By Mia Dragone
Most Stonehill students pack up for spring semester and prepare for another New England winter, but a few students are packing up for a whole other experience.
Catherine Sweeney, ‘26, is spending her spring semester in Greece fulfilling one of her mother's college dreams.
“My mom also went to Stonehill and would always tell me how she regretted not studying abroad, so she always encouraged it,” said Sweeney in a phone interview.
Her mother, Valerie Sweeney, graduated from Stonehill in 1989 and encouraged her to go and take advantage of the opportunity.
Sweeney traveled to Greece alone and only met one other student a few weeks before leaving.
“I consider myself a very independent and sociable person, so I knew I would be okay going alone, but once it became less than a week before I left, moving to a different country by myself suddenly became very scary,” she said.
This is Sweeney’s first time ever traveling to Europe.
“I’ve also never been anywhere in Europe before and my dream was always to visit Greece ever since I was little, so when I was researching different programs Stonehill partnered with and saw Greece was an option it was a no brainer,” she said.
Some students travel with friends, but Sweeney said she is glad to fly this trip solo.
“I’m very grateful I get to take on this journey by myself because I will learn and grow as a person from meeting new people and navigating making new friends all over again like I’m back in freshman year of college,” said Sweeney.
She said she already loves for her new home for the next five months in Greece.
“Learning more about the Greek culture and immersing myself into their way of living has been the most interesting part of living here so far,” she said.
Although Sweeny has just begun this experience, she is making the most of this amazing opportunity.
“Studying abroad has been incredible so far. I have met so many people who I have already made such amazing memories with. I continue to meet new people every day from across the globe,” she said.
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