I learned a ton about myself.

My favorite part about my time in Cape town was going on a weekend road trip with 7 friends along the Garden Route. We got to go Bungee jumping on the highest bungee in the world, see the southern most tip of Afrcia, walk with monkeys and drive through some of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. This really solidified my need to travel and explore as much of the world as I can.

The program I did was an internship in a government hospital. While I got to see a lot of cool things, there is definetly things that need improvement. A lot of the pre-planned events fell through, and we found ourselves with a lot of down time at the hospital, and we felt like we were in the way.

I learned, that next time I travel, I need to check the weather first. My biggest mistake was not bringing enough warm clothes and too many pairs of shorts. South Africa has opposite seasons as the U.S. Another mistake I made was not listening when they told me not to carry around valuables if you can avoid it. One thing I was good at was always having a map, I was able to explore and find my way back. Also, take advantage of the bus system! Much safer than trains and not that expensive!

This internship really opened my eyes to what health care looks like in poorer parts of the world. I learned I really want to be a part of helping those not as well off. Going abroad by myself helped me gain a lot of independence and self confidence. I definitely recommend trying some sort of abroad experience.