Skip to content

Category: Blog Abroad

Published on

By Julia McNally

The University of Auckland has a two-week mid-semester break, providing the perfect opportunity for its abundance of international students to get their travelling in. On Saturday night Paige and I began our break with the All Blacks vs Wallabies game. The All Blacks are New Zealand’s national rugby team, and renowned as the best in the world. The game begins with the Haka, the Maori war dance. This shows the strength, unity, and pride of the team and is a tradition at every All Blacks game. While I do not know much about rugby (my limited knowledge coming from an 11 minute “Rugby for Beginners” video I’d watched earlier that day), the game was entertaining, exciting, and resulted in a 40-12 victory for the All Blacks.

The next morning we rose early to catch a flight to our first destination: Queenstown. Famed for its proximity to skiing and Fiordland National park, Queenstown is must in the South Island. We disembarked the plane on the tarmac, surrounded by snow-capped mountains. “Holy shit. This is a real place in the world. This is just the frickin airport!” I said to myself as we walked the short distance into the airport to grab our bags. We arrived mid-day and decided to spend the afternoon wandering around downtown, which is nestled between Lake Wakatipu and the mountains. The hostel we are staying at is right along the lake, and provides unbelievable views of the mountains and beaches. While relaxing on the beach we ran into a friend from school and decided to grab a pint and a bite together. As we ate, we planned our next day and decided it was Lake Wanaka for us. As our friend had rented a car and wanted to go skiing around Mt. Aspiring, he offered to give us a ride up.

We met up the next morning, and after picking up another friend who was going to ski, we head out for the day. Lake Wanaka was highly recommended to me and had many walks and hikes around it’s borders. We were dropped of at what is known as “That Wanaka Tree”, a solitary tree that has grown up just off the shore of the lake.

After a quick viewing of the tree, we proceeded along the coast of the lake. We tramped for a couple of hours, stopping periodically to observe our surroundings. The lakeshore was rocky, framed by snowy mountains and a glimpse of the small town of Wanaka in the distance. After a couple of hours we turned back and explored Wanaka while we waited for our ride. The town was bursting with small local shops, both for souvenirs and food. I picked up a small, teal pin the shape of the country of New Zealand, perfect for my new backpack. The boys finished their day on the slopes and picked us up, heading back to Queenstown where we visited the iconic Fergburger for dinner.

The following day we embarked upon a hike that would take us to the overlook of Queenstown skyline, a height most people take a gondola up to. However, being students traveling on a budget we opted to climb the distance instead of riding up. The trail was steep all the way up, forcing up to stop and breathe every ten minutes or so. As I’ve said many times before, the climb was tough, and at times almost impossible, but the view was, once again, worth it.

I could have stared down at the town for hours, but meat pies were calling and the wind was sharp and cut straight through all three of my layers. By the time we reached the base of the mountain we were ready for a quick rest before meeting up with our friend to walk around the base of the lake. The views were nothing new but the path was pleasant and calm. A few people were out walking their dogs, but we mainly had it to ourselves. Afterwards we wandered into an Irish pub for dinner a drink.

The next morning we were headed out of Queenstown, so after a cup of tea I walked down to the water and sat at the doc for 45 minutes while waiting for our ride to the airport. The deep breaths of sharply cold air were awakening, refreshing, and made leaving all that much more difficult.

 

Published on

By Taylor Williams

Paris! This month has honestly been truly magical. Returning to Paris is something I’ve always dreamed of. The first time I went to Paris I was 14, and don’t think I was truly able to appreciate the magic that is the City of Love. This time was completely different. For one, it was an amazing trip I got to experience with my soror’s, Faith and Jessica. It was truly a dream, to imagine that one day I’ll be able to tell my kids that at 20 I traveled to Paris with my sorority sisters! The first thing we did when we arrived was set off to the Louvre, to be honest, I wasn’t all that excited to see it, as I’d already been there and seen the Mona Lisa, and had been underwhelmed the first time I saw her. This time, however, was completely different. I hadn’t been able to fully appreciate the magnitude of the Louvre and how much beauty lives within it. 

