Coming Home: Reflections
I am writing this having returned home for a bit. Interestingly enough, it feels as if I returned from a normal college semester even though I traveled to the other side of the world. I might have to do that it was similar in length to the Bates semester. It is nice being back, being able to eat homemade foods and visiting my favorite local shops.
Already, there are many things that I miss. I miss being able to travel anywhere in Switzerland. Here, I am rather limited as to how far I can go, but with the Swiss pass, I could go nearly anywhere within reach. Whether it be commuting to class or going across the country, I really appreciate the program for giving us such an opportunity to explore the place that was home for a few months. I included a few pictures of the various places I visited across the country and nearby.Â
The view outside my classroom in Geneva
The Matterhorn mountain as seen from Zermatt
Entering Vaduz in Liechtenstein
Annecy, France
The mountains around Murren, a small town in the mountains in central Switzerland
The Christmas market ferris wheel in Monthreux as seen from afar
A map and guide in Chur, located southeast in the country
Something else that I miss is the food. I knew I was going to like it given the positive feedback I heard and read about online, but I did not expect the food to be that good. My favorites include raclette (melted cheese squares on potatoes), fondue (a pot of melted cheese where you can dip bits of bread and small potatoes into it with a special fork), spaetzle (which is similar to pasta), and of course, the homemade food from my host mom. I also enjoyed the food from the Swiss Italian region of the country, which is a lot like Italian food (I had some of the best pasta I have ever had at an Italian restaurant in Lugano). Indeed, cheese is big in the country, and there are cheese factories you can visit, such as the one I visited in Gruyeres.
Outside the Gruyeres cheese factory
Indoor restaurant in the factory where you can try fondue and many more Swiss dishes
One cannot leave Switzerland without visiting at least one chocolate factory. This was definitely one of the big highlights for me. In the country, there are several factories, and each has its unique story in chocolate making over the years. I added photos of the various factories I visited, which I highly recommend if you're visiting. For instance, at the Lindt/Lindor factory, you can sample an unlimited amount of chocolate, whether it be from the tasting dispensers or the samples you can try at the end of the tour. (Sidenote: if you buy chocolate at the factory store or the nearby outlet, they give you a few sample pieces for you to try!)
Callier factory
Lindt factory
Just outside the Laderach factory
Tristan artisan chocolate near my hometown Nyon
What I will really miss are the friends I made. I was with a small group of 18 students from different American colleges, and we all became close with each other in the first weeks. We have all promised to stay in touch afterwards and hopefully meet up in the near future. I am happy I got to meet such a wonderful group and that we supported each other throughout the program.
I have no regrets about doing this program. My options were either to be at Bates for the fall semester or go to Switzerland and immerse myself in an incredible experience. Going abroad was a no-brainer given that I already had two programs cancelled prior, so I made it a goal to go abroad regardless, and I made it work with the current circumstances. Now that I am back, I can say that I got plenty of exposure to different perspectives, a different everyday lifestyle, different foods, language, and culture. This is true not only in Switzerland, but also in the different countries that I got to visit. It did take some time to adjust to my Swiss life, but once I did, it became very natural. I would say that getting that exposure to different things in Switzerland helped me when I visited different countries since that initial "shock" was not as shocking having already gone through it once. I feel that this was especially helpful in my final trip to Georgia. In Switzerland, I followed a lifestyle similar to that of the locals, and doing the same in Georgia made it easier to get around, use the public transportation system, and generally feel more comfortable in my new surroundings.
Traditional Georgian Khachapuri (a very tasty dish) with dumplings and a bit of coffee on the side
View from the top of Tbilisi
A local grocery store in the Tbilisi streets
The Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi
In short, the takeaway is that my time in a different country made it easier to adjust to different environments afterwards, which served me well. It has also better prepared me for future instances where I found myself in new cultural environments, making it easier to figure out how to adjust. One other thing I learned from this experience is that for my studies, I must move to a more international environment where I can easily get in touch with NGOs, government agencies, and professors in the field if I want to make the most out of it. I hope to start working on these action steps during the semester and in the summer as I begin my next journey into the world of graduate school.
I hope you enjoyed learning about Switzerland and the different parts of Europe as I really enjoyed it myself and recommend doing at least one semester abroad (if not, during the summer). Thank you for taking your time to read about this experience, and I hope to be back on campus soon for my last semester at Bates.








