I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Europe. During the study abroad I was able to enrich my understanding of a different culture, improve my ability to navigate public transportation around a city and even budgeting meals. Studying in a different country, is a rare opportunity that I was blessed to have.
For me, the best way to learn a language is to develop an understanding of the culture and trying to involve yourself in it. I mentioned how living in a country immerses you in the culture more than just visiting. Living in Germany helped me to develop my understanding of the language. Although I am mostly proficient with ordering food in German, this led to me learning how to navigate foreign countries with a different language, experience that I will no doubt use in future travels. Traveling without my family in Europe forced me to become more independent and rely on newfound navigational skills to get around.
I find it interesting how the European Union simplifies travel. While in Switzerland, we went to a mountain in France to go hiking and never even noticed when we crossed the border. Meanwhile, when traveling between the U.S and Canadian border, my family had to wait 4 hours to cross. The connected culture of Europe has fascinated me and getting to take advantage of this was an experience I found to be very intriguing.