Keep the Friends You Make
So, apparently living the stressful life of a last-semester college student isn’t really conducive for blog upkeep. However, I have done an impressive amount of traveling since February so I am full of fresh ideas and fun stories. This tip is also relatively graduation-related, so it’s also super timely!
As you may remember, I studied abroad in London last year and it was one of the greatest experiences in my life to date. One of the things that I loved so much about the trip was the friendship that bloomed between 27 students being forced to live in a very small flat together. It is these friendships that define this traveling tip: Keep in touch with anyone you travel with or who you meet while you’re traveling. When you take a trip with another person or even in a group, even if you don’t know them that well beforehand, finding your way around an unfamiliar city with someone has a funny way of breaking down a lot of barriers.
This became abundantly clear while I was in London. When I arrived in our flat I only knew four of my 27 new housemates, but when I left I had a group of friends that I was closer with than most of my friends that I had left at home. This is something that I didn’t really appreciate until last weekend when I graduated from JMU. I had spent four years at JMU and the people who were most important to me at graduation were people that I had only known for a year and a half. This is something that I never would have anticipated going into the study abroad trip.
Because this bond grew so strong in such a short amount of time, I knew that graduation doesn’t mean goodbye for us. While I should have been weeping over the fact that I won’t see my best friends every day, I was excited about the reunions I knew we would have. In 20 years when I think of my college years, these are the friends who will define it.
Hannah, Blair and I at Primrose Hill in London
Sarah and I at Stonehenge
Christine and I at Big Ben
Christine, Blair, Hannah, Sarah and another friend at graduation from JMU
Hannah, Me, Blair, Sarah and Christine at graduation
