First, pick the location that best describes where you went (if it’s someplace too obscure, don’t worry—it’ll fit somewhere):

European city        Middle Eastern country        China/India        Failing state        Africa

Next, just circle whichever option in the narrative fits your unique experience the best:

“Hey! So I just got back from being abroad! My trip was so [rewarding • amazing • life-changing] and gave me so many important [perspectives • life-lessons • new experiences]. It’s tough to describe because it’ll be hard for you to [understand • relate to • sit through the story of] the fantastic trip I had. Life was so different there.

In the United States, our lives are stressed and hectic, but there they focused on the important things like [culture • overthrowing governments • staying alive]. I wasn’t anxious about my schoolwork like I am at home because there, learning isn’t about grades or papers. It’s about  the experience. I studied so many new subjects like [art • Marxism • Molotov cocktail hurling].

I spent my nights roaming the [cities • dorm halls • pastures] instead of the AU Library. My fellow Eagles and I reflected on our encounters with culture over local favorites served from [Pierre • Ahmed • Comrade Igor], the friendly server at the [pub • hookah bar • Starbucks café] nearby. There we could even drink alcohol, because to them, our maturity isn’t reflected by the age on our [license • passport • fake ID]. We took so many amazing [weekend excursions • safaris • pub crawls] throughout the area, something we aren’t able to do in the United States because Americans don’t care about [public transportation • culture • young people]. Here, all we needed to do was hop on a [train • bus • Sherpa], and we could be encountering a totally different culture and meeting new people. Try experiencing that in the United States!

I spent most of my free time doing my best to immerse myself in the culture. I often admired the [magnificent cathedrals • exotic mosques • quaint grass huts] from [the top decks of tour buses • the backs of alpacas • my computer’s GoogleEarth application]. It was difficult to adapt to many different things, especially [the language barrier • the scarcity of snacks • mosquito nets]. I always got the feeling that people there were so much happier with their [democratically elected government • socialist regime • tyrant] than we are because they love parades! Sometimes people get so excited that the [street cleaners • police • national army] have to [clean up big messes • push the crowd back • shoot off fireworks]!

I spent a lot of time shopping for [authentic • hand-made • mass-produced]souvenirs of national significance like [scarves • tapestries • key chains].

Everyone there was so interesting, and it’s amazing how they [speak English all the time • get by without English • arrest me every time I speak English]. I know the opinion is that people there are really [elitist • lazy • impoverished], but I know now that they are really [intellectual • cheery • oppressed]. Even though I lived in [a dorm with other Americans • an apartment complex for students • a hostel], whenever we ventured outside, we were always really [outgoing • engaging • obnoxious] and willing to meet new people. I feel like I’ll never be the same until I walk those [cobblestone streets • venues of the local bazaar • cowpaths] again, where the people just seem to understand me better and the culture is so much [richer • poorer]. My experience was so [original • extraordinary • personal] and life-changing, that if you go, I’m sure you’ll have the same great experience.”

Illustration by Hannah Karl.