Roommate Bonding
Forced interactions with strangers can be very uncomfortable, especially if that first encounter has you and this stranger sleeping 10 ft away from each other. In college, the majority of students will have a roommate at least once, and the space shared may very well be very small. The adjustment of downsizing the square feet of your room is hard enough, let alone adding another person and their things. This is true in the States and when studying abroad. Luckily, most people who study abroad have been in college for at least one year, which means that they will have some experience with adjusting to shared spaces and new habits. The roommate situation won’t be a foreign shock. Student Sean Lechleiter says, “I’ve had a roommate for the past couple years now, so my current roommate is just like all the other ones pretty much. We respect each others’ space.” However, one thing is most definitely different when studying abroad, and it works to the advantage of new roommates. When far away from home, people can become very disoriented. Imagine the confusion of moving to a new country and trying to assimilate as quickly as possible before the experience is over. The classes are foreign, the street maps aren’t clear, the food is good, but you have no idea where to get it. You and your new roommate are in this boat together. Feel free to lean on one another in the beginning phases of this process. For the first week or two, it is okay to be a new appendage on this random person. When you want to explore, chances are they will too. Do things together because you may not know anyone else to do things with.
For example:
- Get dinner
- Make a Tourist To Do list and go places day by day
- See a show! – Caitlin and I saw Gone Girl together and The Lion King (live). Both were so good!
Of course, after going to orientation, classes, joining extra-curricular groups and attending events around the city, students abroad will start to get busy and meet more people. With neighbors, friends from orientation, and people we see around campus, the list of who to call and hang out with grows. I enjoy the company of my roommate, but I am so excited to broaden horizons. Roommates do not have to go every where together. After a while, you can stop being that extra appendage and start to see other ways there are to explore the city you’re in.
In the past week or two (I am 1 month into school), there are more invites out from classmates and the same goes for my roommate. She went to Brighton with friends from orientation; I went to an open mic night with friends from class. When her friends invite her to wine and cheese night, I don’t just follow her out the door, and I expect the same when I am invited out. Of course every couple of days out of the week, we make plans to visit a market or something, but being social in wonderful, new cities should not have to rely on one person. In other words, don’t hang out too much because you’ll drive each other crazy!
Other students have said:
“Being a senior, it wasn’t fun haven’t a roommate because I’m used to having my own room and space, but it’s nice getting to know her. She’s peaceful and goes to bed early [laughs], so we get along.” – Anatasia C.
“There’s little things that he doesn’t like or things that I don’t like, but we communicated those so it’s fine. Like, he doesn’t like when I eat in the room, which is fine. I don’t understand why but I don’t need to know why.” Sean T.
“It’s really nice always having someone to talk, to and she gets along with my other friends here [in London]. There’s never an awkward moment. My roommate and my friends get along, so to connect my friends to school… that’s nice.” – Valeria D.P.
Until next time!,
Lydia D.