More than anything, however, this trip inspired me. I’m sad to say I was becoming a little disappointed in London and a little underwhelmed with the city as a whole. That is until my friend Nzinga, whom I visited during my travels in Paris told me about how wonderful her study abroad experience had been, and how she was hoping to extend her trip. When I asked her what made her love it so much, she told me that each day she sets out with the intention of experiencing something new about Paris, and so that's what I aspire to do with London, to see, do, and overall experience something new and different every day.  Until next time! xx

Published on

By Zachary Brumback

On Tuesday I traveled to the Bankstown Art Centre and attended the Bankstown Poetry Slam (BPS). When I arrived at the art center, I was amazed by the number of attendees who were already waiting outside the auditorium. I quickly made my way to the end of the queue and waited patiently for the doors to open. Upon entering the auditorium, I presented my ticket and made my way to one of the remaining seats. As I was waiting for the event to begin, I could feel the excitement resonating throughout the room.

With the dimming of the auditorium’s lights, the co-founder and host, Sara Mansour, took to the stage and welcomed everyone to the poetry slam. However, she was also the bearer of bad news. Due to the performances by two “world-class poets” (Joelle Taylor and Bill Moran), there was only room for fifteen other attendees to perform. As a result, five individuals were unable to perform their pieces. Following this announcement, Mansour reminded the audience that there was a three-minute time limit for each performance and that the selected performers would be judged on a scale ranging from “1-10” by five random members of the audience. As a result, five judges were randomly selected and given whiteboards and expo markers. With that said, Mansour introduced the first performer and exited the stage.

With the auditorium filled with over three hundred attendees, I was immediately impressed by each performer’s ability to recite their poetry with such poise. Their topics ranged from love to anger, happiness to sadness, and freedom to oppression. Many performers used their poetry to convey their personal political beliefs towards a number of ongoing issues. As a spectator, I was mesmerized by how the performers seemed to take on a new identity to complement their words and express their emotions.
Following their performance, the poets received a round of applause and were later scored by the five selected judges. According to Mansour, both the highest and lowest scores were omitted to prevent any bias. As a result, a facilitator from BPS averaged the three middle scores of each performer. After the poetry slam concluded, Mansour announced the first, second, and third place winners of the night’s slam. However, due to a tie, two individuals received second place. Also, the winner of the slam was granted the opportunity to perform in BPS’s Grand Slam later in the year and compete against other slam winners.

Whether one was a performer or just a member of the audience, each member in attendance was engaged in the experience and ultimately received support from each other that they can share with others. Although one may have only been a spectator, they were still able to learn from the event’s performers, reflect on their own experiences, and thus apply their newly acquired understanding and perspective to their poetry and life.


During the second half of the event, BPS hosted two “world-class poets” that presented a wide selection of their work. Through their performances, attendees were able to watch experienced performers and learn from them. In addition to hosting a variety of “world-class poets,” BPS hosts “Flip the Script” on the night before each monthly poetry slam, which serves as a form of mentorship to individuals under the age of twenty-six. Therefore, individuals have the opportunity to receive feedback from a mentor and can improve their piece before performing it the next night.
By attending the poetry slam, I was able to experience a real-life example of a participatory culture in the local community. By performing and expressing their emotions through poetry, individuals are under the impression that their message can resonate with their audience and may potentially help others going through difficult times. Following their performances, these individuals received instant gratification and felt a sense of belonging. Due to its welcoming environment, I was fortunate to engage in this unique event.

Published on

By Beatrice Mount

My vacation has ended! After spending a week jetting around Rome, Florence, and Budapest, I came back to UCM on Tuesday feeling refreshed and ready for the rest of the year. Since UCM is on a quarter system, I’m tackling a whole new set of classes for the next seven weeks. This semester, I’m taking Human Atrocity Triangle, Crucial Differences in the 21st century, and Research Methods II, as well as continuing my Basic Dutch lessons. 

