You're having the time of your life and thinking about how lucky you are to be in X place with Y and Z people when suddenly, a dark thought inches its way into your happy bubble. You're about halfway through your semester abroad. *Cue the infamous Jaws music* You're halfway through your wonderful break from reality?! How did this happen?! Where did all the time go?! Well here's a list compiling some of the major signs that you've hit the halfway mark on your abroad "study" (in that order).
1. You realize that you've actually seen a lot of the things you've been planning to see for months -- if not years.[rebelmouse-proxy-image https://media.rbl.ms/image?u=%2Ffiles%2F2015%2F10%2F10%2F6358008080466676101862490976_giphy%2520%2821%29.gif&ho=http%3A%2F%2Fcdn1.theodysseyonline.com&s=425&h=9698c61ec268fe09a4e91a25a9a2e873196ee8a1f03d5c8a10c06287b6681763&size=980x&c=3930567806 crop_info="%7B%22image%22%3A%20%22https%3A//media.rbl.ms/image%3Fu%3D%252Ffiles%252F2015%252F10%252F10%252F6358008080466676101862490976_giphy%252520%252821%2529.gif%26ho%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fcdn1.theodysseyonline.com%26s%3D425%26h%3D9698c61ec268fe09a4e91a25a9a2e873196ee8a1f03d5c8a10c06287b6681763%26size%3D980x%26c%3D3930567806%22%7D" expand=1]
Your dreams become reality on a daily basis.
2. You start to become really clever when it comes to finding the cheapest options to continue having fun.
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Let's be honest, that student discount has saved you many times already... on that note...
3. This is your reaction when you look at your bank account.
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Whoops.
4. You realize how hard it is to motivate yourself academically anymore.
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That's you every time you try and start an assignment...
5. You start to wonder why every major monument has to have 1,000 stairs.
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Why couldn't these medieval people have invented elevators yet? Didn't they know how high my cholesterol would be now?!
6. You have to get a running start to fit into the clothes that fit you fine two months ago.
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7. It starts to hit you that people back at your home college are actually continuing their lives like normal -- even though you've been gone forever.
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How dare they?!
8. You start feeling like a local wherever you're studying -- even if no one else sees you that way.
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9. You start judging tourists -- and your abroad friends start saying things like, "I just don't want to do the touristy things."
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We are all tourists.
10. You start to pick up all the trends in whichever country you're staying in... Example: On the metro in Denmark like:
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Small talk is not a thing.
11. You start to feel a little homesick but also have so much anxiety about leaving the amazing place you call home now.
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I don't understand how I feel.
12. You remind yourself to stay in the moment and just soak it all in, because you're experiencing something life-changing and awesome.
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Can I stay abroad for the rest of my life?