Semester One: Complete // 学期第一完成了

Now I can finally do the one thing I never have time to do: reflect! My first semester here at Fudan in Shanghai has been one of the best times of my life. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I boarded that flight at RDU and said my farewells to friends and family. I wasn’t quite sure if I’d make good friends or feel comfortable living on my own in a huge city or be able to balance my work and studying. I basically had no expectations and just accepted the fact that I was going no matter what and would overcome whatever obstacles were thrown at me. The big deciding factor for me was although I was of course scared and nervous about moving to Shanghai, I was more scared of staying here in the US and missing out on all of the possible opportunities in China. Also, since I was fresh out of college, I knew that I wanted to create a life that was anything but ordinary. When I realized this, I was confident that Shanghai was the only direction for me.

Fortunately, none of my fears were realized, and I was able to immediately make awesome friends and develop life-long relationships with people from all around the world. I was also surprised with how comfortable I felt living at Fudan and navigating around Shanghai. It was my 3rd time to the city, but the first time I was ever actually ON MY OWN! Anything I wanted to do, I could do it! No planned out itinerary or prearranged meals, I could do as I pleased with my own time and little by little, I made a life for myself in this amazing city.

Not only is learning Chinese such a big passion of mine (and just so much fun), but I feel so joyed that I have found a passion in life that has lead me to so many wonderful opportunities and has allowed me to meet so many amazing people. Now that my first semester is complete, I am so ready to travel and enjoy a little break from the day-to-day routine. Stay tuned for what’s in store!