When I think back to when I started writing here over a year ago, it seems like another lifetime. Back then, I was absolutely terrified and overwhelmed by what lay ahead of me. I had been really excited planning everything during my second year at university, but once the time came to actually go abroad, excitement turned to dread. To be honest, I wasn't sure that I would be able to complete the entire year.
My first placement in France as an au pair turned out to be a complete nightmare, and I had to come back home after just 10 days. After that, I felt even worse about everything. Spending 5 months in South America seemed like a ridiculous idea, when I'd failed to make it through 2 months in France.
However, the 3 weeks I spent at a language school in Montpellier in August 2017 were absolutely fantastic. I regained confidence, as well as my excitement about travelling. And that hasn't disappeared since!
In this final blog post, I'm going to reflect on the highs and lows specific to my own Year Abroad, as well as those that anyone who chooses to do something like this will face.
The challenging parts of the Year Abroad
The Year Abroad has been the best thing I've ever done, but it's also been a huge challenge at times.
Firstly, the way the placements abroad are structured are ideal for students studying one or two languages, but when you study three, things get difficult. As I spent a semester in Austria and a semester in Chile, I was left to try to fit the obligatory ten weeks in France around them. And jobs in France are extremely hard to come by. Both last summer and this summer, I found jobs online that were less than ideal, because I'd run out of other options. Both times, I ended up leaving those jobs after a short amount of time, which left me in a very stressful situation. However, on the bright side, I dealt with it better the second time.
Another difficult thing that everyone who studies or works abroad has to deal with is paperwork. So much paperwork! And it increases with the amount of languages/placements you do. It's annoying, but necessary. Unfortunately, I'm still dealing with it even now! The positive thing is that if you've completed a Year Abroad, employers will know that you have good organisational skills.
The last thing I want to add in this section is that the Year Abroad isn't "fun" all the time. Yes, there are so many incredible moments that make it all worthwhile. But life in another country is still mundane a lot of the time - you still have all the responsibilities and obligations you have when studying or working in the UK. Other times, living abroad can be really tough. It's common to feel homesick and miss your family. There was a time in Chile when I had some personal difficulties and just wanted to go home. Luckily, I was able to persevere and get through it. However, I would say that when a placement abroad is completely awful and you can't stand it, it's best to walk away and do something else (like I did twice in France).
The highlights
Now for the good parts!
Everyone knows that having done a Year Abroad looks great on your CV. It shows that you are independent, organised and open-minded. Not to mention the language skills you will have acquired! I'm happy to say that my French and Spanish are now fluent. I can't say the same about my German, but it has improved a lot, especially my listening skills.
It's also a good way to gain work experience. My job as an English language teaching assistant in Austria was my first "real job". It was really interesting to find out what the world of work is like, and I also gained confidence in myself and had fun.
But of course it's the places you see and the people you meet that are the most memorable part of your time abroad!
My personal highlights include the places I visited in the south of France last summer, especially Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert, Avignon and Nîmes.
Living in Austria was great because of how easy it was to travel to different parts of Europe. I think my favourite trip during that time was when I went to Liechtenstein, because it's such a small country and I found it fascinating.
But my semester in Chile was definitely my favourite part of my Year Abroad. It was a totally new part of the world for me, and I loved living there. Meeting my boyfriend was amazing, as was travelling around the country. My favourite places were Valparaíso and Huilo Huilo, however there are many more areas I want to visit. I plan to go back as soon as possible!
After 15 months, 2 continents and 8 countries, I'm back in England getting ready to start university again. It will be really weird to go back after such a long time, but on the whole, I'm looking forward to it.
I feel sad to finish this blog, but I definitely haven't finished travelling! Obviously I plan to go back to Chile soon, but there are a few places in the UK and Europe that I'm thinking of visiting during my final year. I don't really feel I did enough travelling during my first two years at Nottingham. Now I've started, I don't want to stop!
Maybe I will have to start a new blog...
Signing off for now!
Charlotte 😄
Image by Pixabay from pexels.com
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