Conversion, Alteration, Change of Heart, Exchange, About-face, Innovation, Metamorphosis, Modification, Remodelling, Transfiguration, Transformation, Translation, Transmogrification, Transmutation, and, oh yeah, Synonyms

Probably one of the most annoying components of travel is conversions. Once you step outside your home country, everything changes. Voltage converters, plug converters and adapters, currency converters, and temperature conversions become a part of everyday life and another thing you windup toting along everywhere you go.

Before this year's batch of five American exchange students arrived in Moscow, everyone stocked up on converters for the electrical outlets so we could plug in those gadgets brought from home. But no more that 6hrs into our stay in Russia and one hair straightener, a surge protector, and a plug adapter had been fried by the 220 volt current that was not taken into account.

Everyday we are confronted with a variety of conversions. Whether it is converting the Cyrillic letters into sounds, exchanging English words for Russian, or altering our way of thinking when it comes to temperature, distance, and price, we constantly are reminded that there is a world outside the US and it can be very different than what we're used to.

Modern innovations have helped to minimize the hassle of conversions. Luckily, most computers are capable of handling up to 240 volts without incidence, and an assortment of voltage converters can be bought for other imported electronics. Most travel companies now sell plug adapters as well as converters and language translators can easily be found online. Calculators are our constant companion when it comes to questions of money. All-you-need-to-know phrasebooks line the shelves of bookstores and instruct you how to ask for directions, buy food, make hotel reservations, or rent a car. But there are some things that modern technology does nothing to change.

Traveling abroad is almost entirely about adapters and conversions. The definitions of adapt and convert are to change from one thing to another, and that is what a semester abroad does. It takes those students brave enough to step outside their national boundaries and transforms them as they experience a widely different culture, language and way of life. Despite the availability of guidebooks, travel magazines, and the travel channel, there is no substitute for actually living in a different country. There are some things that must be experienced to understand, and often you still won't fully comprehend.