As someone incredibly interested in exploring the world outside of what I know, I jumped at the opportunity to go on an adventure in a distant country before my junior year of college. I had no idea, however, that I would discover a program so reflective of my goals as a student, and of my interests as an individual.

There are two halves to the “Maastricht, Netherlands: The Politics of European Integration” program. On the first half of the trip, I will be going, along with other Penn State students, on a ten-day study trip, visiting important international institutions in Frankfurt, Strasbourg, Paris, and Brussels. Some examples of these are NATO, the Council of Europe, and European Parliament. 

Once the study trip is over, we will begin phase two of the trip, on which I will be taking a class called “Political Aspects of European Integration” taught by a professor Alexander Hoogenboom. The basic goal of this class, and of the study trip, is for us students to examine how European governments are negotiating with one another via these institutions, oftentimes sacrificing degrees of their own autonomy, in the interest of reaching higher levels of efficacy, security and prosperity. And examine we shall!

But don’t worry folks, these blog entries aren’t going to be centered around European politics. No one wants to read that. Not even European politicians. Rather, I plan to tell the story of a young man (ME) traveling halfway across the world and losing himself in the adrenaline rush of wandering through the streets of the old world. We’re gonna have a ton of fun.

Unless that guy in Irving’s exaggerated. See, on the last week of classes, I was in the basement of a bagel shop back at school eating some breakfast, and I saw a student wearing a Maastricht University t-shirt. I called out to him and explained that I was going on a study abroad trip there this summer. As it turns out, he took the same trip last summer. I was left with his words echoing in my head: It was the best six weeks of my life.

That could be a critique of his life just as well as it could be of this trip, but I’m just about completely positive this is going to be one of the most exciting, important things I’ve done in my life thus far. Whatever it is, a statement like that can make these next four weeks until June 19th seem like four months. So, for now I’ll continue to bide my time at my home in New Jersey, living on the precipice of the next great adventure: Maastricht.