The Beauty in the Struggle: Experiences as an Exchange Student in Stockholm

If you’re someone who feels like they haven’t experienced living a life full of constant emotions (the good and the bad kinds), spontaneity and adventure, and new people and surroundings, you just might want to choose to travel outside of your comfort zone.

This may sound daring and make you feel a bit anxious, but believe me, this decision is worth it. It can not only teach you more about the world around you, but also so much more about yourself.

Expecting Change and New Experiences in Stockholm, Sweden

Let me start by telling you about myself and where I come from. My name is Emily Estrada and I am a senior majoring in public administration at the SDSU Imperial Valley Campus in Calexico.

Some of you may not be familiar with this campus so let me give you a little bit of information on it. It’s located in a rural border-town community with approximately 1,000 students. It is highly populated with Hispanic minority students and primarily serves students that come from the surrounding agricultural towns of Imperial County, that include Brawley, Imperial and El Centro, in addition to the city of Calexico. 

La Huasteca trip

Time flies when you enjoy life. It’s very interesting how every time I have to write a blog I look at my calendar and remember all I have done. I feel like I am on a six-month vacation. Every weekend I meet people from different parts of the world and I learn some words in another language.

The Mexican-American Experience

I have been studying in the U.S. since I was 14 years old. In the beginning it was not easy to be in an unknown country. The language seemed unusable, the people different and – for me – it did not make sense to be in a country that was not my own. Little by little I started to understand the opportunities of living in the U.S.

Amazing – and inexpensive – travels around Mexico

Traveling around Mexico is really cheap. The hotels are cheap, the food, the souvenirs – my friends and I have found a lot of tours to visit different areas. About three weeks ago we went to Coahuila the state next to Monterrey.

Familia Multicultural

Life is better with friends, with adventures and love. It´s been almost one month since I left U.S. and I already have love in Monterrey. Since, August 2 I have gotten to know 11 Europeans. Life works in a mysterious way because I lost a friend and I received 11 new friends. They have been with me since the day we decided to go to “Las luchas libres.”

A New Home

Sometimes we believe that nothing can hurt us. That people die, but not us. We believe that we are full of opportunities and that nothing can stop us.

Enjoying the Simplicity of Spanish Life

For my study abroad class, our professor created our schedule in such a way we have all of our Fridays off – one of the numerous reasons why I adore this professor. He’s from the Imperial Valley Campus of SDSU, which is two hours away from the main campus I attend. I came into this study abroad trip blind, not knowing any of the other students and not knowing the professor. However, he and all of my peers far surpassed any expectation I previously set up for myself.