gwexchange – Page 5 – Postcards from GW

Winter is coming

AdminSeptember 12, 2018

Bad weather always looks worse through a window. -Tom Lehrer

Having spent the third week in DC made me used to the piece of art of Pierre Charles L’Enfant -aka Washington DC. The pattern of the streets and their names have become more familiar to me. Although it’s well organized, it is still pretty hard to make it from the Milken Institute to the Elliot School in 20 minutes. Therefore, I discovered a new way of transportation called Lime. It’s a service that offers pretty cheap transportation using an electric scooter. It’s so much fun riding it and also quite fast.

Another new feature I discovered and mastered this week is Amazon Prime. As said my friend Gabriel Falk “Amazon is a way of life”. I found it super useful to get anything from the US in a couple of days. For the record, this week I got a yoga mat, shoes, Einstein poster and a Psychology textbook for only $24! However, I found some difficulties with the Mailing Services.

The three first days of the week were hot as hell. The recorded temperatures were close to 100° F (38° C). But a few days later, we’ve experienced a drop in temperature and the blue sky that we have known this summer turned to a grey coat. Having seen some crows around the National Mall, it was worthy to say “Winter is coming”. Therefore, to accentuate this gloomy atmosphere, a bunch of exchange students and I decided to visit the Arlington National Cemetery to give a tribute to the late John Fitzgerald Kennedy and his family. On our way back to campus, we have experienced a heavy and scary downpour. It was so fun.

Finally, my best moment of the week was my meeting with Albert Einstein’s sculpture which had a lot of meanings for me.

Lâimage contient peut-ÃªtreÂ : Yassine Aourid, arbre, plein air et nature

The Cold Dead Eyes of George

AdminSeptember 6, 2018

By angusmack101

The first week of classes is always a strange one, and ‘syllabus week’ at GW was more-or-less in line with what I’m used to in Australia. Hour-long syllabus readings are pointless at home and I can confidently say they’re equally dry here. Not that I dislike my subjects—I’d just like to get into learning about them. What’s been more interesting to me this week is the design of the classes themselves. In Melbourne it’s not uncommon to have lectures of 500 people with a single professor, so the relatively small classes at GW are quite a departure. We have tutorials, but the close relationship between students and faculty makes it a little less futile here.

The rest of the week has been a little more eventful. The Greek dance-off at the Marvin Center was hilarious. Probably funnier than Hasan Minhaj to be honest. I went to his show on Saturday night with high expectations—having a comic fill a stadium in Australia is almost unheard of, and props to him for doing it here, but I couldn't help feeling that we were getting less comedy and more lecture. Refugees are good, Donald is bad. Cue applause.

danceoff - image 1

Can’t raise the roof if you’re already on it

Probably my favorite talking point of this week has been the GW mascot. The university culture here is amazing, but I challenge anyone to look at George and not be haunted by that gaze. I’m honestly not sure whether to be inspired or threatened. At least we can take consolation in the fact that he doesn't talk. A 7-foot black-eyed founding father is scary enough without him barking the 'fight song'at us. Bring back the lovable hippo—that’s a mascot I can get behind.

george - image 2

Staring into your manifest destiny

My second week in DC

AdminSeptember 6, 2018

By yassineaourid

This week was very exciting. I started classes and I had the privilege of hanging out with a member of my family in Washington, DC. My cousin traveled from New York to DC just to see me since she was on vacation. I was so happy to see her here in a completely different environment from Morocco. We got to visit new places, activities, and delicious food.

My cousin Salma was staying at a hotel only ten minutes away from my dorm. Our first day together, we had dinner at a burger restaurant called Shake Shack. It was delicious, especially their well-known cheese fries. Later that night, we walked around and sat by the fountain at the U.S. Navy Memorial Plaza. On the second day, we went to Georgetown and I was a tour guide this time as we navigated around the clothing stores and restaurants. Salma and I had Thai food for the first time near the Watergate Hotel.

