The Highs, Lows, and In-Betweens of Studying Abroad

Reported By: Shelby McCormick

Photo Courtesy: @joshzimmerr

When traveling, students inevitably come back with unique stories from their time abroad. Sometimes, these stories are memorable because they are once-in-a -lifetime experiences such as paragliding in Switzerland.  Other experiences are memorable because things went very wrong, like a monkey stealing your lunch. Here, past study abroad students share some of the experiences that stuck with them the most from their semesters abroad. 

Grace Bydlon: Rome, Italy 

For Grace Bydlon, one of the most memorable moments abroad happened during an independent travel week in Switzerland. While Switzerland is known for its winter adventure sports, options were limited in the fall, so Bydlon and her friend decided to try paragliding. They headed up a steep mountain whose peak was so high “that the town we had come from was like a speck," Bydlon said . 

The customer and the guide must run off the mountain to catch air into the parachute when paragliding. "You're tied to this guy, you're running down the side of the mountain, and it's so awkward, as you're basically waddling down the side of the mountain with this stranger attached to you," Bydlon said .

“But once you take off, you are peacefully sitting in the sky. The weather was perfect, clear blue skies, snow-capped mountains, and trees full of fall colors,”  Bydlon said. The guide offered to end the ride with some "tricks," but after he tipped them both forward and created the sensation of free falling, Bydlon decided to complete the rest of the flight trick-free. 

Josh Zimmer: Prague, Czech Republic 

Boarding the train in Germany, Josh Zimmer quickly learned how trains in Europe differ from those in the US. Trains in Europe do not wait at their stops for long. Zimmer learned this the hard way as he waited till the train was fully stopped to collect all his large luggage for his semester. By that time, people had already begun to board. 

With only a narrow hallway between the seats at the entrance, Zimmer blocked the oncoming patrons as they tried to get on, and they blocked him as he tried to get off. Eventually, Zimmer had to push a whole line of people back off the train and throw his bags onto the landing. 

"They were all angry at me, but I learned my lesson, so I was ready for next time; that was drilled into me," Zimmer said . 

Zimmer faced another mishap on a side-adventure to Morocco. There, Zimmer visited a waterfall where monkeys pose with tourists for pictures. While on Zimmer's shoulder, a monkey stole the sandwich from his backpack. 

"It was zipped. I wasn't that stupid. It was honestly impressive that he found the zipper! Clearly he had practice," said Zimmer.

Despite these initial mishaps, Zimmer loved his time spent in Prague. "It's so pretty; it feels like a Hollywood movie set every street you walk down. And all the little cafes, by the end I finally picked one, and they started to recognize me, almost like a local," Zimmer said. 

Connor Shelton: Oxford, England

To celebrate his friend's 23rd birthday, Connor Shelton adventured with her to the North of Oxford. To start, they waded through the flooded river Thames. "We ended up walking barefoot through the Thames, super dirty, and probably had flesh-eating bacteria. Everyone else had thigh high boots; we were not prepared, however," Shelton said. 

Their final destination was St. Frideswide’s Well, where legend says you will find love if you drink its water. However, along the way, they stumbled upon Keble College, one of the 44 colleges that make up Oxford, and found an open door, so they decided to explore. 

The door had been open, but had gotten closed at some point during their exploration. The pair spent 45 minutes trying to find their way out. Eventually, they figured out that "a closed door does not mean a locked door," Shelton said. 

When they finally made it to the well, they were met with water that "had rotting flowers in it; it was gross water," Shelton said. Despite this, they both decided to take their chances and sip from the well after journeying that far. 

While some parts of these stories might not match the glamorous view of traveling abroad many people may have, anyone who has traveled will tell you that these unplanned, sometimes even awkward and stressful moments, are what make traveling fun. These are the things that turn a trip into an adventure. David Maritnez, director of study abroad, often likes to leave students before they go abroad with this quote from Yvon Chouinard, “When everything starts to go wrong, that's where the adventure starts.”