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What better way to end the year with a few tips or of things I've learned this year... somethings I wish I would've known, somethings I've known but were reinforced during my year.
1. Quality over Quantity. It's very important. You can make as many friends as you want this year, but I suggest you make long lasting relationships rather than acquaintances.
2. Be Open. There are some people, situations, and things that may rub you the wrong way if you judge too fast. Think about all the things you are expecting for your life before this, trip and pretty much throw them out the window. You might be in a big town, in the middle of nowhere, good school, bad school, etc. Either way, just make the best of it and have fun.
3. Patience. There were sometimes this year where many people made me angry, but with a lot of patience and new perspective, my situations became controllable.
4. Small problems don't matter. Really the don't matter. Trust me, you'll have other things to worry about anyways. If these small problems add up, you should have a tutor that talks to you throughout your year to help you. :) But other than that, just hop over them and keep going! AFSers are amazing kids and we can do anything we put our minds to.
5. Don't wait to make friends. Don't wait. Really, don't. You are the new kid (haha you can even change yourself if you want!). No one knows who you are. Be who you want. And be interested in other people. You might not want to settle down with the very first people you meet either. There are so many fascinating people in the world and now is your time to get to know them! Everyone will be interested in you in the beginning so DO NOT WASTE THAT TIME.
6. Learn the language as fast as you can. The more you learn the language ahead of time, the easier it is, and the easier it is to talk to people.
7. Facebook everyday? No thanks. I know some AFSers who would be on Facebook every day. =/ You didn't pay all that money (or use somebody else's money, scholarshippers ;P) to travel to a different country and then message your friends back home from Facebook. That's not fun. Your friends from your home country will be there when you get back, but the life you have now is only for a few months, that will fly by so fast. (Dang, I still remember the day I arrived in Treviso, now I only have 6 or 5 days left!) So limit the time on Facebook (or hey even switch it to your host country's language, it's helped me with Italian!) and live your life. You get more stuff done without Facebook anyways. Also, even on days when you don't feel like going out, GO OUT. It doesn't do well to be depressed alone. Surrounding yourself with friends can and usually does help.
8. AFS is not a travel vacation. You may want to visit your friends in different parts of the country and travel but this is a scholastic year, not a vacation. There will be time for travel but every other weekend visiting different cities/countries instead of staying in your own is too much. If you can get away with it, good for you, but you're kind of defeating the purpose of AFS.
9. Spend money wisely. Haha I think this one just speaks for itself. Unless you have endless amounts of money to spend I suggest you follow this rule wisely. Because you're on your own (with your parents / who's ever money?), so buy things that you really need. Are you really going to want to ship that giant plush doll you bought for no reason back in your suitcase? Didn't think so.
10. Don't break AFS rules. Unless of course you're one stealthy mofo and can get away with it but you didn't hear that from me. Do you really want to go home early and ruin the experience of a life time because you did something dumb? Seriously it's not worth it.
11. Plan ahead. Many of us AFSers get into trouble if we go into a situation without a plan B. Example: Claire and I were once stuck 40 minutes from our houses because we didn't have a train to catch because of the normal Italian strike. It was raining, cold, and we were nearly stuck at the station for 5 hours because no one else could pick us up. I felt bad for wasting the time of one of the AFS mothers that hosted us the night before and she didn't even have to help us but she was kind and she did. Plan Bs children, Plan Bs.
12. Stay organized. I guess if you function very organized and are a bit messy it could still work out. For instance, your room is a total pig stye to your mom but to you it's organized. Just make sure you can still find tomorrow's homework.
13. Watch what you eat. I cannot tell you how many AFSers complain about gaining weight in their year abroad. I'm probably the only AFSer who has lost weight as far as I know. O_O Salad...every...day... I need something unhealthy! Haha then I'll go back to the diet.
14. And finally...You will be the person to adapt, not those around you. You came to a new country to immerse in a new life. You will do the changing. Not your family, friends, school, etc. They may learn somethings from you but the thing, is in the end you're going to be changing. Not them.
I can't really think of much else at the moment. But hopefully I gave some good tips.
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The volunteers had the final AFS party.
We said goodbye to the students that were parting next year with AFS, students that returned from their years abroad (like my sister), and us foreign exchange students whose year is coming to an end.
Even the sister of Sara, Valeria from Costa Rica that's staying with us for a week, came with us to the party.
She made something from a delicious recipe from Costa Rica. Can't remember the name but it was awesome. Also Millie's food is always awesome. She always brings something of Japanese heritage, like last time Teriyaki chicken and rice. I will fight somebody for that food it's so good.
Oh and I made American Chocolate Chip Cookies with my mom. Everyone loved them and they were the first desert to disappear. There's a future with my poor cooking skills! *tears of joy*
We said our goodbyes, I got everyone to sign an Italian flag for Claire in Canada who couldn't be with us! :( I'll mail it to her when I get back to the US.
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We had a goodbye party for me and a welcome home/ happy birthday party for my sister Sara--- all in one. My parents wanted it to be a surprise so they didn't tell us much about it. They said I could invite some of my friends to the party, so I did. The only difficult thing was that the place didn't exactly have an address. You had to follow directions like "Go straight for 2 paces until you meet a troll at a bridge, complete the riddle he'll let you pass.... blah blah blah." Well at least that's what it felt like. So if you want people to show up to a party I suggest you GIVE THEM AN ADDRESS. It helps you know?
In the end, some of my friends found the place and we partied while watching the Italy vs. Germany Euro2012 match. (We were predestined to lose, but we came out 2-1! <3 But in the finale against Spain we were literally murdered 4-0. It was just so
The location was very beautiful. We had the party at night in a house nearby a lake illuminated by garden lights. There was a park nearby so if someone was feeling a little bit childish they could go on the swing set. Everything was private and for us. It was adorable. Then the sprinklers went off and drenched the food. My sister started running through the sprinklers like a maniac and dragged me with her so we were completely soaked. Haha I like Sara, she's fun to be around.
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If anything I noticed about these last two weeks, it's just partying and saying goodbye. I have a dinner for my class coming up and it's going to be the last time I see them. :(
I want to go home to the States but at the same time I want to stay in Italy. I've had so much fun. Even though there have been hard times which have annoyed me to the point of tears, I'm happy I've succeeded through them and finished the year. I've enjoyed every minute and made sure a day didn't go to waste. I have friends from all over the world. Heck, I even know more about the world. Looking back at the Zakiyya that left the United States 10 months ago is even disappointing to think about. I was a bit ignorant of the world...
Also a bit ignorant of myself. My own self. That's just sad. One thing I will definitely guarantee to every single AFS student that completes their year is : You will change.
Hopefully for the better, but either way, you're going to learn things about yourself that you never knew before. You might become more independent, stronger, and your views of things will change. You'll be an all around better person (if you would like to exaggerate ;P). But trust me, you will change. And like I said before, I don't even recognize myself from 10 months ago. There are some things that are still the same about me -- for instance I'm still an anime dork, but there are also somethings that have changed for the better. Thank goodness, Italy threw some fashion sense on me..
AFSers are awesome. Some people look at us like we're crazy for going to a different country to live in a different way, learn a language we don't know, meet new friends and live a new life completely. Are we mad? I think not, just a little thirsty for adventure.
I would like to thank everyone I met this year who changed my life. To all the AFSers who stuck in there till the end of the year, and even those who left. This year was magnificent and inexpressible in a few words.
One thing for sure is this year will never be forgotten.
Good luck future AFSers, you can do it.
Zakiyya xoxo
