I am a very independent person. Maybe in some ways that seems obvious if I voluntarily left The States to live in a new country for a semester but regardless this is a point I wish to make. Being independent does not however mean that I struggle with or lack having strong relationships in my life. I LOVE PEOPLE and have been blessed with a personality that makes it easy to connect and build relationships with others. I have also been lucky enough to be exposed to some pretty awesome people over the years who enrich my life with their unique ideas, experiences, and perspectives!
A challenge that I have been facing since leaving the USA is simply that it can be hard to feel as connected to those I love back home when facing challenges like different time zones and busy schedules. Of course, different types of relationships are maintained in different ways so in this post, I will give some examples of ways to communicate with loved ones while studying (or living) abroad.
Things to Consider:
Time Zones – This can be one of the biggest challenges, especially since I may accidentally call someone at 3am not even realizing the issue. The way the time difference between Oslo and Detroit works is that Oslo is 6 hours ahead of Detroit. That means that when it is noon in Norway, Michigan is barely starting their day at 6am. Funny enough, this also means that as the sun rises in Michigan around 8am, the sun is starting to set in Oslo around 2pm. Strangely enough, having the sun fully set at 4pm is not as bad as it sounds, but more on that another time. The best way I have found to battle the time zone difference is to schedule time for phone and video calls. While it might seem a bit extreme, it has been the easiest way to be mindful of the schedules of everyone involved.
Note: Daylight savings really screwed with my head as for one week Michigan and Norway were only FIVE hours apart rather than six. This was due to Norway switching their clocks back one week earlier than The States. Since I had a handful of important calls and interviews scheduled during this week, it was critical for me to understand how this difference worked.
Apps – Many phone companies in The States offer international phone plans for those leaving the country for a while. Unfortunately, those back home don’t always have the ability to make long-distance calls without racking up fees. A few apps that have come in handy for international communication are WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Skype. All three of these allow for individuals to make audio and video calls with internet or data connection. WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger also allow for individual and group chats to be made. Our immediate family has since made a handful of group chats allowing us to share random details of our day with ease.
Letters – Call my old fashioned but I LOVE to write letters home. There is something so timeless and romantic about knowing a piece of paper is physically crossing an ocean to get to its owner. Besides, I have yet to meet a soul on this earth who doesn’t appreciate finding a note for them in their mailbox. For this reason, I try to send notes home to different individuals on a weekly basis. The way I see it, postcards are a cheap and easy souvenir and it can be fun to take time seeking them out with a particular person in mind.
Social Media – It can be easy to view social media as a waste of time but since removing myself from my close friends and school organizations, platforms like Facebook and Instagram have really helped to bridge gaps in communication! I currently maintain an Instagram page (@lemusstudyabroad) which is dedicated to my study abroad experience and I have gotten loads of positive feedback from friends and family about how nice it is for them to see my photos. At the same time, I have had to limit my social media use at times to avoid experiencing any FOMO (fear of missing out) when seeing events back home. It is great to have a platform for mass sharing of information but I still prefer Facebook and Instagram direct messaging to actually catch up with people.
While it is not always easy to keep in touch, I feel very lucky to be living in an age when I can call up my loved ones with a press of a button. We just have to keep working on matching up our schedules so that they can answer!
Lemus Study Abroad 