Sunday, September 7, 2014

Orientations

     Orientations.....They are...well, interesting. Some of the things that we do don't seem to help much. I think they try to have us do things that will get us accommodated to the changes, but there's no possible way to do that. And a lot of the things we did at the NYC orientation were icebreakers to get to know the other students that were going abroad. 
     As strange as some things were, and as scary as it was at the beginning, I actually had a lot of fun at orientations. It's amazing to be around a bunch of people that know exactly what you're going through. They all know what it's like. I could talk to my friends all I want from back home, but they're never going to understand this experience...well, except for Paige, because she's been down this exact same road. But the rest of my friends have never gone abroad for a year and lived with a different family. They have no clue what it's like. And that's okay. I understand why they don't. But it's so great to have met people that really get me, that really get the situation, and that I can now call my friends. In only a few days, I've made some awesome friends that I think I will definitely continue to keep in contact with while I'm abroad.
     It was also fun to meet all the volunteers, especially in Spain. They were the nicest, funniest, coolest people. I ended up hanging out with all the volunteers the night we spent in Madrid. They were seriously awesome, and they were all pretty young and had been abroad before, so they knew how we felt. 
     As boring as some of the activities were, being with all those people was so fun. And now I actually can't wait til the next one. I just want to hang out with all the people that live near me and find out how everything is going with them. 
     Anyone who goes abroad in the future, know that yes, a lot of the orientations are listening and learning, which can be really boring, but they are a great way to meet and become close with the people that will be going through the same thing as you. Don't take them for granted. Use them as an opportunity to get to know people that could be lifelong, or at least trip long friends!!

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