Adriana Varano '26 missed the bus which led to a missed train home. She also ordered the wrong flavor ice cream and her apartment is broiling in a heat wave. But every time something goes wrong, Adriana loves her first study abroad experience a little bit more.
According to Adriana, the happy planner is living in a precarious emotional state. If there's one little mishap on the trip, the deviation from their perfect schedule has the potential to ruin the experience. But,
"The adventurer loves it when things go wrong. It creates a new experience and a new story."
Travel has been Adriana's top priority for as long as she can remember. It's always been a dream to spend a semester studying abroad, and after careful deliberation, she settled on Australia. There's a program in Australia that aligns perfectly with her academic requirements, but Australia the Outback felt ambitious for her first study abroad experience by herself.
"I decided to dip my toe into study abroad. I plan on spending next spring in Australia, but figured I could spend a month in Europe this summer first to get acclimated to the experience."
Adriana is taking an introduction to philosophy course in Prague. The class meets for three hours Monday through Wednesday, and that leaves four-day weekends, every weekend, to explore. Adriana and her two roommates, both from Truman State University in Missouri, have been to Austria and Germany, and all over the Czech Republic.
"One time, we missed the bus and as a result, we missed the train home. The locals were all incredibly nice. They helped us get back on track. i didn't mind it a bit. Part of the experience is enjoying the challenge of figuring it out."
For example, when the Czech Republic is in the grips of an uncommon heat wave, pushing the temperatures in an un-air conditioned apartment past 80 degrees. Adriana and her roommates beat the heat with daily ice cream breaks at their favorite shop across the street. Does Adriana order the same thing every time? What would be the adventure in that?
"Sometimes I think I'm ordering a certain flavor, and I'm not even close. It's always a surprise, but that's part of the fun!"
Just as planned, this experience has better prepared Adriana for her semester in Australia next year (she's already looking forward to the beaches and the air conditioning). Through her month in Prague, she also picked up something she hadn't planned on - a pair of lifelong friends. They've only got a couple days left before their one-month adventure ends, and they're still hoping one or two things will go wrong.
"I'm ready for the obstacles. Bring on the next one."
