Erasmus: Going on an Adventure vs. Being Afraid to Leave

In about two weeks from today I will already have arrived in the country I'll be living in for the next four to five months: Spain. More precisely in Valencia. Valencia is the third largest city in Spain and it's right at the Mediterranean Sea. I heard you can normally still go swimming in the sea in October. So moving there over the fall/winter isn't too bad! 

Why move to Valencia anyway?

Well, it all started out back in December last year, when I actually wanted to apply for Erasmus somewhere in the UK/Ireland, since I'm studying English Literature. Unfortunately, I missed the submission date because I was a little overwhelmed with life and uni stuff. So I just accepted that I wasn't going to do Erasmus and moved on. Some time later though, my friend got accepted to go to Valencia and told me she heard that there's still places available for going to Valencia. I went up to see the teacher in charge for Erasmus, told him I wanted to go to Valencia too and that was it: I was accepted for Erasmus in Spain just like that. (It also saved me the whole process of writing an application, etc. hehe)

That was all back in March/April and actually leaving Germany was all very far away. Fast forward, now it's almost September and in two weeks I'll be on an actual plane to Spain. Alone. Because my friend who made me go in the first place is actually unable to go now because of personal reasons. /cries

How do I prepare?

Well, to be honest, I don't, lol. I learned some Spanish during the summer semester and that was it so far, I think. I'm currently making all sorts of list, like what to buy and to do before leaving and I'm browsing a lot of different Facebook groups to find an accommodation there, but so far, I haven't found anything. I really don't know how to prepare properly. I'm thinking about making a list of cities I want to travel to when I'm there and things I want to do. Maybe something like a bucket list. I'm also trying to find helpful information on Pinterest from other people who did a semester abroad somewhere. Luckily, most of the people I know who are also going abroad somewhere are just as clueless as I am and they haven't really prepared either. But it's still two weeks, so there's still some time left for becoming super organised!

Doubts and fears?

Jesus. I have tons of them. I keep worrying about literally everything. Did I forget to send any important documents? Did I sign everything? What if I don't find a flat? What if I don't find any friends? etc. etc. etc. 

Leaving my current place, my safe space, the town with my best friends is so incredibly hard, even if it's just for a few months. I know I have to do this, so I can grow as a person and gain the confidence that I can make it in a huge ass city all by myself. I'm actually quite relieved to leave some certain things behind, things that make me worry a lot here in Germany. But it's still so hard. Mostly, I'm afraid that my mental health will keep me from finding friends, going out, having fun, etc. I know it'll probably be the best time ever but at the moment I can't help but worry. I hope this all will go away as soon as I'm there. And I really hope all of these fears are irrational!

But I am also really excited. I'll be living by the sea! How cool is that?! And I'll get like two additional months of summer! YAY! (Although I'm also kinda sad because I also really love cosy-autumn-weather haha)

I'll definitely keep posting about my semester abroad and I would also love to start vlogging. We'll see if it works out! :)

Have you been on a semester abroad? Do you have any tips or recommendations? I'd really love to know about your experiences!

xx