Following a flight cancellation and rescheduling, I have finally returned to Alabama. After passing through security and approaching the gate of my flight, which had been delayed, I received a notification that my flight had been cancelled due to mechanical problems. After scrambling around, calling airline services, and speaking with those at service desks, I was able to get my flight, including the connector, rescheduled. I was even able to have living expenses covered.
Although it was very frustrating at first to manage this change of plans from across the world, I realized in hindsight that it encompassed one of the great points my professor made about the value of a study abroad program. One of the unique parts of a study abroad program, he says, is that you learn to better face ambiguity and a change of pace. This is true from a variety of angles: culture, language, climate, and geography. I believe learning to travel internationally adds to this. We face schedule complications daily. From congestion on the interstate to weather delays or cancellations, we must work around changes in plans on a regular basis. International flights, as well as their complications, are things that I am not used to experiencing, and thus they have given me an opportunity to be more adaptive. In an odd sense, thank you, Air Canada, for such an opportunity.
Similarly, completing a study abroad program towards the latter half of the summer has required me to hit the ground running as I prepare for classes this fall. As I am returning to Tuscaloosa, I find myself looking back at all the amazing moments I was able to be a part of in Porto. I know that the experience working with others that I gained will aid me as I enter my final year of electrical engineering. I know for certain that being a part of EIA in Porto was one of the best decisions I have made.
