During the four weeks that I will be studying abroad this summer
I want to do everything I can to fully immerse myself into the culture. In
order to do this I plan to live like a local. Living like a local to me means
that I will take part in the everyday activities of a Finn. Not necessarily
changing myself to fit in, but engage in the daily activities. It is important
to me to live like a local while I study abroad because I want to get a real
sense of what it is like to be a Finn. I don’t want to just feel like a
tourist, but instead I want to experience every cultural difference that I can.
I also want to get involved on campus. If there are any group study sessions or
weekend activities on campus that I can take part in, I definitely will. After
researching the university some, I’ve found that most people ride their bikes
to and around campus, so maybe taking group bike rides would be an activity to
engage myself with the campus and other students. I think I read somewhere that
I will get to participate in a real Finnish sauna, which I am really excited
about!
While abroad I
will be living in an apartment off campus. I think this will be helpful in allowing
me to meet more people. I would love to find some Finnish friends that know the
area well and would be willing to show me around in order to meet other locals
as well. I imagine my day-to-day life feeling like I am in a movie. Riding my
bike to class with my awesome new friends and exploring the beautiful country
in my spare time. In reality I know I will be doing a lot of studying and
homework, but I hope to get to explore as much as possible.
From my time
abroad I hope to gain some insight into how Finnish culture differs and relates
to what I am used to. I have a friend now that is an international student and
she keeps telling me that it is really amazing to see how cultures differ and
she encourages me to really take it all in. I also hope to find some insight
into myself. This will be my first time being completely independent so I am
excited to see how well I do. This transition is probably going to be a little
difficult for me, but I plan to do as much research as I can before I go to
prepare myself. I am also getting in touch with some of my relatives now just to
introduce myself and hopefully set up meetings. I am really excited about
studying abroad. I really want to do all I can to take part in Finnish culture
because I think it will be very interesting and educational, as well as fun to
experience a new culture!
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