It wasn’t so much starting a new semester nine and a half hours away from home, in a completely different country, that made me nervous. It was everything that had to be done prior to my studies abroad that made me tense. Yet, to say it’ll all be worth it is only an understatement. From my first meeting with the Study Abroad Department to getting all my paperwork signed, sealed and delivered to the Czech Embassy in hopes of getting my student visa approved, every step taken was just another reminder of the incredible experience that is to come. 

As I take a break from packing what will hopefully be my final travel bag (I tend to overpack), I reflect on the last eight months and start to smile. January-March: application, passport, transcript, personal statement, and patience. April: approval. May-August: wait there’s more? Yup! Visa application, course registration and approvals, working six days a week as a waitress to save money, packing and finally taking flight. I’m on the “working six days a week” mixed with “packing” part of my pre-departure journey and I couldn’t be more grateful for everything that has led me here. It was a lot of busywork, but every time I needed someone’s help, they would light up with excitement for me. Now imagine my joy every time someone reminded me of how fortunate I was to have this opportunity, to explore another part of the world, to live as I’ve never lived before!

My older brother had studied abroad in the Czech Republic, taught English in Taiwan for a year and in Colombia for another year. My father left Colombia when he was 18 to explore Aruba to then get deported back to Colombia after a week (a tragically hilarious tale) and then lived in Mexico for two years. My mother spent a year in high school as an exchange student in Indiana, 3,000 miles away from her home in Colombia. I, on the other hand, visit Colombia almost every year. It’s the country in which I’ve gone to summer camp, church, doctor’s appointments, and weddings in. Now that I’m coming close to the end of my undergraduate career, it’s time I follow in my family’s footsteps and step outside of my comfort zone. That’s why I chose Prague, a place with a language, culture, and history that I’m not familiar with. Although I’ve bought Milan Kundera and Franz Kafka’s works to familiarize myself with what is to come, I know that I must have my own experience to fully appreciate this foreign culture. So, here’s to comfort zones and completely abandoning them! And here’s to Prague. I can’t wait to meet you.