Studying abroad can be life-changing in many different ways, but it’s also good to remember the little, everyday things that became normal and real to you during your time abroad. If your overseas experience took you to the United Kingdom, you can probably relate to a few (or all) of these.
1. On your return journey, you had an entire suitcase dedicated to Cadbury’s Chocolate. Sorry, Hershey’s. You just don’t quite cut it.
2. You have at least one basic photo with a red telephone booth.
3. Possibly a second basic photo with the police box.
4. Rain no longer phases you.
5. For this reason, you probably bought at least one new jacket during your time abroad (because everyone around you had fabulous jackets).
6. You couldn’t wait to have American bacon.
7. However, you miss British milk.
8. Your last nice meal was fish and chips. Or a Sunday Roast. Because yum.
9. You get confused when people back home don’t worship the sun in the same way that Brits do.
10. You miss talking about the slight differences between Britain and America.
11. You now understand that there’s not just “a British accent.” There’s a big difference between Scottish, Cockney, and Welsh accents.
12. You now agree that soccer should be called football and American football needs to be renamed.
13. You miss Costa (The Starbucks of the UK)
14. You understand cricket and rugby, kind of.
15. You now know that netball exists.
16. You’re just really confused when “college” is mentioned now. Is it Uni or High School?
17. You have a greater respect for the Brits' abilities to engage in American political conversations.
18. You will miss seeing the Queen’s face every time you spend money. And pounds are just prettier.
19. You now know what the Scottish, Welsh, Northern Ireland, and English flags look like and probably didn’t even know they were different before.
20. The Union Jack emoji is in your “frequently used” section.
21. You’ve learned how to properly say names like Edinburgh and Birmingham-after much correction from your British friends.
22. When you get off any public transport, you say to yourself, “mind the gap.”
23. You are no longer freaked out when greeted with, “You alright?” But you still don’t know how to respond.
…And there’s so many more. After spending time abroad, you come back with a new sense of normal and realize that there’s a different normal for everyone around the world. You have a greater appreciation for different kinds of people and different cultures.