One of the reasons I wanted to go on exchange to UCM was because of the class options. As someone aiming for two majors and one minor, I have a mess of academic interests that can make planning my schedule extremely difficult. When those interests intersect, it not only makes my scheduling easier but also makes learning easier. As the saying ~loosely~ goes, if you’re studying what you love, it’s fun and easy. While last semester I focused on more specialized classes, this semester both of my classes intertwine with all three of my favorite subject areas: Crime, politics, and gender. 

Human Atrocity Triangle focuses on bringing a criminological understanding to Gross Human Rights violations. It seeks to define what these crimes are, the role of different actors on the macro (state) and micro (individual) level, and also look at who the victims are. Last semester at GW, I was lucky enough to get into the Human Trafficking course, and I see this class as a natural progression on this section of my academic journey. Instead of focusing on one type of atrocity, I am looking at case studies of a whole range of atrocities. After three classes, i can affirm you that it is a grim subject, but absolutely fascinating. For example, the first class focused on definitional issues — what populations did you leave out by codifying these violations? How does the legal definition allow for states to work around that definition and violate rights? Is there, or should there, be a definite line defining what is and isn’t torture? It’s always the best when you leave a class with more questions than answers. 

Crucial Differences of the 21st Century focuses more on the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Political Science aspect of my education. While the course will cover human rights violations, it’s been more theory based for the most part. We’re starting off by reading on Intersectionality, Identity, and Queer theory, as well as the general histories of the civil, gay, and women’s liberation movements. Understanding how these differences manifest today will also help us understand how to deal with the political and personal ramifications of these constructed differences. 

Research Methods is exactly what it sounds like — figuring out what methods of research are, and understanding what methods might be appropriate in which situations. It’s not too exciting, unlike my other classes. But it’s a nice break from constantly puzzling through genocide or discrimination. Or just letting my brain rest after spending 2 hours trying to figure out the right way to conjugate “gaan” or when to use “lekker.” Spoiler alert: the Dutch language is not very descriptive, and “lekker, which is essentially tasty, is also a catch-all that can describe chairs, carrots, people, and cars. 

I definitely have a full schedule for the next seven weeks, so figuring out how to balance traveling, exercising, studying, and feeding myself will surely be an interesting and chaotic game. While the last few weeks I’ve explored multiple countries, I’m probably going to spend the rest of this quarter using my Museumkaart across the Netherlands and visiting nearby Aachen. If, that is, I can survive the four 8:30 am classes I have. Seriously, you don’t really appreciate the beauty in making your own schedule until it’s gone. If there's one thing I'm looking forward to returning to when I'm back on campus, it's returning to my almost exclusively evening classes.

Published on

By Megan Gardner

My family always taught me to respect the sea. We spent nearly every weekend by the water, whether it was fishing or boating or swimming together. They regularly reminded my brothers and I that, while it seems peaceful, it is unforgiving and we don’t truly understand the power that it holds. I’ve always kept the strength of the sea in mind, but it wasn’t until this semester that I ever considered the magnitude of its power, nor the power of the sand.

This semester, I’ve been studying the migration crisis in the Euro-Mediterranean space. Since I arrived, I’ve been studying the Tunisian democratic transition process and the factors behind outward migration. A week ago, I arrived in Italy to study the realities of the system from this side of the sea. I have been attending lectures, visiting migrant welcome centers, meeting local NGOs, and visiting legal clinics. In one of these lectures, a founder of a local NGO spoke about the common migration routes from Sub-Saharan Africa to Southern Europe. We followed the process from beginning to end and spoke about the threats at each step. We were all familiar with the perils of crossing the sea, but not many of us were familiar with the dangers of the sand. He mentioned that almost four times as many people die crossing the Sahara than crossing the sea. These numbers aren’t publicized, because they are unknown. There are no existing NGOs that monitor the Sahara for migrants because of the inherent dangers, both political and natural, in the area. We can only speculate the numbers based on migrant accounts. In a separate conversation I had with my professor, Mounir Khelifa, he warned me “not to underestimate the power of that sand,” while motioning to the Sahara.