Our first day of classes will always be remembered by a crazy fire alarm “May I have your attention, please. There is a fire emergency reported in the building. Please exit the building by the nearest exit. Do not use the elevator.” That was how I started my first day of class at George Washington University. We had to stand on the street so that the firefighters can enter the building. The police officers monitored the residents outside. I posted a video on my social media and people thought I was at a movie filming. The alarm started at around 4 am in the morning, so I was very tired that day.

Classes at GWU were exactly as I expected. This semester I am taking psychology, software design, stress management, golf, yoga, and cycling. I am very thrilled about my classes because they are allowing me to try new interests. I was so surprised to see my classmates which are all diverse. The professors are nice, knowledgeable, and willing to help as much as they can. The first class I went to was cycling, unfortunately, it was not outdoor cycling, but I still enjoyed getting my cardiovascular workout. The next class I had was Software Design, I was amazed by the engineering students’ high level of experience and knowledge. I also had a psychology class that I consider my favorite because of the interesting material. My golf and yoga classes are fun as well because I have never tried either of them. The stress management class is helping me learn relaxation techniques and controlling levels of stress.

On Salma’s final days in DC, we had coffee in Dupont Circle and last but not least we visited the Smithsonian National Park/Zoo. We got to see all types of animals such as elephants, pandas, lions, reptiles, and much more. I was surprised by the amount of interest people have on pandas here. I had a lot of fun exploring with my cousin Salma, it was a highlight of my week to have her here with me in Washington, DC.

My first week in Foggy Bottom

AdminSeptember 5, 2018

By yassineaourid

When I woke up after my first night in Foggy Bottom, and I found myself on E Street in DC I wasn’t believing myself…

It was my first week at GWU! This week has been very intense in term of activities and emotions. (FACT: According to my cell phone, I walked 13 miles every day and I burned 1500 calories daily). I will try to cover every aspect of this week in this post.

The first thing that got my attention this week was the international students. International students in GWU are such a great resource. In less than a week, I got some basic notions in Chinese, learned some cultural facts about Argentina, understood the relationship between Australia and New Zealand. I spoke German, Spanish, French, Arabic. It is very diverse and doing this exchange in Washington, DC is a kind of exchange in the world.

We visited some important monuments of the capital. We went to the capitol, that big white breast where all the American laws are voted. During the presentation, I felt some strong emotions for the particularity of the United States and its history. It was fascinating to learn about how all the states merged and even going through civil wars and other obstacles, the nation ended up to be one.

Another important event this week was my birthday. Who ever thought that I would turn 20 on a rooftop in Washington DC looking at the Washington Monument and the US Department of State? Being in DC for my 20^th birthday was the best gift I could have had. When I went to the Philips Hall for the ExO Leaders’ presentation, all the international student wished me happy birthday and I thank every one of them for that great moment.

I went to Georgetown, an amazing neighborhood in DC that reminds me of Europe. The M Street is amazing. It has so many stores that are connected to each other. I felt that everyone knows everyone. It is such a great place for a walk on a Sunday.

We went to the baseball game and it was so interesting to discover a new side of the American culture. In fact, when we got to the stadium, the focus wasn’t only on the game but the atmosphere surrounding it was astonishing. People were eating, laughing, drinking and it was so great to see plenty of people having fun. Of course, I don’t understand baseball’s rules, but still, I had a very good time.

Fun fact of the week: I saw the vice-president of the USA on "The Beast"; He was just in my street.

Ultimately, this week has been fun and very rich and the credits go the amazing Exchange Orientation Leaders who did such an amazing job and the ISO!

Spoons Week

AdminAugust 30, 2018

By angusmack101

I've lived in Australia all my life. Even having moved around quite a lot, I'm used to things having a reliable price-range that I can work around and a stable ratio between one item and another. With the exception of seasonal fruits and cryptocurrencies, things generally retain a relative value.

