A Weekend in Edinburgh & The Great Things About IES Field Trips

A week ago, I had the opportunity to go on the IES Abroad trip to Edinburgh, Scotland. This was the fourth of the IES Abroad England/UK field trips that I was lucky enough to go on – the others being to Bath/Stonehenge, Windsor, and Oxford. And while Edinburgh has definitely been my favorite of the bunch so far, each one has been a truly great experience.

Overall, I’ve found these field trips planned by IES Abroad have been a really amazing (and rather convenient) way of seeing parts of the country I never would’ve thought to travel to before. When studying abroad (especially in places like Europe where so many beautiful and historical places are so close to each other), there can be a lot of pressure to constantly be planning trips to explore far beyond the bounds of your own city. However, sometimes this can feel a bit overwhelming. There’s a lot that goes into deciding which places you want to go to, prioritizing the most important ones, budgeting, researching, and so on. And while I definitely would encourage this process of planning trips by yourself as I think it’s a great way to practice and be independent, I’ve really found these trips a rather relaxing way to get more out of my study abroad experience.

There’s a really great balance in these trips between a pre-planned itinerary to see really cool places and tourist attractions, and having your own free time to see and do whatever you want. But beyond having most of the stress of planning weekend trips being taken out of the equation, I honestly think one of the biggest reasons to take advantage of these trips is getting to meet and hang out with a bunch of different people you wouldn’t otherwise get to know.

When it comes to making friends abroad, a lot of people will have very different experiences, and you yourself will probably find a whole spectrum of emotions tied to the process. Sometimes, it might feel like the easiest thing in the world, and other times you might be stressed about not having anyone to hang out or explore things with. Trust that this process is normal, especially if you’re embarking on a journey all by yourself. But also trust that it will happen – maybe right away, or maybe it might take a while. And that’s okay!

One of the hardest parts of making friends anywhere is putting yourself out there and not being afraid to text someone randomly asking to hang out sometime. Something I will stress though that is important to keep in mind is that so many people are in the exact same boat as you are! They want to meet, hang out with, and make friends just as much as you do! And while this experience can and will certainly happen in many different places during your study abroad experience, there is something particularly nice about these IES Abroad trips where everyone is meeting new people and going to explore beautiful and exciting places together as a group.

In Edinburgh, I found so many things about my study abroad experience finally starting to click. I was lucky enough to meet so many great people on the first few field trips I went on, but this trip it really started to feel like friendships had been created. It was great being able to talk to so many people who have been having similar experiences to my own. Sometimes it can feel a little isolating studying abroad, but being reminded that others are in the same place and mindset as you are is really refreshing and reassuring. It’s a really great experience to be able to share with other people, but I will also say this: 

While you’re traveling, it might be worth it to carve out some time to walk around and explore by yourself. You might be surprised how therapeutic it can be. Especially with hostels that are located in prime locations in the heart of the cities (for an easy return point), being able to take in everything by yourself and watch everything happening around you – even if it’s the most mundane things – can be very enjoyable and a good reminder of why you chose to study abroad in the first place. At the end of the day, I think a lot of these trips are about being able to experience amazing new places both with others like you, as well as by yourself. But most importantly, it’s about doing and seeing everything you want to to make your adventure what you want it to be.