Let’s Take a Field Trip
I think it’s safe to say that I’m in the thick of things now. The excitement that was lost in translation and manifested as anxiety — anxiety that I would not be liked, that culture shock would electrify me to…
UT Education Abroad Blog
Inspiring Longhorns to Explore the World
UT Education Abroad Blog
Inspiring Longhorns to Explore the World
Tag Asia
Unfamiliarity Unexpectedly Breeds Connections
As an undergraduate student in my third year, studying linguistics and Chinese, I chose to attend National Taiwan University (NTU) to learn more about my family’s cultural heritage and to master the Chinese language. My early childhood in Gongguan, “公館,”…
Shifting Expectations
Part of me has always known that I wanted a different study abroad experience than most people. I wanted to integrate completely into a society that was so different from my life back home in Texas. That’s why I originally…
Familiar but Distinct
As a Chinese international student at UT Austin, I am familiar with how studying abroad feels. I can’t recall exactly how I felt when I arrived at the airport wearing a long-sleeved shirt and pushing two large suitcases out of…
Comfort Zones, Making Friends
As someone who is a special brand of an extrovert-presenting introvert, I had anxiety just thinking about how long I would be away from my family and friends with no guarantee of a social life while I was abroad. My…
Opportunity
As my first semester studying abroad in Japan concludes, I wanted to take this chance to reflect on my experiences and the personal learning this country has permitted me to do. Years ago, I chose to study abroad halfway across…
New Year, New City, New Me
On the first day of this year, I hopped on a plane (actually, three planes) to come to Hong Kong. My fervent packing the night before had been interrupted by New York’s, then New Orleans’ ball drop to ring in…
The Hero’s Journey Takes Asia
Save for the week I spent in Vancouver, the day I spent on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls, and the 20,000 steps I took in Victoria’s Butchart Gardens (all of which were with my parents and under the age…
Holidays Both New and Old
I have never considered myself to be a big “holiday person.” While I appreciated the chance to come together with friends and family, holidays were never treated like a big deal. My family would participate in the usual traditions, such…