I’m Katie, a third year German and French student from the University of Southampton, and I’m currently on a year abroad, studying at the University of Potsdam in Germany for 2 semesters.
I decided to write this blog because a lot of my friends have been doing it and as I’ve been reading theirs, I’ve noticed one thing. The lack of negatives. Either they really are having as amazing a time as they say they are. Maybe there are no negatives to their experiences (yet). But I doubt it.
I’ve struggled the last year with depression, and I’m still recovering. And one thing that really hasn’t helped me, has been seeing everybody’s “perfect” lives all over social media. I know it’s not like that in reality, but that’s how we perceive it because that’s all that an individual will show through their facebook profile.
They don’t share the fact that today they couldn’t even get out of their pyjamas. Or all that they ate was chocolate and crisps. Or that they were scared to leave the house. Or that their family were having problems. All we see is their perfect holidays, their perfect home, their perfect family and their perfectly healthy avocado and egg on toast lunch. By the way, I hate avocado.
So how is this year abroad blog going to be different?
I’m going to tell the truth. I’m not saying others are lying, I’m just saying that sometimes people omit certain facts and information in order to keep up the appearance that they’re having “the time of their lives”.
I will say it how it is. I will share the negatives, along with the positives. I will be brutally honest.
I’m hoping that not only will this blog help me to release some of my negative energy and stress, but I’m hoping it will serve as a way of helping some of my fellow year abroad students, who I know are also struggling. Maybe it will help them to see that not everybody is having such an amazing time. That along with the positives of sightseeing, making friends and exploring new places, there are also the negatives of the man in the coffee shop really not being able to understand what you’re ordering in a foreign language and treating you like an idiot, or the ridiculous amount of Erasmus forms/paperwork, or the fact that the year abroad can be an incredibly lonely time.
I want to show my friends and fellow students that they’re not alone in this crazy process. Everybody else is experiencing it too.
So with this blog, I’m going to attempt to write a blog post every week about things that have happened. I will try and write a post about events that I’ve taken part in, the general struggles of being a student, and the fact that the German language is a pain in the backside.
BUT! Disclaimer: life gets in the way, German bureaucracy gets in the way, everything gets in the way. So some weeks there may be 4 blog posts because something monumental has happened, and some weeks there will be 0. On these weeks, you’ll probably find me curled up in bed binge watching Eastenders and making myself feel sick with Rittersport chocolate (the best thing about Germany so far).
Hope you enjoy!
Katie
A Brutally Honest Year Abroad Blog 
Personally I try to keep my blog positive because it helps me feel more positive about this whole thing. I’m mentally exhausted, break down in tears at least once a week and am so homesick for my friends and family it physically hurts. But by focusing on and sharing my positive experiences it helps me remember why I’m here and why I’m going to stick it out. But I really admire and respect your ability to let people know the ugly stuff as well as the good, it might make me more honest in my own writing.
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Hey Rhona! I totally understand your reasons for being positive, if that’s what helps you, and I don’t want anyone to think I’m criticizing them for keeping it positive. And I really hope you begin to feel settled soon, send me a message for a chat if you want! For me, it’s also a way of letting out all of the stress and complaining about the world. And sometimes I like to be sarcastic and cynical! I wanted to write something that other people could relate to, laugh at, and think, ‘actually, I can see the light in this situation’ or ‘actually, I’m not the only one who thinks this situation is rubbish’ or ‘why the heck do the Germans eat so many potatoes?!’ (really, they eat loads!). Lots of love x
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I have absolutely loved what you have written so far, I respect you for writing about the ugly side too, because I am only a fresher at the moment and I know it’s drastically different from a year abroad but when I’m feeling homesick and sad and lonely, by everyone around me being positive it makes it feel like I’m the only one that feels like this, so I’m lonely in feeling lonely if you get what I mean. don’t get me wrong being positive is great but I think this blog will help people. I am also going to be going on a year abroad to Vienna in two years so will be reading this blog to prepare myself! hope you are having fun in Potsdam and keep it up x
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Hello there! Are you a fresher at Southampton? It’s great to hear from you! I’m sorry you’re finding it difficult, and it can be difficult to understand why you’re the *only* one who feels like this. But trust me, there are others feeling the same way too, people just aren’t very open about it. University is sold as the most amazing time of your life, and for some people it is, but for some it’s also a struggle, and for me it’s somewhere in between. And the year abroad is exactly the same: it’s sold as the most amazing thing and many people feel guilty that they’re not absolutely loving it, because they think they’re the only one finding it difficult. But in my experience , and with talking to other people, there are many people feeling homesick, confused, lonely, sad, they just don’t show it. My advice: tell someone how you feel. Be it a friend, a housemate, your personal tutor, a lecturer just someone, because I’m sure that when you share the problem, it will feel easier. You might even find out that the person you’re living next door is feeling the exact same thing and is feeling like they’re the only one too!
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