Cue American pricing. High school econ taught me that consumers are supposed to actively choose, but the reality of it has been drastically different for me since I got here. That relative value I've been relying on just doesn't seem to apply here. I set myself up with a spare week in New York prior to orientation at GW, and was shocked to find that things just didn't line up at all—a food cart avocado can be $1, with the cheapest tortilla chips costing $4. I had no idea I was coming to a country where I can load up on guac but have to be stingy with the chips.

platter - image 1

I got this platter for $5 in New York―one block from where CVS charges $3 for a pint of milk

Australian supermarkets vary in price, but this is on another level. People will literally charge you double what the store down the road is charging like it’s nothing. If we had that, there'd be a city-wide run on one chain until the other had closed down or conceded to within ~10% of the competitors' price—and they'd have to beat them on something else to stay in business. It was this variance that led most of us to Walmart; a decision I’m still on the fence about.

Having been to big-box stores throughout Australia I thought I knew what to expect, but their designers’ ability to construct lanes a half-inch wider than their trolleys is a piece of cost-cutting design that still makes me shiver. It didn’t help that we went a few days before start of semester, so basically every essential homewares item was sold out—culminating in some questionable communal cutlery calls.

Spoon to bowl - image 2

Something needs to be done about the spoon-to-bowl ratio

Putting that aside, O week has been extremely positive. The ExO leaders and the exchange staff each had useful stuff to bring to the table, so I didn’t resent the daily meetings. Gotta say we probably didn’t need an hour-long summary of every food option on campus though, particularly when the conclusion was “people like different food”.

Presentations and orientation are a necessary evil, and I’m glad we had an organised group to run it. The painful parts weren’t the fault of GW; The guy serving me at BOA definitely had a sly grin as he signed me up. The best parts were also particularly notable. This is a spectacularly aesthetic city; it seems like any picture taken on the mall comes out great by default.

loyal to GW - image 3

O week presentations are the gift that keeps on giving

Here’s to Syllabus week...

GWU, here I come!

AdminAugust 17, 2018

By yassineaourid

Once I received my DS 2019 form, carried in a beautiful blue folder with the majestic name of the university on it, I knew my journey began. A beautiful journey that every student would have dreamed of. I’m looking forward to keeping you updated on the adventures I’ll be living. So let’s get started, I think it’s time for you to get to know to me, my background, my thoughts, and to understand how much this means to me.

My name’s Yassine and I am that guy who fell in love with American culture in his childhood. In fact, the American movie industry, as well as the achievements of young Americans today, inculcated notions of the so-called “American Dream” within me.

Before getting to this, I was a simple kid born in Rabat, capital of Morocco- the most beautiful country in Africa famous for its cultural diversity, its colors, its beaches, old cities and its Californian weather. Since I was a kid, I never liked reading books. Instead, I was looking at the images which made more sense to me than black characters on white paper. Looking at images enhanced my observation skills and significantly improved my critical thinking. I also have played piano since I was 5. Although I was a Moroccan kid, I had a French education in the popular “Lycée Descartes”, a very symbolic French high school in Morocco.

Moving to the college that follows the American system in Morocco, Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, choosing Computer Science as a major, hoping to create the next social network or something like that, boosted my desire to go to the US.

Okay, I guess you know who I am now. So I’m going on a journey, unfortunately, one limited to one semester but still, have you heard any student from a different university than GW saying “I live three blocks from the White House”? No, I don’t think so. I’m expected to discover every aspect of the American culture, making friends from all over the world, roadtripin’, partying, studying, EATING!! Isn’t that a great motivation to come study here?

I believe that I have so much to learn from this great adventure that I will be living. Opportunities like this one are very rare and I’m looking forward to sharing my experience with you!

Stay tuned.

Being touristy in DC

AdminNovember 7, 2017

By sarajebbar

It has been more than two months that I’ve been in DC and I still feel like I didn’t visit all the parts of the city. Two months without visiting any museum made realize that I need to discover more places in Washington DC.

