Molly Dolan
Study Away
I was definitely nervous before I left to go study abroad for a couple of different reasons.
Photo contributed by Molly Dolan
For one, I was going alone. Most people go with friends from school, but I was only one out of two people going to the University of Limerick.
I was also nervous about being away from my friends and family for four months and that I would have trouble adapting to the lifestyle here.
Once I landed in Ireland and arrived at my new school, all those nerves went away. I immediately made friends, mostly other international students, and absolutely love living in Ireland.
The people are so friendly, everywhere is green and beautiful, and it’s such a fun place to be.
My favorite part about my semester abroad is all the traveling I have been able to do. All transportation here is very inexpensive. Whether it be by plane, train, or bus, it’s all so cheap.
That mixed with the fact that I don’t have classes on Fridays, has led me to travel all around Europe.
I spent my first few weeks traveling and exploring Ireland, but then I started booking weekend trips to other countries and became almost addicted.
I told myself that I’m only living in Europe for four months so I should make the most of the short time I had.
So far, I have been to Limerick, Galway, Dublin, Belfast, Derry, Cork, Kilarney, Dingle, Donegal and Ring of Kerry in Ireland. Outside of Ireland, I’ve been to Paris, France, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, London, England, Madrid and Barcelona. Plus, I am spending a week in Italy and a few days in Switzerland before I head back home in December.
Looking back, my semester has flown by. In just a short amount of time, I have experienced and learned so much more than I thought possible.
It’s going to be really hard leaving Ireland in December, but I’m so excited to go back to my family, friends and Keene State.
Living and traveling in Europe has taught me more than any book or class ever could about history, cultures and especially myself, and I would encourage anybody to study abroad.
