring the world.
To everyone who told me to keep a blog abroad, I’m nodding my head to your “I told you so’s.” All I can do now is try to convince all the future world travelers to keep a blog. You’ll thank yourself later, I guarantee it.
