the best semester!!

I had the most amazing time in Cape Town. I honestly cannot think of one thing I would change. IES did an amazing job of planning activities for us while also giving us enough free time to explore on our own. The academics in Cape Town are pretty different from in the states, but the program did a really good job of helping us prepare for that. We lived in an awesome location, right at the bottom of campus. Because it was a small program this year, we all lived on the same property which allowed all the IES students to get really close. Our RAs were amazing too. They were really supportive when needed, and were really helpful with respect to helping us get acclimated to the city. I am obsessed with Cape Town, as it had everything I wanted in an abroad experience. I was the only person from my home university going, which allowed me to really branch out. It's a large city, but I was still able to do a lot of things outdoors. I spent a lot of time hiking, which is one of my favorite activities. The people in Cape Town are amazing, and I met so many amazing South Africans that I am still in contact with. While there are challenging aspects of going abroad anywhere, I think the challenges I faced in Cape Town (like being faced with the realization of how much privilege I have) really stretched me in positive ways. Going to Cape Town was the best decision I have ever made.