A problem that many, many people people have when traveling abroad, or just traveling in general is the culture shock or the jet lag phase of the trip. This usually occurs at the very beginning of the trip and could last for about a week or so.
I can say, from experience, that this is a very terrifying stage. I was told that it would happen and was also told ways to avoid it, but it still took me by surprise. I thought "I will never be that person who wants to go back home right after they got to a place that they WANTED to go to!" But it is safe to say, that I definitely was that person. It happens because we are used to living in our own culture for so long, even in some cases our whole life, that we are just in complete shock when we see new things. It is just like as a kid, when you stay at a friends house for the first time. I remember I would have to have my friends mom take me home or call my mom to come get me the first few times I stayed over somewhere else. This does not mean that I did not like where I was or who I was with. It just shows that we, as humans, are so used to doing the same things over and over. Change is something we have to grow into. It is not an easy thing to get used to. But to solve it you just have to stay calm, stay off social media, keep your mind off of whatever is making you sad or upset, and try to make the most of the situation.
Staying calm is very important because freaking out is going to do nothing but make the situation worse that you already think it is. This is what happened to me. I called my dad immediately and wanted to get on a plane at that very moment from Europe and go home. It made my dad freak out because he was not there to help me. I could not even call him on the phone, we had to Skype and the internet kept going out so it made the situation even more scary.
Staying off social media is my number one suggestion. Seeing what all your friends are doing at home is going to give you the worst FOMO (fear of missing out). Even if they are not doing anything cool it just makes being at home seem that much better. Enjoy where you are at because I am sure that all of your friends at home wish they were at the same place you were halfway around the world.
Keep busy, go out and do something, walk around, make friends, go shopping, go to eat somewhere, visit places you have never seen before. Staying busy will keep you mind off of the fact that you hate your life and want to go home that very instant. But by going out and finding something to do, you will most likely enjoy yourself and you will not even remember that you wanted to go home hours ago. Try and make friends. When studying abroad, like I was, there were several other people in the same exact position I was in. So talk to them and you both or a group of you can do something fun together.
Try and make the most out of the situation you are in. Just remember, you wanted to go to this place for a reason. So put those reasons forward and enjoy your time there. You will regret it so much for the rest of your life if you decided to go home after only being there just a few days. I promise that if you tough it out you will learn so much about yourself that you never knew just because you pushed through such a tough and, no pun intended, foreign situation. Just because they eat different food, drive different cars, dress differently, or talk different than you, does not mean people in that culture do not value the same things as you. I branched out and made friends and realized they like to shop, watch tv, go out with friends, play sports, and make funny jokes just like my friends and I like to do back at home. You will realize the different cultural differences, but deep down inside, everyone is the same.
There are many problems you may face while traveling. I think this is the most common one, especially with traveling overseas to countries that are culturally different than the United States. It is very hard to get used to at first, but once you overcome it you will have the greatest time of my life. I will forever remember my time studying abroad. It is the inspiration for my class project, in fact. It made me see what kind of person I am deep down inside, I just had to bring it out. I think it changed me for the better. I want to do business overseas when I graduate. I want to travel the world and see all of the famous sightseeing monuments that we learned about in grade school and high school. Traveling made me who I am today in just one months time. Life is all about adventures and if you do not take any, you will one day regret it. You might think traveling is not for you, but guess what? I thought the same thing until I actually did it. I am constantly looking up places I want to go next and times when I can go somewhere. I want to see the world because it is no fun staying in one place your entire life. There is so much to see in this world, you just have to get out there and push yourself to actually do it. So get out there and DO IT!
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