An NYU Student Who Studied Abroad In Florence Hated Every Aspect Of Her Semester Abroad…

We have always heard about college study abroad programs. Many have experienced and squealed about their tales of travel, new experiences and memories of lasting thrills. But not so for one college student. As the Insider’s article flashed across the screen, I was compelled to find it and dig deeper. I was curious to know why? Here’s an excerpt.

Since three-day weekends are the standard for NYU’s study-abroad programs, almost everyone chose to take $20 Ryanair flights to places like Croatia and Munich for Oktoberfest. To me, this seemed like an exhausting form of escapism. I was convinced my peers were doing it only to freshen up their social-media profiles and make their friends back home jealous.

I, on the other hand, wanted to travel to learn more about myself and explore ways to shape my life after graduation. Since most of my classmates were looking to go to sex shows in Amsterdam and getting wasted in Ibiza, I traveled alone. I went to Nice, France; Lugano, Switzerland; London; Malta; and Dubai, United Arab Emirates. But most weekends I stayed at home in Florence.

Read more from the Insider here

Tales of her experience included:

• Living with 7 people was not easy
• The pressure to travel on weekends was not easy.
• Italian people were hostile towards her
• Her life in New York went on without her

Caused me to think how tales of dreams and travel experiences differ among people. As we experience life, it looks different from person to person. One can only imagine an essay from her roommates and what that would look like. Hmmm…

What are your thoughts? Do share. We would love to hear.

Cheers!