I was completely caught off guard by how quickly I could fall in love with a place when I went abroad. I figured I would have a good semester, but I did not prepare myself to become absolutely obsessed with the city I was living in. I experienced a massive

culture shock in the best way. Looking back on my experience it all seems so romanticized, but I know that is exactly how everything felt at the time as well. Not only was the city amazing, but I got to study under some of the coolest and most intelligent professors I've ever had. They all care so much about what they teach, and they all have real-life experience with the course content. One of my favorite classes I took was the Service Learning course that IES offers. Once a week I got to volunteer at an after school program for elementary school students and help them do their homework. The program we did it through does so much for the community in that area of the city, and it was amazing to see the impact they have on the kids. It was fun to hang out with the students, and I was able to learn so much from them about the city of Dublin and about the lives of its inhabitants. This class is also where I got to meet some really amazing peers who I consider lifelong friends. The friendships you can develop abroad are so powerful, and they enrich your abroad experience greatly. You can make incredibly deep connections with people in a short span of time abroad due to the nature of your situation. People go abroad to experience new things, so everyone is very open to making friends and everyone wants to support each other during this time. I would say my favorite thing about being abroad was the people, both in my program and those outside of my program. Dublin has some of the kindest, most helpful, and most humble people that this world has to offer. I met so many people who were complete strangers to me, but wanted me to enjoy my time in Dublin and wanted me to experience the best of the city. My abroad experience gave me a certain confidence and independence that I will carry with me into my senior year of college.

I have hardly any complaints about my semester spent abroad in Dublin, Ireland. Dublin is a perfect sized city filled with culture, parks, museums, pubs, and amazing restaurants and shops. Ireland is a relatively small country so it was simple to travel

anywhere desired in Ireland. Bus and train tickets were cheap and easily accessible for any destination in Ireland. I loved the people, the food, the night life, and my program. IES abroad was everything I asked for in a school. The staff and professors were amazing and dedicated people. They truly cared about our academics as well as our cultural immersion.