So I have been avoiding writing this blog entry for a number of reasons. The first reason being that I had to take a few days to adjust to the time change. Going to Australia and being 15 hours ahead was actually easier to adjust to than coming back which is now 14 hours ahead because of daylight savings—the state I lived in doesn’t do daylight savings. Going there was probably easier to adjust because I had activities or events I needed to attend at specific times and be awake for. Also, even if I wanted to take a nap, I forced myself to stay awake and meet people. However, being home, I don’t have much on my plate (until I go back to NU) so I don’t feel as pushed to convert back to this time zone for a ‘normal’ sleep schedule.
The other main reason I have been avoiding writing this is that it’s hard to believe that my study abroad went by so quickly. Basically that is THE main reason. It’s sad to not be planning another trip and also not seeing the same people. Having that one person that you’ll see at the library, that one person you usually see on your way to breakfast—little conversations like that.
It is difficult to compare this feeling to anything else and to describe it. It’s a different feeling than coming home from a semester of NU, different than coming home after sleep away camp. Even though I am back in my home country, I adjusted to Australian life, and that became my ‘normal.’ For now, I don’t really have a ‘normal,’ and it’s the little things that are the strangest.
I have wanted to go to Australia for my whole life, so this trip in its entirety was a dream come true. It’s hard to have something like that end. Looking back on it feels unreal, and I would absolutely love to go back sometime later in life. I met a lot of amazing people and did heaps of incredible things. I learned a lot about myself while traveling and have gained valuable life experiences.
All of this goes back to me choosing Northeastern. Not even in my wildest dreams could I have imagined accomplishing so much at just 21 years old. My co-op at the New England Aquarium fostered my love for penguins and marine life, which very much shaped my time in Australia. I’m no Eliza Thornberry, but animals absolutely amaze me and I can’t wait to learn more about them in further classes and hopefully another animal related co-op. Northeastern has given me the opportunity to achieve an incredible amount and has helped me pave the road that I want to take in life.
Thanks to anyone reading this entry and anyone who has read any of my previous ones as well, I’ve enjoyed writing these entries! It is still difficult to capture all of my experiences in words. I am incredibly grateful for this life-changing experience and would love to thank the NU Office of International Study Programs for all of their help in this process—I wouldn’t have been able to do it without you guys.
For any student reading this… STUDY ABROAD!!! You won’t regret it. You will meet people and do things that will create memories that will stay with you for a lifetime. Also shout out to one of my best Australian mates, Lachie (short for Lachlan, a popular Australian name), who bugged me all semester to feature him in my blog. Thanks for being a great friend and for all of your help teaching me Australian things, I will definitely share them with my friends here in America!!!
This weekend I am heading back to Boston for Summer 1 classes at NU. I’m excited to be back in Boston but I’m sure I will somehow manage to squeeze something about Australia into everyday conversations.
Cheers!!
Shannon
