Veronika Schafler

A semester abroad – yes or no? Will I like it there? What if I don’t make any friends and spend the whole time alone in my room? These and many other questions were constantly running through my head while I was making the decision and before setting off on my new adventure. But it only took a few hours and I was certain I would not regret my decision to say ‘YES’.

Plenty of people can tell you how important, exciting, enthralling and wonderful it is to spend a semester abroad – whether family, friends or me – but the experience itself is something else. Being on your own for a few months, having to communicate in a foreign language, living with people you didn’t know beforehand – it’s a truly enriching experience which stays with you for the rest of your life.

During my stay in Vilnius, I got to know lots of lovely, open, friendly, funny and warm-hearted people from various countries who became some of my closest friends. But it’s not just about making new friends, there is also the chance to learn about and benefit from other cultures, whether the laid-back attitude of the Spaniards, the culinary influence of the Italians, the organisational skills of the Germans or the drinking skills of the Czechs! Of course this is generalising somewhat about the various countries but there is a hint of truth to it ;).

In addition to the many events, trips and parties planned and organised by the ESN – Erasmus Student Networks – I had the chance to travel a lot and visit various towns. Some of the trips were organised for the students and others I planned myself with friends. This allowed me to visit cities such as Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Kraków, Warsaw, Riga and Klaipėda and to capture a bit of that holiday feeling. These weekend trips were always a special highlight for me along with everyday life, weekly trips and chilling together in the evening.

Here are a few photos

Of course, I had to do some learning from time to time but to be honest: studying was something of a side issue here! But despite that, attending another university is really a valuable experience. As the saying goes: different countries, different customs!