去年我告別了在英國利茲穩定的學生生活，來到了美國南卡羅萊納州度過了一年難忘的留學生活。我的周末基本都在圖書館里度過，也很高興在課余時間游游泳，看一看美國是什么樣的，跟我新的國際大家庭一起觀看美式足球比賽。
我意識到在我離開英國之前，出國留學辦公室給我的建議都是非常正確的，并不只是一些介紹的小冊子。以下是為大家獨家翻譯的去美國之前應該要了解的10件事。
做最好的準備，最壞的打算
當你準備去國外留學時，你最好做好可能發生最壞情況的心理準備。這個可能聽起來很負面，但是當你離開你的國家開始獨立生活，你必須在離開之前確保你會有一個B計劃，這將對你很有幫助。把你所有的簽證信息復印兩份。帶上你購買筆記本電腦的收據，以防你可能需要向保險公司索賠。最重要的是，購買一份包含最廣內容的保險，因為當你在一個陌生的環境里生活，安全永遠比后悔好。
出國留學會經歷情感上的波動
在我動身去美國南卡羅萊納州之前，有人告訴我，我可能會經歷情緒上的調整，從適應期到興奮期再到崩潰期。但是每個人都是不同的。我發現我在美國的情感經歷不是像過山車一樣的跌宕起伏，而是像一杯慢慢沉淀的雞尾酒。我會非常想家，也會興奮或者不知所措，但是我都解決了這些問題。即使某一個東西不適合我的口味，但是我也從未停止發現、預測和冒險的腳步。
你需要的不僅僅是短褲和T恤
當我得知矮棕櫚州的氣溫一年里的大多數時候都是溫暖的，作為一個充足陽光長時間被剝奪的英國人，我飛快地打包了我的比基尼、短褲和T恤。但是直到美國南卡羅萊納州第一次下雪，我才明白我需要厚外套和襪子!
你不需要額外的行李箱
我徹底后悔帶了一個額外的行李箱去美國，更不用提我為了攜帶這個行李箱而付出的額外費用了。對于搬到大西洋對岸去生活的這件事，我感到很緊張，因此我試圖帶上我所有的東西。但是到最后我發現，有一半的衣服和東西我都沒有用過，而且我還不得不在年底的時候又出錢把它們給寄了回去。如果你現在正在準備出國留學，你應該盡可能地讓你的行李重量輕一點，因為不管怎樣，到了新的國家，你很有可能會想要買新的東西。
美國沒有街角的小商店，只有大型的超市
在英國的時候，我一直喜歡去一些附近街邊的小商店購買東西 (或者就是美國人說的便利店)。我從未意識到在我看來這些商店是多么理所當然，直到我搬去了美國生活之后，我發現在鄰近的商店能夠買到的最方便的東西就是薯片和糖果，在那里沒有牛奶，沒有雞蛋，也沒有面包。這意味著我不得不每周都計劃去沃爾瑪購物。還真是有些不方便呢。
盡早參加聯誼會
一直以來我都對美國大學的聯誼會和兄弟會，以及他們在美國大學中得到偏見的現象很感興趣。直到我完成了留學，我都沒有真正好好地了解一下聯誼會文化，我只能帶著我的好奇心和遺憾結束我的留學時光。所以如果你打算去美國留學，記得提前查清楚聯誼會的招募信息，因為他們經常在你抵達美國之前就開始招募。
你太貼心了不是一種稱贊
我剛到南卡羅萊納州時，聽見別人說你太貼心了，我還以為它是親密的昵稱。但是，后來一個朋友告訴我這是意思完全不同的東西。這句話實際上有一種非常居高臨下的態度， 南方的說法類似于，沒有冒犯你的意思，但是你真傻。
你可能一整年都喝不到一杯好茶
盡管我打包的行李已經很重了，但是我還是希望我能夠帶更多的茶葉包。如果你是一個英國茶的愛好者，而且將要去美國生活，那么你需要準備好你自己最喜歡品牌的袋泡茶，因為你能在美國超市找到Yorkshire或Tetleys這些牌子的茶的機會是微乎其微的。
美國人比你想象的更喜歡開車
在我到美國哥倫比亞之前，我完全不知道美國的駕駛文化會對我的留學生活產生多少影響。盡管我是在南卡羅萊納州的首府城市，至少我可以說，哥倫比亞不是一個對行人很友好的城市。我很快意識到，如果你滿了21歲卻沒有駕照，這件事在英國是非常正常的，但是在美國卻是一件非常奇怪的事。很多次當我去附近的小鎮時，總是發現走著走著腳下的人行道就沒有了。
逆向文化沖擊比最初的文化沖擊更糟
在我等待回英國的飛機降落地面時，我松了一口氣。我在大西洋對岸生活了整整一年的時間，度過了一段了不起的時光。我沒想到的是，在國外那一年的生活對我造成的日常影響遠遠還沒結束。適應回家之后的生活，還有離開我在美國新的家庭是整個這一年最難和最令人意想不到的事之一。盡管這種沖擊在幾個星期之后就消失了，但是想要恢復到英國文化，卻不可能達到100%。無論我去哪里，我都會永遠記得有一個令人感到愜意的南卡羅來納州哥倫比亞市的美國社區，我相信我很快還會再回去那里。
以上文章由獨家翻譯，英文原文請瀏覽第二頁
Last year I swapped my steady student life in Leeds, England, for an unforgettable year abroad inSouth Carolina. I waved goodbye to weekends in the library and welcomed spending my spare time by the pool, exploring the US and watching American football games with my new international family.
