There’s No Place Like Home

By:

Melena Appling

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Melena Appling

<i>"Hello" in your host country's language:</i> Hello! <i>Home Institution (your U.S. University/College):</i> University of North Georgia <i>Expected graduation year:</i> 2024 <i>Destination city & country:</i> London, England & Rome, Italy <i>Program provider:</i> CIEE Open Campus <i>Major/minor:</i> AA Communications transitioning into BA Communications with concentration in Public Relations <i>Demographics:</i> Asian/Asian American <i>Future career aspirations:</i> First, I will graduate college obtaining a AA in Communication along with a BA in Communication with a concentration in Public Relations. In the next 5 years, I plan to be a brand manager who is running social media management accounts (social media marketer) for local businesses. I hope that this will pave the way for me to run my own public relations department for a large corporate business in the future. I look forward to working with people and helping them resolve their problems. I enjoy speaking and communicating with others, and I am quite excited for my future! <i>Top 3 goals for your time abroad:</i> 1Study more about the place that I am studying abroad. Learn about myself and find comfort in independence. I hope to take awesome courses, and learn from a new university!

During the last week of our time in Italy, we went to St. Angelo’s Castle. We got to tour the inside and see the walls surrounding Rome’s city center. The view from the top was stunning. We watched the sunset over the top of the buildings. I also revisited some of the landmarks I enjoyed from my time spent abroad like the Roman ruins, and enjoyed every second of the city. I romanticized my last few days in Europe by treating myself and enjoying the gorgeous scenery.

Following that, I took all my finals and made great grades! I shared great memories with my professors and wished them well on their next block of courses. Now that my courses are officially done, my study abroad adventure sharply comes to a close. It is sad but I look forward to going home. I tell my friends goodbye and make them each promise that we will stay in touch and remain friends to visit each other’s hometowns one day.

I arrived home on November 5th. I was away for 3 whole months. I got to reunite with friends, my boyfriend, my family, and most importantly my dog! They were all so ecstatic to see me and I was too. I missed my home, my bed, and restaurants from home. I loved getting to tell everyone about my journey and sending them to read it all on FEA’s website for this blog. I got to share pictures and explain funny stories in real-time.

After it is all said and done, my study abroad experience has come to an end. I learned so much about different places in the world. Also, I grew so much as an individual. How to take care of myself and support myself on my own. I paid for all my housing and groceries and program myself. I learned how to become an adult which was an eye-opening experience. Additionally, I learned about different grading systems around the world and how classes work somewhere else. I do miss being in Europe and traveling all the time, but I also loved coming back home and seeing how much I enjoy the suburbs and my hometown.

Studying abroad taught me so much and was a wonderful experience. I witnessed history being made and made lifelong memories. I highly recommend it to anyone and there are many ways possible to make it happen, like scholarships and working hard. I would definitely do it again if I could.