Semester Reflections

Sitting in the JFK airport with a terrible cold/cough and eating the last of my delicious LAN snacks, I'm glad that I'm finally taking a rest from my vacation. Traveling, while amazing, is hectic and even though I don't want to admit it to myself, it's time to be home.

While it's probably the most cliche thing to say (ever), I have to admit that this experience really did change me as an individual. I now have the courage to travel to foreign places alone, try mysterious meats with grace when they are placed in front of me, and know that no matter how alone I may feel at any moment, a friend is only a "hello" away. I can't think of another experience that has given me this much freedom to explore who I am as a person and to grow from it. So how, exactly, have I changed? Well..

-When I got to Chile I was the most stereotypical American in regards to time: I was always at least 10 minutes early, I had a set schedule that I followed without deviation, and I liked to have a plan several days in advance. Thankfully, this kind of behavior is not very well accepted in Chile, and I was forced to adjust. Now, while I'm still early to everything, I don't have a schedule beforehand-it's so much more relaxing.
-Before going to Chile, I was very conservative with the physical contact I would have with other people, especially strangers. The idea of kissing strangers on the cheek made me very uncomfortable, and I wasn't sure how well I would be able to adjust. However, now I'm fairly certain that I'm going to lean in for cheek kisses every time I meet someone new, which will be sufficiently awkward.
-I have learned the pleasure of traveling alone. I don't know how well this will translate into the culture of the USA, but in Chile it was ok to go to events and places solo, as you could just start talking to people there. At Ithaca I avoided going to a lot of events solo because I didn't want to be the awkward girl in the corner, but I think I will be able to change that now, for the better.

There's a lot of other profound changes I could try to describe, but it's better to just go yourself and see what there is to see while in a new country!