One week down, one week to go. Warsaw was more amazing than I could have imagined. Going into the program, I was excited to see Warsaw, but it was never a place that I had planned to travel to. Warsaw blew me away with its wonderful people, architecture, and culture. The city was incredibly easy to get around, and the subway was by far the cleanest I had ever seen. With the exception of one shop owner, every local was nice and very willing to help. I am incredibly grateful for the fact that almost everyone speaks at least enough English to make it easy to communicate, because without that, we would all definitely be struggling a lot more. Speaking to the locals and even other tourists we have met has made me realize how privileged we are in the United States. Because English is the universal language, many Americans do not ever feel the need to study any other languages and can speak only English, compared to the many locals I have encountered here who sometimes speak as many as five languages. It is amazing to me how effortlessly they switch between different languages, and their skill when it comes to communicating. Even though I am here studying accounting, this trip has certainly inspired a desire to study culture and language as well.
In terms of classwork, this course is very interesting. With a group of only ten students, we are all extremely comfortable presenting in front of each other, and are all totally willing to work together to better each other’s understanding of the course material. I have already learned so much on the differences between IFRS and GAAP that I know will be beneficial in all my future coursework. 