In Sicily, the strength of the sea cannot be forgotten. The rocks that act as a barrier from the water are hidden by graffiti from artists reminding the public of the thousands of migrants who have lost their lives in pursuit of a better future. The desert and the sea have the power to take life and the power to provide opportunity. Their decisions are ruthless and dispassionate. My conception of the power behind the sea and the sand has shifted. Not only do they hold a such a raw, primitive power, but they also hold a deeper power. They represent an obstacle on the path to a better future. When I watch the sea or walk through the desert, it’s impossible not to think of both their beauty and their puissance.

Published on

By Rachel Blair

Time has really been flying by. I can’t believe it’s almost November! Last time you heard from me, I was in Normandy. It was really cold there, but it was an amazing experience. I’m really happy that I went because as I said before, I wouldn’t have gone there on my own. These past two weekends have been really busy for me as well. The weekend after Normandy, I went to Iceland with my friend Michael. I loved every second of it, and plan on going again. We stayed at an Airbnb in Reykjavik and rented a car from the airport for the entire weekend. If you go, I advise getting a car because everything is so spread out, and the only mode of public transportation is a bus. We got there on Friday night, and stayed until Sunday afternoon. Friday and Sunday were spent in the city of Reykjavik, but Saturday was my favorite day. That day, we drove around the Golden Circle and hit a lot of our top places. My favorite spot was the Black Sand Beach. We woke up at 6:30am and did not get back to the Airbnb until 11:30pm. I was exhausted after, but it was worth it. I highly advise everyone to go to Iceland. It was so peaceful in its own way. I don’t know how to describe it, but it was a place that brought me real joy.

This past weekend, I went to London to visit a friend that is studying abroad at Queen Mary’s. I left Friday night for that as well, but had a 6:20am flight back to Paris because I had a final exam on Monday that I had to study for. (That’s one of my major signs that time is flying. Since I take 3 GW classes here, each for 3 and a half weeks, every time I finish one of them, it’s a sign that the semester is getting closer and closer to being over. I have already finished 2 out of my 3 and there’s still so much I feel like I want to do here.) But I really enjoyed going to London because I’ve been there before, and have done all of the tourist activities, so this time my friend took me to his favorite spots and the cooler areas of London. It was also nice to be in a country that spoke English for a bit. It was very weird at first seeing everything in English since I’ve been here for so long now.

Being abroad here has made me realize that I would love to travel to a different country every year if my finances and time allow me. Visiting all of these countries has been such a different experience every time, I could only imagine what other countries have in store as well. I’m so happy I took advantage of this study abroad opportunity. It has been an amazing experience that I know I will remember forever. I look forward to the last haul of my program, and can’t wait to see what else Paris has in store for me.

   

Above: Dover, England

   
   

Above: Iceland

Published on

By Stefania Tutra

This weekend I ventured out of warm, sunny Spain for the first time during my study abroad semester and headed north to cold and cloudy Amsterdam. I completely fell in love with the city after this weekend and definitely plan to return at some point in the future.

Day 1 – Friday

We arrived into Amsterdam Schipol airport early Friday morning, and went straight to our hotel to check in. The e hotel was located on the outskirts of Amsterdam, only 15 minutes from the airport, as this was the cheapest option we had when booking our housing the trip. We took a 9 minute train from the airport to Amsterdam Centraal station. We headed out to explore, and walked around Dam Square, eventually leading us to a flower market and the infamous “I Amsterdam” sign in front of the stunning Rijkmuseum. We stumbled upon a charming café called “Gruter” and decided to have lunch there. I decided to try my first authentic Dutch food, and ordered a vegetarian “Flammkuchen.” It’s essentially a super thin-crust pizza topped with a French cream, onions, and whichever toppings (in my case, I got it with arugula and mushrooms).

