5 Things only International Alumni will understand

Apart from a ton of knowledge, skills and experience, you take home a few other er… souvenirs from your international education experience. Which of the following typical international alumni quirks did you pick up from studying overseas?

1.Hello Stranger

At the airport or in the city center, people start talking to you in English, even though you are both in your own home country. As soon as they find out you are also from here they will switch to the local language. Must be your global mindset!

2. Distance makes the heart grow fonder

Have you always struggled to deal with your mum’s interference, your annoying little brother, the noisy streets in the city or the quietness of the countryside where you grew up? It seems like the farther you are away from everything and everyone, the more you love them. And luckily, the magic works both ways - OK, we can’t be sure about the noisy streets but I’d like to believe they have missed us too.

3. Foreign Food Cravings

It may have taken a while before you embraced the fish ‘n chips, salted popcorn, kangaroo steak or cheddar cheese, now that you have, you need to taste these foreign goods once every while. And not only will they be hard (if not impossible) to find at home, none of your friends or family will understand your cravings, let alone join you in your food hunt.

4. Who’s the weirdo now?

Remember those silly abbreviated words your Australian classmates used? How Canadians apologise in every sentence that comes out of their mouth? Or how posh your British fellow students seemed at the beginning? However weird you thought they were, you have slowly adapted to the habits of your host country, and you will probably keep using those weird words or that silly accent whenever you speak English.

5. Travel Junkie

Traveling is addictive! Would you take a job in a foreign country if you had the chance? Would you feel confident living in a city far from your hometown because you have done it before? However good it feels to be home, traveling gets easier and more attractive with every trip!