I am to go home in 2 months (which is very soon!), and many of my friends have left since the first trimester at Mahidol University ended. Finding myself suddenly alone has made me reflect even more on my life here in Thailand, lately. When I think through the diffrent ways in which I have grown as a person, the most important trait I improved on has been independence.
Before coming to Thailand, everything in my life was familiar ,and if I ever had trouble I could easily ask someone in my circle of friends for help. In Thailand, I had to think on my feet a bit more and figure more things out on my own. For example, I had never rented my own place until I came here, so I had to pick an apartment and make sure I got copies of all the documents I had signed and all the money I had exchanged. Fortunately, apartments in Thailand cost around $300 USD/month to rent. Since I am not allowed to work while I am here, I had to budget and plan ahead for all the things I wanted to do in my time in Thailand. I learned firsthand the importance of planning ahead, as well! For example, my best trips during this semester abroad were the ones where I had a couple of ideas of what I wanted to do, a map of where these things were and a downloaded map, just in case internet didn’t work!
