Summary of Academic and Personal Growth

What an absolutely amazing, unique, once-in-a-lifetime experience! I cannot believe how fast this month went!

During the spring semester before the trip, we all had a class together to prepare for the trip. After taking the class, I wasn’t sure how all us students would connect. We didn’t all talk much during the class. I talked a little bit to the people sitting around me, but it wasn’t much of a conversation. I was still excited for the trip, but I didn’t have high expectations for making great connections with other students.

Well, I was completely wrong. It’s amazing how close you get to people when you are with them literally 24/7. You are with them all day going to museums, looking at monuments, figuring out what to do during our free time, eating, waiting for trams, sitting for hours on trains, singing and dancing to random songs, laughing, trying on funny clothes, trying weird new foods, figuring out how to communicate with there is a language barrier, having deep conversations, making a list of funny things, staying together in the same hot hostel every night, finding new things, pillow talk, etc. I am so glad I was wrong—I was too quick to judge. Obviously I didn’t become best friends with all 18 other people on the trip, but I did become close with a few. I am so thankful for meeting everyone, though. Even if I don’t keep in touch with every person from the trip in the future, every single person made some sort of positive impact on me. There are a few girls I became close with, though, so I am looking forward to our friendships continuing on outside of Europe! Both the students and professors on this trip really experiences Europe TOGETHER. We saw new sites and experiences new things, which is awesome in itself! But the relationships we formed made it even better!

I am a social work major, so the educational disciplines included on the trip (geography, music, and architecture) weren’t necessarily directly related to my interests. But, I ended up loving the educational pieces of the trip (history too!).

At the beginning of the trip, I wasn’t thrilled learning about the music and architecture of Central Europe. I loved learning about the history, which is rather tragic, of Central Europe and the geography aspect fit well into that. The music and architecture seemed so unimportant when we were learning about WWII, the Holocaust, communism, etc. They seemed so little compared to the bigger picture.

Towards the end of the trip, all the educational pieces started coming together for me. Yes, the history was and is very, very important to learn about. I realized, though, that the history has made the music and architecture what it is today, and what it has been in the past. The politics and everything that was going on in the area had such a huge influence on the architecture, music, and geography. Those disciplines expressed and still do express the trouble the area went through. But they now also express what the people of Central Europe have overcome. I am so impressed with how well the cities we went to seem to be doing, especially after all the murders, bombings, and control that happened.

At the end of the trip, I was actually happy the disciplines on the trip were geography, music, and architecture. Learning about those disciplines really helped me better understand the culture and history of Central Europe. They also helped me compare Central Europe to the United States, which helped me even better understand the area. The only thing I would have found more beneficial was if there was a history professor along. I know in the past there has always been one along and they weren’t able to find one for this year, but I really think it is essential to the trip. We did learn a lot about the history of the area through museums, etc. The professors explained a lot too, but a lot of it was in relation to their specific discipline. This was fine, but I really think there needs to be a history professor with to better explain the bigger picture and go into more detail about the history of the area in the future. After all, the history helps better understand the other disciplines on the trip too! But, I’m still happy the way the educational pieces of the trip went for us!

During the trip, I also grew as an individual. I choose to go on the trip initially not knowing anyone. A lot of my relatives would ask me if I was going with a group of friends before I left and seemed surprised that I wasn’t. I’m so glad I went without knowing anyone, though. Because of this, I was completely open-minded to meeting new people and gaining new experiences. I got to know fellow travelers in such a unique way—it had to be because this was such a unique experience!

Since coming to college, I have grown a lot. But on this trip, I proved to myself that I have indeed grown as an individual. In high school, I was fairly “quiet” and I rarely raised my hand and spoke in class. Even in college, I do raise my hand sometimes, but not nearly as often as I should. In big classes, I hardly ever do. On this trip, I would raise my hand to answer or ask questions. I wasn’t afraid to approach a professor and ask a question regarding something we just learned about. So for me, this is a huge step up from how I was in high school. I have grown more confident in myself and don’t care so much about asking a “stupid” question or being wrong. That is how you learn! This experience just helped me realize that even more. Of course, this experience made it so much easier to “talk” in class. We all got to know both the professors and other peers so much better than a normal classroom.