I started my week by going to the Embassy row trick or treat in Halloween. It’s one of the things that you can only do in DC, so I went for it. I really liked how each Embassy welcomed us with candies and got to present its country. I also enjoyed stacking a huge amount of candies that I still have now by the end of the week. If you’re in DC in Halloween, make sure to walk through the Embassy Row.

I also decided to finally visit some museums in the city. I started by visiting The National Museum of Natural History and it was really interesting. It got a diverse human, animals, and rocks collections. It showed different species of mammals, ocean creatures, insects and historical bones. It also exhibited the history of the human evolution and human origins. So, if you’re curious about the natural world and its discoveries, the National Museum of Natural History will be the best for you. I also visited the National Gallery of Art. Even if I don’t understand much about art, I would say that the pieces of art in the gallery were really beautiful. From paintings to sculptures, everything was so sophisticated and really beautiful. They represented the art in different centuries from different countries and artists. After visiting these two museums, I made a list of all the museums I want to visit before the semester ends (hopefully).

In addition to that, I visited the United Sates Botanic Garden. Basically, it’s a plants’ museum where you can find different species of plants. I really enjoyed walking through all the types of plants and get to know more of them. It also felt like a tropical jungle so it was nice to be there and forget the city’s cold weather that day. I also took the opportunity this weekend to ride a bike around the city. I really love the foliage of Washington DC’s and its colors during the Fall season. I really appreciate how good it was to visit the city in that beautiful scenery.

And the best way to finish this week was definitely attending the concert of Imagine Dragons in Capital One Arena. I feel really lucky to be in a city where there are many concerts happening. After Katy Perry, Pitbull and Enrique Iglesias, I had to experience more of US concerts. It’s true that the tickets are really expensive but the cheapest way to get them is waiting until the last minute. That concert gave me chills in many songs and hearing Imagine Dragon performing live was the best thing that happened to me this week.

IG: @sarajebbar

Fall break adventures

AdminOctober 13, 2017

By sarajebbar

Fall Break is coming! Whoaaa! As students, breaks are always the best thing that can happen in school. But before talking about Fall Break adventures, I would like to talk about my recent activities and discoveries in Washington DC. The highlight of my week here in DC is going to Pitbull and Enrique Iglesias' concert. In Morocco, we don’t usually have such big concerts with famous stars. So, I have always dreamt of going to a big concert like the ones in America. But having my two favorite male singers in one concert was the perfect realization of my dream. The tickets were expensive, but it was so worth it. The concert was insane and I’m so grateful for being here and having the chance to see them singing live.

As you may know, midterms are coming. And since I’m so lazy to start studying, I figured out that I need an extra motivation to do so. There was no better place than the Library of Congress. As GWU students, we can register easily and for free to get a library card and have access to the library facilities. Finally, it was a good decision to come here. The library is so beautiful from the inside and it has a very sophisticated style. It is true that the fascinating architecture distracted me from time to time, but it’s such a nice place to study in while keeping playing the tourist.

Even the 2 midterms that I have right after the Fall Break wouldn’t stop me to have a nice vacation. The destination for this break was Florida. I spent two days in Orlando and two days in Miami. If you go to Orlando, you’re probably going there for the amusement parks. The main ones are Walt Disney World and Universals Studios. We chose 2 parks in one day option in Universal since we wanted more thrill rides and to visit the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. I’d say that this day was the one in which I had the most fun in the US. It was a really unique experience that you can only get in Orlando. That was one item checked off from my world bucket list.

We ended our trip in Miami. I rented a bed in a hostel in front of the beach. The location was amazing for such a cheap price. I fell in love with that city. The weather is warm and nice and the beaches are beautiful. In general, the city has a chill and vacation vibe. It also has a vibrant nightlife. Once the sky starts to darken, you can hear music everywhere in the streets. Miami reminded me a lot of my hometown Agadir, which is actually located right across the ocean. And since I lived almost all my life in a coast city, going to the beach for Fall Break was the best way to relax and forget about studies. As an exchange student, I feel like studies are not the number one priority but after this, I believe it’s time for me to settle down for a while and start working for my midterms. Stay Tuned!

