10 unexpected situations you’ll experience during your first internship abroad
Are you about to leave for your first internship abroad? Great. You’ve got your ticket, an updated CV, maybe even your accommodation sorted.
But there are some things nobody has told you.
Those little unexpected moments that turn an experience abroad into a unique adventure, sometimes funny, sometimes unsettling, always memorable.
Here are the 10 unexpected situations you’re (almost certainly) going to experience.
1. The supermarket becomes your first real challenge
Grocery shopping in another language is an adventure.
You spend 10 minutes in the yogurt aisle trying to figure out which one isn’t fromage blanc. You mix up laundry detergent and fabric softener. You accidentally buy dishwasher salt thinking it’s coarse salt.
But as several experts on living abroad explain, these small everyday culture shocks are actually the most formative. They boost your adaptability like nothing else.
2. You make 5 international friends in a week
You thought you might feel lonely at first?
You’ll discover that people on the move attract each other. In just a few days, you meet:
- your German flatmate
- an Italian intern
- another French person from your neighborhood
- a Brazilian student you bumped into at a language class
- your Spanish colleague
You build a mini international circle faster than you would back home. And it’s one of the greatest rewards of the experience.
3. Homesickness hits youā¦ at the most unexpected moment
It’s not on day one that you feel down.
It usually hits in week 3 or 4, when the “vacation” effect wears off. You break down seeing a French bakery on your Insta feed. You dream of your grandma’s quiche.
It’s totally normal. According to GoAbroad, it’s actually one of the most common challenges for interns abroad.
Good news: it passes in a few days. And it comes back sometimes, but each time, you become more resilient.
4. You speak 3 languages in the same sentence
By the end of the first month, your brain starts doing weird things.
You start a sentence in French, finish in English, slip a Spanish word somewhere in between. You search for the word “boulangerie” and only “bakery” comes to mind.
There’s a name for this phenomenon: code-switching. And it’s a sign that your brain is truly adapting. You’re not losing your French, you’re becoming multilingual.
5. Local schedules drive you crazy
In Spain, lunch is at 2 pm and dinner at 10 pm.
In Germany, shops close at 8 pm and everything is dead on Sundays.
In Ireland, the pub at 5 pm is like “apĆ©ro” time back home.
These differences throw you off the first few weeks. Then you adjust. And funnily enough, when you go back home, you’ll find you eat too early.
6. The office isn’t what you imagined
30-minute meeting in Germany? Precise and to the point.
Coffee break in Spain? A real institution.
First-name basis in Sweden? Including with your boss.
Monday morning in Italy? The coffee-chat-with-colleagues ritual before getting to work.
You’ll discover there are as many work cultures as there are countries. And by adapting to a new one, you develop a skill every recruiter wants: intercultural agility.
7. You realize your English isn’t that bad
You thought your English was “average”. You realize you can:
- understand a manager who speaks fast
- defend an idea in a meeting
- get jokes
- make friends in that language
In 2 months, you’ve made progress that would have taken 2 years at university. Without even realizing it.
8. A silly little detail moves you deeply
It won’t be the big tourist visit that leaves the strongest mark.
It’ll be:
- the free coffee the baker gives you when you become a regular
- the neighbor who holds the building door for you
- your colleague teaching you a local expression
- the sunset from your building’s rooftop
Several studies show that it’s these small human moments that truly transform expats. Much more than the great monuments.
9. You change how you see France
Even more surprising: your experience abroad helps you understand your own culture better.
You realize what you miss (bread, healthcare, the art of conversation at the table). You also realize what annoys you (heavy bureaucracy, pessimism, the weather).
You come back more clear-headed. More mature. And strangely, prouder of your roots.
10. You become someone different
When the time comes to pack your suitcase to go home, you look at yourself in the mirror.
You’re no longer quite the same person who left 3 or 6 months ago.
You:
- make decisions faster
- handle the unexpected better
- take more risks
- know yourself better
That’s the most powerful effect of an internship abroad: you go looking for professional experienceā¦ and come back with a personal transformation.
Why these situations are a blessing
No course, no book, no TED Talk can prepare you for these 10 situations.
You have to live them. And that’s the magic.
Each one of them, even the most uncomfortable, builds you up. They make you stronger, more open-minded, more international.
And on a CV, that’s worth far more than one line: it tells the story of who you’ve become.
The adventure often starts with a detail, a meeting, an unexpected moment.
Now it’s your turn to live it. š