Ive realized that while the pre-departure support and advice I received from the study abroadoffice was second to none, there were just some things that briefings, orientation sessions and information booklets couldnt have prepared me for. Here are 10 things I wish Id known before I plunged into my awesome year in the almighty USA:
1. You dont need the extra suitcase
I totally regret taking an extra suitcase out to America, not to mention paying for it. I was so nervous about moving my life across the Atlantic that I tried to take it all with me. In the end, I didnt use half the clothes and supplies and had to pay to ship them all back at the end of the year. If youre preparing to study abroad, pack as light as you can chances are youll want to buy new things in your host country anyway.
2. You wont drink a good cup of tea all year
Although I did pack too heavily, I wish Id packed more teabags. If youre a keen UK-based tea-drinker heading to the US, youll need to take a generous supply of your favorite teabag brand, because the chances of finding Yorkshire Tea or Tetleys in American supermarkets are extremely slim.
3. Hope for the best but plan for the worst
When preparing to study abroad its best to adopt the mentality that the worst that could happen might just happen. It sounds negative, but that way, when youre out in your host country and living independently, youll have a safety net of Plan Bs that you ensured before you left. Make two copies of all your visa information. Take your laptop receipt in case you need to make an insurance claim. Most importantly, buy the most extensive type of insurance cover because its always better to be safe than sorry when youre living in unfamiliar surroundings.
4. Bid for a sorority early
Ive always been intrigued by the phenomenon of sororities and fraternities and the polarizing reception they get in US universities. I ended my year abroad with a nagging curiosity and the regret that I never got to understand sorority culture from the inside. If youre heading to America for a study abroad year, remember to check out sorority opportunities before you leave as they often start recruiting before youre due to arrive.
5. Studying abroad is an emotional cocktail (not a rollercoaster)
Before I departed for South Carolina I was told that Id most likely go through phases of emotional adjustment, from orientation to the honeymoon stage to the ominous disintegration phase. But everyone is different. I realized that my emotional experience in the states wasnt a case of ups and downs, like a rollercoaster, but an emotional cocktail. Id feel homesick, excited, overwhelmed and settled all at the same time. Even if the individual elements werent always to my taste, they never ceased to make for an overall concoction of discovery, anticipation and adventure.
6. Bless your heart is not a compliment
When I came to South Carolina I heard people saying bless your heart and thought it was a term of endearment. Later in the year a friend told me it means something totally different. Its actually quite condescending a Southern way of saying something like, No offense, but youre pretty stupid. Thanks for the heads up!
7. There are no corner shops, just enormous supermarkets
Having spent my life in England Ive always been within a few streets of a nearby corner shop (or convenience store, as Americans call it). I never realized how much I take them for granted until I moved to the US and the only convenience items available in the nearest shop were crisps and sweets: no milk, no eggs, no bread. This meant I had to plan my weekly shopping trips to Wal-Mart with military precision if I didnt want to go without my beloved cups of tea for the rest of the week. So much for convenience
8. Youll need more than just shorts and t-shirts
When I learned that temperatures in the Palmetto State stay mostly warm all year round, as a Brit long deprived of sufficient sunshine I went into overdrive packing bikinis, shorts and t-shirts. Little did I know that Id need thick jumpers and socks for South Carolinas first occurrence of snowfall in years.
9. Americans love driving more than you can possibly imagine
I had no idea just how much American driving culture would affect my year abroad until I arrived in Columbia. Despite being South Carolinas capital city, Columbia isnt pedestrian friendly, to say the least. I quickly learned that being 21 without a driving license is the rare British exception to the American rule. There were so many times when Id set out to the nearby town to find the pavement stop dead at my feet, turning my innocent shopping trips into questionable expeditions along the side of the road. Bless my heart!
10. Reverse culture shock is worse than initial culture shock
As I was waiting for my inbound plane to pull in to the airport for a long return flight to the UK, I breathed a sigh of relief. I moved my life across the Atlantic for an entire year and had the most phenomenal time. What I didnt expect was that the day-to-day impact of that year abroad was far from over. Adjusting to life back home and parting with my new American family was one of the hardest and most unexpected trials of the whole year. While the shock went away within a few weeks, the reverse back to British culture will never be 100% complete. Wherever I go, Ill always remember that theres a welcoming American community out there in Columbia, South Carolina, that Ill be sure to meet again sometime soon.
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