   

After eating lunch, we decided to continue exploring and walked to Vondelpark. We went back to the hotel for a quick Spanish ‘siesta’, and then took the train back to the city to go to the Heineken Experience. The museum was interesting and highly interactive, and the free beer at the end was a huge added bonus. We were starving afterwards so we went to a nearby pub called “O’Donnell’s” and had an incredible burger with fries for dinner.

   

Day 2 – Saturday

We took the train into the city around 10:30 in the morning. The first stop was Ten Kate Markt, an outdoor market with plenty of fresh local produce, cheeses and breads, and street food. Parallel to it was a place called Foodhallen, which was exactly what it sounds like – an indoors food market. This was a more upscale, hip, modern food market with an overwhelming variety of food to choose from – tacos, middle eastern food, dumplings, fish, sushi, vegan, etc. I decided to go with a sushi burrito and it was delicious. We spent majority of the rest of the day in the Jordaan District, which is crowded with beautiful houses, original shops, and of course, canals and bikes. The infamous Anne Frank house is located here as well. Unfortunately, I did not get the chance to go inside as tickets had sold out over two weeks ago, but even seeing it from the outside was unbelievable. Afterwards, we went on an hour-long canal tour of the city, which is one of my favorite activities that I did the entire weekend and would definitely recommend if you are traveling to Amsterdam. We got to see almost the entirety of the city through the canals, with an accompanied audio guide explaining the rich history of each neighborhood we passed through. After the canal tour, we walked around the Red Light District and grabbed dinner at an Italian restaurant.

   

We ended our weekend in Amsterdam the best possible way – Amsterdam Music Festival. The lineup was stacked with big DJ names such as David Guetta, Dimitri Vegas and Like Mike, Axwell and Ingrosso, and more. Also, at the stroke of midnight, the world’s #1 DJ was announced, being followed by a performance by them, and this year it ended up being one of my all-time favorite DJs, Martin Garrix. The festival lasted from 10pm until 6am, and every moment of it was incredible. The high-energy crowd was filled with concert-goers from countries all around the world, music bringing us all together for one night in one incredible city. Thank you Amsterdam, for the unforgettable weekend -- I will definitely be back.

Published on

By Savita Potarazu

Geneva, Switzerland
21 Oct 2018

I know many GW students still have midterms going on right now… but this week we have our final exams! So soon, right? Yet here I am sitting in one of the few places open on Sunday in Switzerland, relaxing and doing a bit of work for this week. Something special about SIT is the way our directors design the academic schedule for this specific program. The framework of our semester includes 2 months of classroom time and excursions. The latter half of our time here includes a designated research period and a few french lessons.

Sipping tea and writing my Local Case Study paper in Geneva. Not much is open on Sundays here!

As a senior, I have become well-accustomed to studying and taking tests at GW and, to some extent, I find them to be predictable based on the types of questions I have been asked in the past (this is department-specific, of course). Because we only have midterms and finals here in Switzerland, adjusting to this style of testing has been a large portion of the acclimation to life abroad. However, we students quickly learned that these exams and the professors who created them do not intend to trick us or foster self-doubt.

I think I mentioned this briefly in an earlier post but our mentors here also encourage us to learn, process, and apply the concepts we’ve learned to real-world circumstances particularly as they pertain to extremely vulnerable communities in conflict zones or areas affected by natural disaster and/or political turmoil. Additionally, every time we have a guest lecturer or visit a pre-eminent organization there is, quite predictably, a discussion about career and personal development in the field of global health and how each expert has taken a different route to work in this highly integrated discipline. Thus, the way our exams are designed allows us to integrate our notes and assemble a narrative about such integration and why this approach allows humanitarian aid and development policy to be as complex as it is. I also believe that it would be unjustified for our professors to expect us to regurgitate this high-volume of information and still experience the Swiss lifestyle, void of anxious energy particularly in the classroom setting. I have thoroughly benefitted from this style of teaching/ learning and wish the American college education that we're exposed to resembled this. It took me some time to understand that these assessments (papers included) are not intended to deplete students of energy; they are meant to be informative, engaging, enjoyable and most of all enriching.

