Matilda studied abroad at the National Taiwan University of Arts in Taiwan as part of her Joint Art & English Literature degree at Reading. This is her final blog post from her semester abroad.
I’m so sad for my term abroad to be ending; I really have had the best time here in Taipei. It’s been fantastic to learn so many new skills and meet lots of amazing new people. I haven’t had an experience like this and I’m so glad I went outside my comfort zone otherwise I wouldn’t have gained as much as I have (academically and personally).
The NTUA term continues until 20th January and so my last few weeks have been a bit of a rush with finishing all my work before my departure date. I have been able to do a bit of exploring and went on a cultural trip organised by the exchange office. We made groundnut oolong green tea and visited cultural villages, a temple and a farm, which was fantastic. Taiwan’s rich cultural history is incredibly interesting.
Studying abroad has been the most fantastic experience for me, it is the best thing I have done by far. Living in a country for a long period of time gives you a very unique insight into its culture. It has been a really liberating experience and one that I can see having a big impact on my future. I feel it is something I will always refer back to as one of the best learning and development experiences of my life. Studying in Taiwan has given me inspiration to travel and ideas for career paths after university.
After Taiwan I went to China. This is something I never thought I would be able to do but actually it turned out cheaper to travel home via Beijing! Seeing Beijing was an incredibly profound experience for me. I arrived at the time the news of Trump accepting a phone call from Tai Ing-Wen came out. I was lucky to be staying with a friend who works for the foreign office who explained the phone call was the first time the US and Taiwan have had communication in 40 years. I was able to see first hand the effect this had in Beijing. The news made headlines about the Chinese expecting a very public and sincere apology from Trump. It was incredible to see these events unfold and with my new knowledge of these political relationships, I could really see the danger, fear and political tension.
Studying abroad is something I never thought I would be able to do. I feel it has been a total privilege and I have loved every second. Being so far away was daunting in the first instance of saying goodbye at Heathrow but once I was there, I never looked back! There was so much I wanted to see and do; I would have stayed a year if I could have. I hope that one day I can return to Taiwan and meet my friends again. I have made so many friends internationally from my experience, which has also opened up doors for me. I couldn’t have had a more enriching and enjoyable experience.
Matilda
Missed Matilda’s last blog post? Catch up here: http://bit.ly/2hYyVOD