I am now entering the final week of classes. I do however have two exams to take after winter break, meaning I will come back straight to DC and have one day to move into my new place before GW Spring semester courses start! The winter here is hitting hard, and the sun comes out maybe only a handful of hours each week across the entirety of the last month. I attached here a picture of the gloomy forecast last week, which I can unfortunately confirm played out exactly as predicted. Placebo or not, a Vitamin D supplement has seemingly helped with my ability to adapt to this.
My perception of the United States as my home country has changed a good amount since I have been here. I have met a few others from the United States, and surprisingly multiple people from my home town of Los Angeles, who have spent much more time here than me doing their Masters degree at one of the two big Universities here in Zürich. Just studying abroad for one semester was quite a big commitment for me, so it is really insightful to hear the experiences of these people who have committed to spending at least 2 years away from their home country. The main feeling I really have now is that I am actually not ready to commit to leaving the US for a longer period of time, as I may have initially thought I was able to. There is so much more I feel I have to explore in the US, and I am, in the big picture, still quite fresh out of high school and just beginning to understand the full extent of the freedom of adulthood (this is also something I think people in Switzerland develop much earlier than is expected in the US for various reasons). This realization is exactly what studying abroad is meant to help with! It is incredibly valuable to acknowledge now on this relatively short trip what I still desire from home, versus discovering what I am missing in the middle of a several year commitment where it is unfeasible and in the distant future to be able to go home.
It already feels like my stay is coming to a close even though I have just under a month left, but I am incredibly grateful for all that I have learned and look forward to bringing it all back with me as I resume my journey back home. I will appreciate the sun this summer more than I ever have before.
Ethan Wertlieb
Fall 2024
GW Exchange - University of Zurich
Columbian College of Arts & Sciences
Economics & Geography Double Major