Life Abroad- Mary Wade Brewer

Do you enjoy travel, discovering new cultures and gaining unique life experiences? If so, a chance to study abroad may be the just the ticket to fulfill those desires. Ashley Hall offers numerous trips and programs that can broaden one’s horizons. We also have the benefit of visiting Rotary and exchange students here on campus. In this new series I will share experiences from Ashley Hall students that have studied abroad as well as interview current exchange students.

In the fall I had the unique opportunity to study abroad in Scotland. My school was located in St Andrews on the coast of the North Sea. St Andrews is rich in history as it is best known as the birthplace of golf. It is also known for having the oldest university in Scotland and preserved medieval architecture.

Boarding life was the best part about my time abroad. My room had views of the sea and cathedral ruins. There were constant activities in the house such as movie nights, dances, trips to nearby towns for shopping, paintball, and sports. I discovered that I really enjoyed golf. The coaches were fantastic and the golf academy was right next door to the famous Old Course. While I was sad to leave that behind, I hope to continue playing golf.

I was surprised to learn that most of the boarders were from Germany. In fact, sometimes I felt like I was in a boarding school in Germany because that was the predominant language in the house. On the bright side, I picked up a few new German phrases. Some Scottish vocabulary that I had to get the hang of were words like till (cash register), queue (line), rubbish (trash), chips (french fries), crisps (potato chips) and dook (going for a quick swim in the very cold ocean).

One of the biggest differences during my time abroad was adjusting to the teaching style. The teachers were more formal. Most classes were lectures with little student discussion. At Ashley Hall I feel like our teachers are approachable, encourage class participation and truly value our opinions. I definitely missed the Ashley Hall teachers!

Studying abroad was a life changing opportunity for me. I feel like it gave me a glimpse of future college life. I gained independence, put myself outside of my comfort zone and was able to meet classmates from all over the world. I will carry those life lessons with me as I move forward.