By: Ashley Haviland
Major: Early Childhood Education
When planning to study abroad, you will hear over and over again how important it is to make the most of your time in the country you are traveling through. Can you think of another time that you will have the opportunity to visit a museum in Athens, go to a historic landmark in Rome, or have a picnic by the Arno in Florence? However, during my first few weeks of studying abroad in Europe, I have learned a very important lesson: it is okay to want to do nothing sometimes.
Through the Seminar in Europe program, we have a packed itinerary. On days we spend as a group, our professors take us to see several sites within a few hours, and our average step count is about 20,000 a day, equaling about 9.5 miles in distance. This is as exhausting as it is exciting. The result is twofold. We have the opportunity to see an incredible amount of scenery, art work, and culture, but at the same time, feeling as though we barely have a moment to sit down by ourselves and take a breath. For this reason, I have found that on my free days, I usually don’t feel like doing much. All I want is the chance to sleep in past 8am, our usual meeting time, eat a leisurely breakfast, lounge around in my pajamas, and maybe venture outside for a quick coffee and a bite to eat at the cafe next door.
In the first two cities we visited, I felt ridiculous using my free day to do nothing. I thought I would be wasting valuable time. So instead of relaxing, I got together with other members of the group, and we planned a full day of activities. During my free day in Nafplion, Greece, we visited the parade on Greek Independence Day. During my free day in Rome, we took a train to a beach, and spent the entire day away from the bustling city. Both of these days were a lot of fun, and I’m very happy with the activities that I chose. But, the following day I found myself still feeling exhausted and in need of some “me time,” which I had neglected the day before.
In Florence, we had an unfortunate mishap. Many of us had planned to go to Venice on our free day, but the train tickets ended up being too expensive to justify making the trip. We had absolutely nothing planned. I was disappointed and worried I was about to waste a perfectly good day in Italy sitting in the hotel.
And that’s exactly what I did.
I woke up at 10:00 AM the next day. I ate breakfast and then took about an hour to get ready. I walked around the area in Florence where we are staying and did some shopping. I came back to the hotel and took a nap. I hung out in another room with some of my friends, just sitting around and talking. We went out for dinner and gelato, and then came back and went to bed. We could have spent that day on a grand adventure.
And that’s okay.
Sometimes, you need some time for yourself. When studying abroad, it is easy to feel like you should pack every minute of your schedule, but you would never do that at home (nor should you), and it’s okay to schedule time to do absolutely nothing while you’re abroad. Everyone needs time to recharge and refresh. If you give yourself time to relax, you will be more engaged in the activities the following day. It is much healthier to take time to get that extra hour of sleep, take the longer shower, or mosey down the street instead of speed-walk. In the end, your experience abroad will be much more positive if you find a healthy balance between a packed schedule, and a little relaxation time.
Ashley’s previous blog post: https://bwstudyabroad.wordpress.com/2016/03/07/why-i-chose-the-seminar-in-europe/
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