The beginning of my four week trip to Buenos Aires, Argentina is fast approaching. Since I have never traveled outside of the United States, I am admittedly a little nervous to be so far away from home. However, my desire for personal growth and life knowledge motivates me daily to take on the challenges that come along with international travel. With preparations coming to an end soon, I wanted to reflect on my expectations for this trip.
For one, I wanted to go to Argentina to improve my Spanish conversational skills. For years I have practiced and studied Spanish in the classroom, and I have always been told that immersion is the best way to learn Spanish. While I am enrolled in a language course at the Universidad de Belgrano, I intend to pick up conversational language knowledge mostly through interacting with Argentinian people. With improved Spanish speaking, I want to make the most of my Spring semester abroad in Santiago, Chile.
I also expect to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for the Argentinian culture. This new perspective will hopefully inspire a potential topic for a senior thesis or creative new approaches to social issues that I had never previously considered.
While I am nervous to travel so far, I am itching to experience Buenos Aires and familiarize myself with a part of the world that I have never seen.