Throughout the trip, I started realizing how different all of our personalities were. I think people tend to gravitate towards those who are most similar to themselves when it comes to who your friends are. On this trip, though, I realized how well I got along with people regardless of how similar/dissimilar we were. This trip also helped me realize you should never hold back who you really are. Why hide your personality and thoughts when there are so many beneficial things that come out of sharing them with people? I think years from now when I look back on this trip, I am still going to remember the personalities of the people on this trip. Personalities are what make people unique! Differences allow you to learn from those around you! I learned on the trip that I "cater" to different personalities. I also learned how much I love learning about people! I loved learning about people's lives that were with on the trip, but also learning about the lives of the people that inhabit Central Europe.

One of the reasons I choose to study abroad was to gain a broader world view. Since coming to college especially, I have been so focused on learning about the injustices in the United States. Before studying abroad, I had never been out of the country. So, this was a very big trip for me! I can definitely say my work view expanded! I now see that people in different areas of the works do indeed live differently than I do. They have differences in their traditions, their way of living, their food, the way they travel to and from places, different languages, different housing, different climate, values, etc. HISTORY is a huge difference! The history of Central Europe goes way, way back. The history of the area has truly shaped the way it is today. After this trip, I realized just how young the United States as we know it is. We are a baby compared to most countries in the world.

A huge eye-opener for me was learning about the injustices in Central Europe. This topic really interests me—I have taken multiple classes, etc. learning about racism, sexism, etc. in the United States. Part of me was very un-patriotic. I thought the United States was so messed up and had so many problems. Obviously I knew other countries had problems, especially underdeveloped countries. But, it was very eye-opening that Central Europe has many of the same problems that exist in the United States. For example, we learned in Brno that the Roma people were basically segregated (not by law) and were in this on-going cycle that these barriers were preventing them from getting out of. I think this is similar to what is happening in the United States with racial minorities. There is still segregation (again, not by law) and a cycle going on that keeps racism alive in today’s society. Before the trip, I never really thought of other countries in this way. I guess I assumed the United States was like this because people came from other countries to create a “boiling pot” of cultures, races, etc. But other countries have multiple “groups” of people, some of which aren’t treated as equals.

All 5 countries we went to have differences from the United States. But, they also have many similarities. We are all people living in an industrialized society! We enjoy doing the same things and have the same basic needs and emotions. We are all human beings!

Overall, this last month was truly the best month of my life! I’ve gained both academic and personal growth from this trip, as well as a wonderful group of friends. Above in this blog post, I discussed ways in which I have grown and things that I have learned. But, I think there is more. As I go about my daily life back in the United States, I am going to start realizing more and more ways that I have grown or how I see things differently after this experience.

I am definitely going to miss this. I am so, so thankful I had the opportunity to participate in the Central European Travel Seminar. It's hard to even wrap my mind around how it was possibly to do this! I am just so, so glad I did! I have really learned from this that when you have opportunities in front of you, it's up to you to take them! They aren't given to you, but working for them is completely worth it. I am going to cherish this month of my life until the day I die! It was truly a blessing I wish everyone could experience!

As the song by Lee Ann Womack goes (here are some parts of the lyrics that apply to taking the rick of going on this amazing adventure!)
"I hope you never lose your sense of wonder,
You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger,
May you never take one single breath for granted,"....

"I hope you dance"...

"I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance,
Never settle for the path of least resistance
Livin' might mean takin' chances but they're worth takin',"....

"Time is a wheel in constant motion always rolling us along
Tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder where those years have gone"

Okay, this whole post is a lot of rambing....but I don't care! It just shows how much I loved this trip and I want to have artifacts to remember it!

 I really like a certain quote and this section of it applies, also!
"Seek out new voices, strange sights, and ideas foreign to your own. Such things are rides for the soul."