International Labor Organization (ILO) in Geneva, Switzerland. Our lecture here pertained to Child Labor and the role of global governance in addressing hazardous and inhumane working conditions for children.

United Nations event entitled “Where will we go?” about the implications of climate change on humanitarian aid. UN Office in Geneva, Switzerland.

Me at the Doctor’s Without Borders office in Geneva, Switzerland. As an aspiring physician, I am thrilled to have had the opportunity to have our lecture at MSF.

Taken outside of our lecture hall at the UN Environmental Program office in Geneva, Switzerland

Published on

By Julia McNally

We arrived in Rotorua at almost 11pm on Friday night, heading directly to our hostel. Upon finding ourselves in a 10-bedroom we chose our bunkmates and got a good night’s rest so we would have maximum energy for Saturday’s adventures.

The day began with chocolate chip pancakes, the perfect fuel for six young adults spending the day hiking. After picking up the car we chose to stop by a nearby park where we could get a sneak peak of the thermal pools. When we arrived, we were pleasantly surprised to find a pop-up market selling various foods and goods. After walking around for about an hour we decided to see the real sight of Rotorua -- the thermal pools at Wai-O-Tapu.

Wai-O-Tapu is the most prominent geothermal tourist spot in New Zealand, covering 18 square km (6.95 square miles). It rests on the volcanic dome of Maungakaramea (Rainbow Mountain) which has activity dating back 160,000 years. It features 25 pools along a 75 minute walk. The pools start out small, some even underground, framed by concave rocks stained with the minerals released by the pools. Others are vast, releasing steam that is a result of the combination of heat and chemicals. Each mineral leaves a different color in the water, some dull and other brighter that we knew colors could be.

Although beautiful, the park smelled horrendous. The primary mineral giving the pools their heat and color is sulfur. If you’ve ever smelled sulfur, you’re very familiar with the rotten egg smell that never seems to leave your nose and pores. There were points at which, no matter how aggressively I plugged my nose, the scent was so strong I could taste it.

Once we’d finished marveling at the colors and could tolerate the smell no longer, we took a break for lunch and aimed to arrive at Whakarewarewa Forest at sunset. Covering 5,600 hectares (13,838 acres) of land, the redwood forest is home to trails for horses, mountain biking and walking. This includes a walk along bridges between trees, about halfway up their trunks. However, we opted out as payment is required to access the raised path. Coming from Northern California, Paige and I have high standards for redwood trees. We giggled as our friend marveled at the size of the redwoods, telling them at home they were at least three times wider. Nonetheless, we felt right at home, deeply inhaling the scent of damp redwoods -- I scent I would bottle and carry around with me if I could.

That evening we relaxed at the hostel. With a bar on the first floor and a hot tub in the backyard, we each grabbed a beer and jumped in.

Sunday morning we began with tea and donuts at a local bakery before deciding to go to Kerosene Creek, a nearby river heated by a natural hot spring that lays beneath it, making it a popular place to go for a swim. At first I walked down to the creek fully dressed, not intending to go in. I didn’t feel like swimming or having to put leggings and sneakers on over wet skin for the rest of the day. We tramped through the mud along the creek to arrive at the short waterfall beneath which a few others were swimming. After snapping a few photos and watching my friends jump in, I returned to the car to change, deciding I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

The creek was lukewarm and its smell truly lived up to its name. We were accompanied by a group of young men climbing up the waterfall only to jump back down it and a large group of students visiting from another university.