IG: @Sarajebbar

Fall Break

AdminOctober 13, 2017

By evavilloslada

The Fall Break has been simply awesome. In a short period of time I have done so many things I don't know even how to start. Me and four other friends decided to go to Florida, but not only to one place, we wanted to go to Miami and Orlando, so that's what we did.

We started in Orlando, everyone knows that the outlets there are amazing and who does not love shopping? I completely do, so we spent the first day shopping. The outlet was huge, you would need more than a day if you want to go inside every shop, and there were so many sales that the temptation to buy was really big, at least for me and my friends. I bought five pairs of shoes, and I didn't spend that much. In Spain, brands such as Nike and Adidas are very expensive, but in Orlando I bought a pair of Adidas for 25 dollars when in Spain they cost 80 euros. You can imagine how happy I was that I had found such a bargain.

Other thing everyone know that you have to do if you visit Orlando is going to one of the parks. I am a fan of Harry Potter, so I didn't have to think about which park we should go, I chose both that have The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Island of Adventure, and Universal Studios of Florida. It was quite expensive, 175 dollars for both parks, but as I said, I'm crazy about Harry Potter so I didn't really mind paying that much. We were kind of scared because it was supposed to rain during the whole fall break, but we were lucky and it only rained when we were finishing the Park, so we could do most of the things we wanted to.

Although both parks were amazing, the main attraction was The Wizarding World. They had all the places from the movies there, from the Diagon Alley to Hogsmeade and Hogwarts, and everyone was wearing shirts and clothes from Harry Potter. There were many rides and restaurants to eat, everything imitating the films. My favorite ride was the one inside of the castle, it was like you were playing a Quidditch game, and the 3D was amazing. It was like if you were really there. Even the waiting was good because while you waited you were walking inside the castle. The other thing I loved was that you could take the Hogwarts Express from one park to the other, and it was identical even in the inside. Clearly if you like Harry Potter this is your place. If you don't like it you would also have a great time. Two of my friend haven't seen the movies, and they loved it, so I think you should go either way.

It has much more things to do than the Wizarding World, two amazing roller coasters for example, water rides, 3D rides, Springfield, etc. The other ride I loved was the Jimmy Fallon Show one, it was like if you were racing through New York in a Ferrari and it really felt like it. I was in New York last weekend, and I can say that it felt really close to being actually there, it was really impressive.

We finished our Sunday going to Disney Springs to walk around and have dinner, there were many restaurants there and it was beautiful to see it at night. Unfortunately we were so tired we didn't go downtown, I have heard it is really nice but we didn't have enough time to see it.

Monday morning we took a bus to Miami. We had the apartment in Ocean Drive, just in front of the beach, so we walked around and took some pictures at the beach. Then we went to one of my favorite places there, Wynwood Walls. The whole neighborhood has painted walls, and the place where the famous ones are is amazing. I really loved the art, some painted walls were really special and they change some of them during the year. There are only few ones that always stay there.

We also went to Bayside where we took a cruise to see everything, I loved it, you could see all Miami and the islands from the boat, and the views at night were stunning. They even showed us the millionaires' houses and a few yachts, it really makes you feel jealous, at the end of the day everyone wants to be rich. The tour lasted one hour and a half and it cost 25 dollars, which I think is worth it, although it would be better if it was free.

Our last day was sunny, so we spent it chilling on the beach and enjoying the sun. The beach in Miami is a really good one, and there weren't many people because it was Tuesday morning, so it was really nice. Then we finished our trip walking down Lincoln Road and visiting some souvenirs shops there.

I really loved Florida and I am planning on coming back, even if we visited many things, four days is not enough to see everything. The good thing is now I have an excuse to go back.