Prior to my study abroad, I had never left the United States or been on a flight longer than 5 hours. I was excited to go abroad because I have always wanted to travel more and learn about other cultures. By studying for months, rather than a brief period, I felt fully immersed and could gain a better understanding of the culture in Melbourne, Australia, where I studied at Deakin University for a full semester.

I went a more untraditional route by studying arts even though I am in the business college at MSU. I was able to do this by completing some of my general education requirements abroad, which gave me the opportunity to take classes such as analogue photography and film history. I also opted out of on-campus housing so that I could live directly within the Central Business District, which made access to the great public transportation even easier. I enjoyed how busy the city was; however, I could still easily find pockets of peace in the many parks and smaller streets.

Towards the start of the second month, I started exploring more of the suburbs, beaches, restaurants, and learned how different a culture can be, even though we had the shared English language. Many common phrases were communicated differently there. For example, instead of “how are you?” an Australian might say “How ya goin?” and in general tended to be more informal in communication. It was confusing at times, but also interesting to learn about the vocabulary and customs within Australia. I networked through talking to Australian natives and other international students about life experiences and school.

Furthermore, I had to the opportunity to visit Vietnam for a week. This was one of the biggest highlights of my study abroad because I was able to see my mother’s hometown. I ate many delicious foods such as Bun tut nuong and Ban xeo, which were full of flavor and made me love Vietnam so much. Riding on the back of a moped for the first time was scary but fun once I relaxed. I visited many places in Saigon, such as the Independence Palace, District 1, and numerous street food vendors. In the future, I am looking forward to coming back to Vietnam for a longer time.

From encountering a kangaroo for the first time in the wild to traveling to my mom’s hometown in Vietnam, I experienced and saw things that I never thought would have been possible at my age. My perspective on the world was broadened more than ever. Moreover, I have been inspired by this program to start learning Vietnamese with the future goal of hopefully reaching a high level of fluency.

My experience abroad is something that I will never forget, and I encourage everyone to try to study abroad.

Name: Adam Hernandez
Status: Junior
Major: Accounting
Hometown: Okemos, Michigan
Program: Deakin University - Melbourne Burnwood Campus