From Kerosene Creek we drove down the road to the Rainbow Mountain viewpoint. Along the way we saw Green Lake, which we had been trying to find all weekend. Everywhere we’d tried to access it had been blocked by gates that required permits. But like many areas in New Zealand, often the best views are simply on the side of the street. We pulled over in the middle of the road and ran across the street to have our look and snap some pictures.

Rainbow Mountain was equally as beautiful, with an ice blue pool settled at its base. Minerals in the rocks created a marble of different colors in the side of the mountain, which looked as if someone had slowly chipped away at it. After a brief look we continued our journey.

Our final destination before heading to the bus that would take us back to Auckland was Okere Falls. These falls are the most common location for white water rafting in Rotorua, and by extension, the north island. We accessed the rushing river from several points, marveling at its speed and the lush greenery that framed it. Although there were no rafters due to the day’s predictions of rain, it was easy to picture lifejacket-clad tourists frantically fighting the rapids with their plastic paddles.

As we piled back into the car to return it and head to the bus we fell silent. Content with our choices of what to see and exhausted from the ventures we took to get there. For a small tourist town, we found plenty to do inside and around Rotorua and returned to Auckland satisfied with our weekend getaway.

Published on

By Beatrice Mount

I finished my first quarter of classes! i’ll have to hand it to problem based learning— it’s definitely an effective method of teaching. If you put in the effort, you get results, and barely have to study for exams. But After all that hard work and many hours spent in the reading room, Ive never been more ready for a break! So I’m off to meet up with friends in Rome, Florence, and Budapest!

In Rome and Florence, I’ll be hitting up the major tourists sites, going vintage shopping, and stuffing my face with gelato! I’ll also meet up with Jade, a GW student currently studying in Florence with a provider program. But beyond the typical tourist stuff, Italy holds a special place in my family history. My father spent a majority of his 20s in Italy cycling for a professional team. I remember sitting in his office when I was younger, listening to him spin tails about how Italian grandmothers who taught him how to make pizza, how he’d exchange champagne won from races for a place to sleep, and how difficult it was to live in a country where no one spoke his language. I never thought that I would have the chance to visit, let alone stomp around on his old grounds!

So far, I’ve spent a night in Rome, and I can see why my father fell in love with Italy. After a day of walking around the borghese gardens and the Vatican, stuffing my face with four euro pasta, I’m tired, sore, and breathless. Breathless not because of the 40,000 steps I took, but because of the scenery and art. Literally— I audibly gasped when I entered the Raphael rooms in the Vatican! The Netherlands has great art, don’t get me wrong, but there’s really no comparison to seeing the Sistine chapel and saint peters basilica, or just walking past the bright buildings littered throughout Rome. And if the art is this good in Rome, Who knows what Florence— the true birthplace of the renaissance— will have in store!

In about six days I’ll be off to Budapest to see my GW friend, Matilda. I’m not sure I want to leave Italy, but I’m excited to see a familiar face from GW. She’s currently studying at Central European university, on GW exchange! A masters university located in the heart of Budapest, CEu is one of the oldest masters programs on the continent, and boasts impressive scientific and humanities qualifications. When I told my classmates about my plans, their jaws immediately dropped, asking me how Matilda got in, how she liked it, and how the classes were. Apparently it has quite the reputation in Europe, and GW students are lucky enough to have program options there! I have no idea what Budapest will be like, but I’m hoping that, since I’m visiting hallowweekend, there will be plenty of spooky things to do. Unfortunately, I don’t think pumpkin gnocchi will be enough to satisfy my cravings for jack o lanterns.

Unless otherwise indicated, the content and opinions expressed on this web site are those of the author(s). They are not endorsed by and do not necessarily reflect the views of the George Washington University.
Privacy Notice
Viewing Message: 1 of 1.
 Notice

This site uses cookies to offer you a better browsing experience. Visit GW’s Website Privacy Notice to learn more about how GW uses cookies.