Kara Fitzpatrick: 10 Lessons I Learned in my First Month Abroad

1. You won’t make friends sitting in your room. This was the hardest lesson I had to learn. I spent a lot of time crying in my room over the fact that I didn’t have any friends. You have to step out of your comfort zone, when people send out an invite that says, “Everyone is welcome” they really mean everyone is welcome. Friendships take time, but they will happen. Just smile and be open for anything.

 

2. Grocery shopping in another language is hard.  Walking into the grocery store and seeing everything is in German was scary…something’s were easy: Milch=Milk…but sometimes you think you bought cheese and you ended up buying yogurt.

 

3. Things like toilet paper and toothpaste don’t just appear. When you are on your own you can’t just go into the cupboard and find the stash of necessities your mother bought months ago at Costco...you have to buy them yourself.

 

4. Primark is everything. They have dresses for €5. This is a philosophy that Vancouver needs to adopt. I think they know me by name now.

 

5. It won’t feel like home until you go away from it. I never referred to Innsbruck as home. Whenever I talked about home, it was always Vancouver. Then, I went away to Munich for the weekend. I had a wonderful time, but I remember saying for the first time, “I can’t wait to go home,” and knowing I meant Innsbruck. I missed the familiarities of Innsbruck as soon as I stepped into a new place.

 

6. Don’t mix red and whites in the laundry. Unless you wanted to rock a slightly pink tank-top.

 

7. The drinking age is 16. I was at a celebration, similar to Halloween, called Carnival. Everyone was partying and drinking on the streets. Every time I turned around a saw a young girl, who looked like she should still be playing with Barbies, drinking and smoking. This is a cultural norm here.

 

8. Tell everyone you are from Canada. Who wouldn’t love us, eh?

 

9. Everyone is having the same problems and insecurities. You may think you are the only person missing their family, crying alone in their bedroom, making mistakes at the grocery store, stressing over school and time, or wondering what will happen next, but you’re not, everyone is in the same boat.

 

10. This is the best time of your life. We cry, we laugh, we experience new things, and we make memories and friends for a lifetime. No further explanation necessary.
 

Kara is a third year Bachelor of Tourism Management student studying abroad at Management Centre Innsbruck in Innsbruck, Austria.