Part of the experience of being abroad is being independent. Independent, in a new country, away from your family. Lucky enough for me, distance in the early 21st century doesn’t mean the same thing as distance in the late 20th century, let alone before that. I have resources galore at my fingertips to communicate with my family and friends back home. If I had studied abroad even 5 years ago, I would not have been able to keep in touch as incredibly well as I can today. With Facebook, Skype, and the internet in general, I am able to keep up with the loved ones in my life and share with them my experiences on a weekly, even DAILY basis!

Case in point, this blog! It is yet another way to keep in touch. Every study abroad student will tell you what a god-send the internet is. These days, even though we’re thousands of miles apart, I can call home and my family sounds like they’re in the next room!

Over the holidays, I stayed in Paris. My boyfriend came to visit, and it was the best possible way I could think of spending the vacation. Paris was covered in snow, and full of lights, the epitome of holiday cheer. Nevertheless, I found myself thinking often of my family back in Texas and what they were doing, this being my first holiday away from home. But if I waited for the 7 hour time difference to catch just the right balance between our two time zones, I could give them a call, or ring them on Skype.

Snow in the backyard, Ft. Worth, Texas.

It really felt like the magic of Christmas. I got to see my Dad in his Santa suit, clowning around on Christmas day. I got to see pictures of the BLIZZARD that Fort Worth got on Christmas eve (the first white Christmas in over 60 years and I wasn’t there to see it!!) instantaneously sent from my mom’s iPhone. The phone was passed around at my family’s Christmas party, as I talked to relatives exactly as if they were in the next room. And after my vacation was over, I got to share my pictures and fond memories of the holiday with my family and friends via my own personal blog.

I feel so lucky to get to keep in touch with all the people I miss. I get to have a wonderful adventure while still being an everyday part of their lives. Technology has become an integral part of my life that has given me my very own virtual family for this year abroad. Whether it’s Christmas eve or just another Tuesday afternoon, I know if I open up my computer, or pick up the phone, my virtual family, which is also my real family, will always be somewhere out in cyberspace! And for that, I am so thankful.

Screen shot of Kim enjoying Christmas in both Texas and Paris.

Kim Sotman is a junior at Tulane University who is studying in Paris for the 2009-2010 school year. She is from Fort Worth, Texas.