Journaling 101:

If you don’t want to forget everything you did on your IBS Program, then journaling is a good habit to have during your time abroad.

Keeping a journal gives you the time to process what you did during the day. When you first arrive to your hotel from the airport, it will hit you that you’re “no longer in Kansas.” Journaling will also help you process how you feel about being abroad.

Journaling Your Adventure:

During my time on the Summer China Program, we did so much every day that it was easy to forget half of the things we did. You’ll want to remember that local who wanted to take a photo with you or the time you had to pay a tourist taxi. All of the little things can slip your mind if you don’t take the time to write them down. I started journaling as soon as I could and the first thing I wrote down was “I’m in China!”

After a few months of being home, my memories started to fade. Reading my journal makes me feel like I’m back in China. It also helps me reflect on how weird some of the things I did were. For example, I wrote down “today I ate a scorpion.” I remember reading that and thinking to myself, “why the heck did I eat a scorpion.”

Having this journal in your backpack can bring you right back to the days you spent abroad. All of those little details help bring the memories back to life. So, make sure you write down the little things like, “today I laid on the glass floor of the Oriental Pearl Tower.”