How the People You Meet Abroad Make a “Trip” Into an “Experience”

 

When you decide to study abroad, you will likely be going on your journey alone. This fact resounded through my brain as I hugged my friends and family goodbye at the airport and proceeded down the terminal. I kept looking back and waving until they were out of sight. It was then that it hit me. I wouldn’t see any of them again for a very long time. I mustered up all my strength not to turn around and run back, away from the beckoning TSA agents, and braced myself for my impending trip to Adelaide, Australia.

If I had known all of the incredible people that awaited me in Australia, however, I would have sprinted gleefully into the security checkpoint (probably not, but you get the point.) Though I dearly love my friends and family, I met some incredible people in Adelaide who profoundly influenced both my trip, my personality and, thus, the course of my life.

The first thing I learned, in retrospect, is that when you meet someone with which you are going to form some sort of weird bond, it will likely occur in a random place. You’ll often meet the people who will have the deepest impacts on your life when you’re doing some mundane thing. Trying to figure out your way around a foreign grocery store or lugging your nasty laundry to those crappy washing machines in your apartment complex basement are strong contenders.

One of the most amazing people I met during my trip happened before I even left the country. Indeed, just like myself, he was waiting for his flight at the always bustling and chaotic LAX. While I was nervously contemplating my own 14-hour flight during my 10-hour layover, I realized that I heard an Australian accent. I whipped around to find an authentic Australian (at the time this was very exciting) trying to make conversation with a woman standing next to him. She, in turn, was obviously disinterested. Feeling bad for the kind man, I engaged him in what I thought would be a 5-minute chat. In reality we spoke for 4 hours. 4! He made me feel so much better about going to Adelaide. We ended up staying in contact throughout the entire duration of my stay in Australia.

The ease with which I met my “airport buddy” brings me to my next point: try not to try too hard to meet people. Be social, but do not put everything into making personal connections. This simply leads to awkward encounters. During my university orientation I came across many of these “try-too-harders.” They always made things too uncomfortable with their, “Let’s plan every second of our next week together” or “OMG you’re going walking to class. Let me walk with you and constantly chatter until you get there.”

Sometimes you aren’t going to click with people and that is okay. Just because you are temporarily in another country doesn’t mean that the social codes of friendship have changed (at least that’s how it was in the great red continent.) I feel a little silly saying this, but be yourself and wait to see who comes to you. If you stick to trying new activities that interest you, this is how you will meet your likeminded brethren and make lasting, positive connections.

Adelaide, Australia, is a wine region. I took advantage of this fact mightily during my stay. At the time, I was just realizing my love for wine and wanted to experience as much delicious Barossa Valley wine as I could. This led me to take bus tours all over the valley and sample delectable wines from the most remote vineyards. During my tasting tours, I met a plethora of interesting individuals. These fellow winos and I would bond over a few glasses of Shiraz. They told me all about the Australian culture and helped me understand Adelaide more than I ever could have on my own.

So strike up a conversation with the elderly woman selling fruit on the corner near your apartment, chat up the barista at the coffee shop you frequent, or ask a friendly stranger for directions.  A simple “hello” can, and often does, lead to a world of possibilities.

You never know where you will meet the people you remember most, long after you return home. The ones that will always hold a special place in your life story. Stick to the activities that sound interesting and allow yourself to be drawn naturally to an amazing group of international friends… or something even more serious.

Here’s to new friends, unforgettable memories, and, most importantly, giving love a chance.

Happy travels!

[accordion_tab title=”Collegiate Correspondent: Kelsey Tharp” default]
Kelsey Tharp recently graduated from Indiana University and received a B.A. in English. During her last semester at IU, she studied abroad in Adelaide, Australia and desperately wants to return some day. She has a passion for travel and encourages everyone to take the opportunity to live in another country! She has been previously published in Inside Indiana University Bloomington, IU’s Physical Plant Perspective newsletter and the Wine, Spirits and Beer Advocate blog. Outside of writing, she is an avid reader and chef.[/accordion_tab]