I have never been more nervous to do anything in my whole life. I didn't know a single person going on the trip I was about to embark on to another country, and I felt like I most definitely didn't know enough French to go live in France with a French family for a month. Yet, the second I stepped off of the plane, I knew my whole world was changing, in the best way possible.
Before I go on, I think the most important thing to say is if you have the opportunity or even a slight chance of going to study abroad, take it. Don't let fear or nerves get in your way. If even a sliver of you wants to go, fight for it.
Getting on the plane may have been the most anxiety-inducing moment in my entire life. I was sure I wouldn't make a single friend, and that my host parents would hate me.
But all of that changed by the time I finished my first day in La Rochelle. As the days went by, I could feel myself begging the universe to let me stay. I made the best of friends and grew close with each girl who traveled abroad with me. People often say that if you're truly agreeable with a person, you should go on a trip with them, and I've never heard words truer. I got to know the people on this trip better than the people I've known for years.
Not only were the other students with me lovely, I could not have ever imagined getting better host parents. So kind and funny, I felt like I was at home the entire time I was with them. As we boarded the train to leave La Rochelle for Paris, I sobbed, because a foundation of studying abroad sunk in. Connection. Suddenly, that connection was gone.
But, these were not the only amazing things that made the study abroad so special. The second you immerse yourself in a new culture, you become a new and better person. I found so many things I loved that I would have ignored here in the states. For example, I adored the food here that I would have detested back home. I also loved joining the mass swarms of French people to celebrate and root for France during the World Cup. While I may truly be an American, during the World Cup I became an honorary French person. I chanted, sang, and cheered just as loud as any citizen.
Throughout studying abroad, you learn to love, even things you thought you wouldn't like. You will find forever friends that you didn't think you would make, and you will grow. You will learn from this new and wonderful place, and once you return home, you will forever be changed. Studying abroad to La Rochelle, France was the best experience, change, and learning process I could ever hope for.
Most importantly, studying abroad will change your perspective on the world, but that is how you grow and turn it into your own.
