My exchange experiences
No picture I could share, no words I could write, no matter how poetically beautiful, will ever be able to describe the past months.
Going on Erasmus can be best described as starting a second life next to the one you already got. You basically live in a different world for a certain amount of time and can create everything as you like it to be. And this gives you the opportunity to reflect on how you are living your life and to take on a different, more outside perspective on it. Concerning my studies in Finland, I can only say that it all felt so effortless. The system is a little different than the Swiss system, as it gives you more opportunities to choose between exams and assignments. Additionally, I really think that living in a dorm was the best thing happening to me, as it introduced me to international students immediately and we could do a lot of studying sessions together, which made it easier to keep up with the studies. One of the moments I will forever remember is sitting in a class called “gender, body and biomedicine”, focussing on the topic of motherhood. Twenty young women sitting in the classroom after watching a video referring to the topic, fully honest and open sharing personal relations and beliefs concerning the topic and how something makes them feel. I have been studying for 5 years already and never has a seminar created such a safe space and encouraged me to talk about my personal opinions and feelings about a topic. I really felt accepted and perceived as a whole and worthy human being after sharing my point of view. This continued for every single session throughout the whole semester. I’ve been asked this so many times: How Finland was, how it feels to be back home. no words could describe what I’m feeling, but „overwhelming“ does it best. The past months have been the best of my life. and not only because I got to know and made uncountable memories with new life companions, but also because it showed me how much I can count on my people at home.
To conclude, Finland was nothing but perfect. It was running through the woods to see the northern lights, watching movies and cuddling together, sleeping on the floor, sunsets and walks, dancing and running around on a cruise on the Baltics sea, singing karaoke at a campfire in Lapland, study sessions in cafés and libraries, getting taught how to drive backwards on the ice, being together in the kitchen or the hallway, making each other laugh all the time with the worst possible jokes, the list goes on. It was nothing but perfect. I consider this time as my greatest treasure and I will carry it with me forever. I wish this experience for every single person on this planet because it really gave me so much. I am beyond grateful to have been able to experience this and it wouldn’t have been possible without all the support I got, also financially. So, thank you so much for making this happening for me.
