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Tag: Europe

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Florence SignPeople don’t go out at night here. Not like back in the states. Unlike New York, or L.A. or D.C., Florence is a city that sleeps. Around 12 AM, the city’s maze-like web of ancient streets empty out completely, and its denizens settle into a collective slumber beneath the Tuscan stars.

Or at least…it seems that way.

You see, I’ve found myself out late at night on a few occasions lost coming back from friends’ homes from across the city, and what I’ve said is true. The streets are virtually empty. No gypsies, no busses, no tour guides, and no policemen. The occasional cat may streak through the muted orange light of a streetlamp every so often, but people are a rare find.

And yet, there’s something out at night. Something sending the city charming, thoughtful, and sometimes eerie messages.

...continue reading "Signs"

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By squeakyrobot

Zoom Café

Russia isn’t like China where every street corner has some rickety food stand with mind-bogglingly cheap prices for utterly delicious goodies and mystery meats. Well, the mystery meats remain. Russian food is much simpler, much less flavorful, and flat-out different in every way possible. To provide some contrast, its main ingredients are potatoes, sour cream, and dill. Vodka might as well be water; it also serves to distract you from the meat jello you’re eating. As an intense food-lover on a budget, I set out to prove that Petersburg isn’t gastronomically hopeless, that there have to be good, cheap eats as rewards for those who search relentlessly for them. ...continue reading "St. Pete Eats"

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By asthaa

I’ve been asked more than once since I’ve been in Madrid how the “situation” is. Am I seeing the protests? Is it safe? The answers to both these questions is yes, but the economic crisis in Spain is deeper than that, and it is not necessarily visible unless you choose to be aware and conscious of it. As students here for a semester, there are a few ways we’ve witnessed the effects of the government’s austerity measures and the public’s response.

Spanish ProtestsWe’ve passed by or seen protests more than once. They can be on a smaller scale, like the medical personnel marching in front of the hospital across my home. They can be huge and we later learn about arrests, choosing to avoid the zones in fear of mingling with the police. I attended a protest a few weeks ago and observed some interesting things. For Spaniards, to protest and use one’s right to assemble can be a family activity. I met and saw everyone from college students to grandmothers and their grandchildren in a demonstration. While many of the marches tend to be horizontal, or without a fixed agenda and definitive leadership, some of the people I talked to felt the Spanish government was cutting the most basic functions, like education and support for the unemployed. They felt abandoned and wondered why their tax dollars were not going back to them. The protests were also much louder than any I’ve an experienced in the United States.

...continue reading "Witnessing Challenging Times"

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By jfbarszcz

Once again, I'm writing this week's post in a bit of a rush, since in just a few short hours I'll be boarding a plane to Amsterdam for the weekend! (Yeah yeah I know, I'm doing such stereotypical American college kid things in Europe: Oktoberfest, Amsterdam.... Definitely looking forward to spending the next couple weekends after this one at "home" in Prague though!) So I apologize in advance for any weird incoherence caused by my not thoroughly revising/editing my post.

My prompt this week is "Discuss what the academic culture is like in your host country." While I can't really say for sure what academic culture is like as a whole in the Czech Republic, I can talk a little about what I DO know about it, as well as how my academic experience thus far has been similar to and different from my experiences at GW. With that disclaimer out of the way let's get started.

...continue reading "Week 4: Classes etc."

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By rlubitz

Being that everything in London is roughly five more dollars than it is in America, I’ve resorted to eating non-meals. Meals don’t really happen very much unless you count pub food. Which, while we’re talking about pub food, steak and ale pies are like sent from heaven I don’t think you really even understand.

You see a lot of people walking around with a croissant or a sandwich or a burger. There are fast food restaurants around but basically just McDonalds, Burger King and KFC exist which usually elicits photographs from tourists. How many pictures have been caught in the background of with a bag of McDonalds in my shaky hands?

Seven.

Just kidding, I have no idea. Probably definitely more than that.

But anyways, there’s a way to exist in this city on not very much at all and it’s to eat little stuff. Following this blog post I am going to publish a diet book entitled, “Just Eat Little Stuff” and it will sell millions and I will be able to actually maybe come back to London and big stuff. Follow the knowledge below and maybe you can save money and eventually eat big stuff.

My Top Five Cheap Eats:

...continue reading "Cheap Eats Because I Am Poor"

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By parisjetattends

Its hard to know where to start. If you have brown skin and have been just about anywhere you will know why. Its different for everyone abroad and for everyone abroad the interactions you have may be better or worse depending on those taboo topics like your gender, the gender of the people you date, your religion, the color of your hair, skin, and eyes.

...continue reading "Being Brown Abroad"

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By oncptime

Normally, you wouldn’t think of “I’m sorry” as slang. In Italy, however inflection is everything and scusate or “I’m sorry” is something of a chameleon word. By the end of my first day of Italian classes I’d learned three things: Carlo was to be my Italian name, my professor and I shared an undying love for 50’s American jukebox music, and apparently scusate would be the one phrase I needed to know for the next 24 hours.

“In Italy, scusate is more than sorry,” Nicoletta (my professor) explained matter-of-factly. “It is an apology. It is an assertion. Scusate is a foreigner’s best friend"

...continue reading "“Scusate”"

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By squeakyrobot

Two things in Petersburg are absolutely unpredictable: the weather and the traffic. While I’ve learned to carry an umbrella and a scarf with me at all times, I haven’t been able to make sense of the traffic patterns simply because there is no sense to be found. Which is why the following St. Petersburg transportation guide must be digested with a rock of salt rather than just a grain.

...continue reading "Navigating Petersburg: Ignore the Day Drinkers"

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By asthaa

Perched on one of the many mountains and hills surrounding Barcelona, Parque Güellstands as a testament to the beauty that can be found when you mix nature and creative brilliance, specifically that of Antoni Gaudí. There are interesting shapes and curves at every corner and mosaic sculptures that make up seating. Parque Güell is a work of art to walk through and experience. As I peered out to a nearly perfect view of Spain’s second largest city last weekend, I realized I had come to Barcelona with an image tainted by stories of tourists and foreigners on spring break. In fact, I loved the Gaudi architecture, expansive museums, and the sunny beaches. And it was in the library in the Fundació Joan Miró, where I remembered learning about Miró in high school and found myself making connections between my class and the work of the artists of Cataluña.

...continue reading "Madrid: From the Inside and Out"

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By jfbarszcz

Hey all! So my blog post is going to be a bit shorter this week because I'm actually in the middle of packing for Oktoberfest! Obviously I am very excited for this, but it means that I leave Prague at 7 tomorrow morning and won't be back until late Sunday night (and I know I'll want to sleep when I get back) so I'm writing this post at about 11 PM Thursday night). Anyway, this week's topic is... restaurants.

You can learn a lot about a local culture by visiting restaurants. Obviously, cuisine is a very large part of culture, but it can also be an educational experience in other ways. Dining in restaurants in Prague has also taught me about local etiquette, money and prices, and even a bit about the Czech outlook on life.

...continue reading "Prague’s Restaurant Scene"

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