Lake Forest is a great place to be, but there’s still a good chunk of LFHS students that are curious about the world outside of the 60045. In fact, there’s even some lucky LFHS students and alumni that have had the opportunity to explore and get to know a completely different part of the world firsthand. These alums are scattered–from Switzerland to Thailand–and those are just the ones currently abroad. I caught up with a few of them as they jaunt around the globe, and, trust me, it’s as enviable as it sounds.
I talked to four different girls currently abroad, one being LFHS junior Bella Watters who is currently in the Netherlands. Also, I spoke with two LFHS alumni who are freshmen in college, Abby Bertram, who is studying in Switzerland, and Ashlee Amos, who is in France, plus Bria Slobodnik, who is in London. They have seen some obvious differences from Lake Forest but there are also some more obscure differences, like how everything in the Netherlands seems to be much smaller than here. Bria noticed the biggest differences to be that, “London pulls a lot of different types of cultures into the city, so there’s a lot of diversity here and they appreciate a lot of different cultures and backgrounds here which is really cool,” she noted. Meanwhile Ashlee and Abby have noticed differences in their school work, professors, and different social cues, “It’s rude to leave to go to the bathroom. You have to suck it up and you can’t chew gum and we can’t wear tee shirts, sweatpants or athleisure, it’s seen as disrespectful,” Abby noted. Different cultures often have different ways of going about everyday life which can be seen in the classroom, but these differences aren’t all bad, “All my teachers are from around Europe and are extremely qualified and educated so they really know what they are talking about,” mentioned Amos.
One of the most obvious differences in studying abroad is the fact that you are in a new city with all these new and exciting things to do. These Lake Foresters are definitely taking advantage. “This past weekend we [other exchange students] climbed two huge churches and that’s just something you can’t do in LF,” said Bella about exploring the Netherlands. With each different city comes different types of adventure, “The coolest thing I’ve is probably done is renting a boat on Lake Lugano with my friends. It was just so fun to go out and drive it around and see everything up close,” recounted Bertram.
Yet sometimes the most enjoyable thing in spending time abroad is how what seems extraordinary becomes ordinary. “You’re constantly surrounded by beautiful monuments and architecture. Seeing the eiffel tower on my walk to school is pretty amazing,” noted Amos. Sometimes these countries, with all of their perks, have minor down sides as well, like a language barrier or, in Bria’s, case a different type of English, “The terminology here is a lot different; they call bathrooms loos, garbage is rubbish, pants are trousers etc. So you have to be conscious of what you’re saying so people know what you’re talking about.”
With traveling abroad comes new classes and sightseeing, but also the rare chance to see into another culture and try new things like one of my favorite pastimes, food. America is quite the melting pot of cultures and food varieties but in going abroad you get the chance to try something new or a facet of cuisine that your new country specializes in, making it even tastier. “I’ve had some excellent pasta in Milan and good sushi in Lugano. In Ibiza, I tried a phenomenal piece of fish fish,” explained Bertram. While in the Netherlands, Bella has been trying the Dutch take on some american favorites. “There are so many weird cheeses here, but my favorite food by far is frites from the fry stand around the corner from my house.” Sometimes you just have to try something entirely new as Ashlee did in France. “I actually tried snails [escargot] and that was really interesting. It tasted kinda like slimy gummy bears as weird as that seems. I also already tried fried bone marrow,” Ashlee explained. Yet sometimes, for Ashlee, where you eat the food is more interesting than the food itself, “I’ve done dinner at the Eiffel Tour which has an amazing view overlooking Paris.”
New cultures bring new opportunities and experiences but with all of that also comes some missing out on American culture. Through all of the envy–including the exciting new things these girls are trying and learning–the girls have come to miss a few things (mostly food) from little old LF. Other than the fact that Abby couldn’t bring all of her friends and family to Switzerland with her, she has found herself missing an obvious LF staple. “I miss Starbucks!” she explained. “I miss it so much because they don’t have any over here.” Bella found herself missing Mexican food more than American food while in the Netherlands. “Honestly I miss Mexican food so much. They don’t have it here,” she said. Ashlee has also found herself missing a type of food, “I really miss normal peanut butter, they don’t really eat it here.”
While going abroad can have its disadvantages, the new experiences and adventures a new culture can bring exceeds any negatives. Especially when you find yourself in England, France, the Netherlands, or Switzerland. One day it could be you traveling through your favorite country abroad, studying and trying all sorts of new exciting things. But, for the time being we will just have to live vicariously through these Lake Foresters.
