This summer I studied abroad in Accra, Ghana. During this experience, I discovered some of the crazy things that happen to you when you study abroad.
1. It is nothing like what you expect.
The months leading up to my trip to Ghana, I had been picturing exactly how it would go. In my mind I saw how the whole city of Accra would look and how the people would be. The second I arrived I knew things were going to be a lot different than how I had envisioned. I learned quickly to role with whatever was thrown at me, because nothing I had planned mattered.
2. You feel like you are in a dream.
Every morning that I was in Ghana I woke up surprised I was still living in a foreign country. I kept expecting to wake up and be in my bed at home. I tried to keep up with all the new and exciting things I was experiencing and witnessing, but I never felt like I knew what was going on. It was as if I was going through my life as someone else.
3. You become instantly close with everyone else on the trip.
In the program I went on there were 15 of us all living in one house together. By night two we were already sharing our deepest secrets and becoming a family. In no other situation would I ever meet a group of strangers and become such quick friends with them. By the end of the program we all had nicknames for each other and so many inside jokes that nobody else will ever understand.
4. You forget about everyone else back home.
It’s not that you stop caring about everyone else back home, you just forget about your real life. You get so caught up in what is happening that you stop being able to wrap your head around life before you were ever abroad. After I had been in Ghana for one week I suddenly became super homesick. I missed everyone so much and did not think I could do the rest of the trip. But after that one episode, I permanently stopped being homesick for the rest of the trip. I stopped thinking about home because I became so absorbed in what was around me.
5. F.O.M.O. takes on a whole new meaning.
Many people suffer from F.O.M.O. (Fear of Missing Out), but it is entirely new issue when you are abroad. The whole trip was me trying to do everything I possibly could, no matter how tired I was. I became a “yes-woman” because I could not miss out on any detail of this once in a lifetime experience. As exhausted as I was, it was worth it.
6. Y.O.L.O. becomes no longer stupid.
Another acronym that takes on another meaning abroad is Y.O.L.O. (You Only Live Once). Whenever there was something I was scared to do or did not want to try, I just told myself Y.O.G.O. (You Only Ghana Once). It sounds ridiculous but it actually made my experience better because it forced me to do things I would not normally try. I have no idea if I will ever go back to Ghana, so it was my way of reminding myself that studying abroad is a once in a lifetime experience.
7. You dream about the food from back home.
No matter what country you are study abroad in you will probably get tired of the local cuisine. About half way through the trip was when I thought I was going to lose my mind if I had to eat chicken and rice again. I started having dreams at night where the only thing that was happening was me eating an enchilada with sour cream. There were actually two separate occasions on the trip where I shed tears because I was so hungry and just wanted Mexican food.
8. You find consciousness.
It does not matter what country you go to; international phone plans are expensive. These means you will probably spend a good amount of your time searching for Wi-Fi. At first, every restaurant and public building I went to I immediately was on my phone searching for an internet signal. After a few days, and a lot of failure trying to find working internet, I stopped caring so much and started waking up to what was around me. Not having my phone as a constant distraction forced me to live in the moment.
9. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.
Sometimes things get weird when you are abroad. You learn things about people you should not know and you experience things together you probably should never talk about. The good news is that what happens when you are abroad stays abroad.
10. You never want to leave, but you also really want to leave.
By the last week I was ready to go home. I was tired of cold showers and at that point physically needed Mexican food. It turned into a weird emotional rollercoaster of counting down the days to leaving and trying not to cry at the thought of having to go. By the time I was in the van on my way to the airport I felt sick to my stomach that I had to leave.
11. It sticks with you after you get home.
I have now become the most annoying person ever. I have to force myself not to talk about Ghana, but I somehow still do. I am constantly going on about being abroad and telling people things they don’t understand because they weren’t there. As polite as everyone is about it, I can tell that after a while they get annoyed. It’s only been a few weeks since I got back and I already miss being abroad so much. The entire experience has changed my perspective on life and will stick with me forever.
