Reflection

 Entry 14

Reflection on Semester Abroad

You always know that you aren't going to know everything, but traveling abroad really makes you realize--not just how narrow your lens is--but also how resigned to it most of us are. We stop thinking about all of the things we don't know, and when you stop doing that, you stop learning. That's basically my nightmare as a future teacher so this experience was a reminder for me to push my boundaries and explore things that I don't even know that exist to explore.

I developed favorites of things that I hadn't really thought about before my time abroad, simply from exposure. I was unaware of the existence of certain things and through travel and exploring, I discovered them and now, I love them. Thanks to Vienna, a city that was not even on my initial list to visit, I have a favorite painting and a favorite artist. In Athens I found my favorite bird, a monk parakeet, which we concluded from google searches and photo matching.

I tried new foods and drinks: couscous, stroopwafel, oysters, pastel de nata, squid ink bread, Neapolitan pasta, limoncello, gnocchi, souvlaki, lukamedes, and a bunch more.

I even retried old foods! I gave soup, stew, onions, and a dozen other things a second chance. And I didn't like all of it, but I did at least try again which I think is pretty good for a notoriously picky eater.

Being abroad has also made me think a lot about my own identity as an American and an Arizonan and how I would describe those identities if asked, as I occasionally was. It's so hard to come up with an answer, even after four months of thinking about it because the American identity is so faceted even within states. My tutoring kids asked what a common food is in Arizona, and I really couldn't come up with a single food that Arizona is known for or that every family eats every week. 

I am also very aware that I visit these places not just as an outsider, but as a tourist. I am getting a snapshot of these cultures and countries, the best of themselves that they present for visitors, but also how they would summarize themselves or the monuments and history they would immediately identify themselves with. It has made me think a lot about touristy places in Arizona and how a visitor would perceive my state, if they would have an easier time summarizing it than I do. Other than the Grand Canyon, I'm not really sure what a tourist in Arizona visits but I want to figure that out. Obviously, there is more to a place than its tourist attractions but as someone who had never lived outside of Arizona prior to this experience, I think I've missed a lot of the "must see" destinations and one of my goals when I get back is to approach Arizona as a tourist. I want to go to the best hiking spots, the coolest museums, the greatest roadside attractions, and visit the prettiest towns. 

The more time I have spent traveling in Europe the more that I wonder why barely anyone ever travels in the United States. Vacations are such a once a year or every few years type of thing and it's completely crazy when you think about how easy and cheap it is to drive a couple of hours and get lunch in a new city. I think it probably has something to do with the American mindset of working hard to achieve some preset future goal which is in such contrast with the Spanish approach to life which very much prioritizes personal and family time as well as appreciating the past and living in the moment. Both have their advantages and disadvantages (most Spaniards have virtually no savings or don't even have a savings account) but I definitely want to be conscious in borrowing some of that 'slow down and explore' attitude from Spain. It's not at all uncommon here to take the bus or train a couple of hours to the beach in Cadiz or for a weekend trip to Portugal, and it would be even easier to do in the U.S. with a car, but those trips have always felt like a special occasion event, for no reason.

I think it's really easy to become complacent in your routine, especially in the U.S. with everything being so fast and I have certainly felt at times that I am in a loop of wakeup, work, get home, go to bed, and repeat. I think trying new things, no matter how small, can break up that monotony and refresh you. My goals when I get back are to explore Arizona more and travel more in general--even just within Arizona--the more you see, the more you learn; try new things, even on a small scale, pick out a new fruit at the grocery store or a new recipe off of Pinterest.

I am finishing up this reflection after my return to the U.S. and people always ask how Spain was. I could talk about my experiences, the countries I visited, the foods I tried, how it reset my perspective, but it would take hours. I usually just say amazing, and they always laugh that it's all I have to say, but how could I possibly sum up the craziest 4 months of my life and all of this in a couple sentences?