Students Gone Global

Clare went cage diving with great white sharks in Gansbaai, South Africa which is known for its dense population of great whites. Who else has this on their travel bucket list?!

… Finally, after we were all given large orange jackets it was time to set off on our boat! At first it was very refreshing, the wind and drizzling rain were a bit chilly, but breeze felt nice and refreshing after such a slow sleepy morning. We had traveled about 5 kilometers from the shore when we stopped, and I immediately began to feel seasick. Due to the rain, the water was relatively choppy, and my full stomach was NOT pleased. I went to the upper deck with Miranda to take in the scenery (aka: look at the horizon and try not to puke) and we stood up there for a few minutes trying to calm my stomach.

Our guide below announced that it was time to handout wetsuits, so we clambered back down the ladder to the lower deck, Miranda cursing each time a seagull got to close to her. The wetsuits were already wet from the tour that had gone out earlier that morning, which made putting them on an epic battle. I wrestled to get my legs in and the suit over my butt for a good 10 minutes  Even with Miranda pulling and trying to help it was a battle! Soon, we were suited up, panting due to the extreme effort it took!

The group of Australians went into the cage first, and Miranda and I sat on deck to watch….

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How have you changed while abroad?

Being abroad has helped me figure out who I am and to think about issues from a broader perspective. I grew up in a well-to-do town outside of Boston, MA. My life was very self-centered, and my parents helped me in many ways so that I could focus on learning. When I started university, I came to realize how sheltered my life had been. This year was about changing that.

Growing up in America, I never understood politics. I actually avoided any discussion of them although it is the favorite topic for my dad. Especially with Europeans, politics has become the subject of many conversations. It has made me question if the two party system even works – a level above whether the democrats or the republicans are right. An issue doesn’t only have 2 sides and shades of grey in between, but can even be multi-dimensional. I rarely followed the news and felt really ignorant when for example, the Italians were talking about the Pope stepping down and I didn’t know. In the States, we might even have an image that we are the best nation in the world or close to perfect, but now I know that is far from true.

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Are you planning to fly with the budget airline RyanAir for your travels around Europe? For first-timers, the process may be tricky or confusing. Check out these tips for flying smoothly:

Making a Reservation

• Be flexible. Flights are usually cheaper if you plan ahead, although occasionally fares will be cheaper if you purchase them a few days in advance.
• Check the airport name and location carefully. Sometimes you will be given a nearby airport instead that is close to the major city you want (example: the Girona airport instead of Barcelona El Prat). Although the flight may be cheaper than with another airline, you are looking at extra time, money, and effort spent to get to your real destination.
• If you are not checking in a bag, select “0 checked bags”. To give you an idea of how much it costs to check in a bag: from January to the end of May (low season), one checked bag up to 15kg costs €15 during initial booking, €20 when added through Manage My Booking, and €60 if added at the airport – this fee is per bag per one way flight.

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There’s a lot you can learn about a culture from their language, and Danish is no exception. If you’re attempting to learn Danish (and I don’t even know if it’s worth it unless you plan to live here for a while), or even any language, you might try to learn the basic needs first- ‘hello’ ‘Goodbye’ ‘I am lost’ ‘I don’t speak Danish’ ‘Where is the bathroom?’ ‘Please’ ‘Thank you’ and ‘Excuse me.’ Danish doesn’t include ‘Please’ or ‘Excuse me.’ If you run into someone while walking, you don’t say anything. There is the option of saying ‘Undskyld’ (Un-skill) but that means ‘I’m sorry’ with the connotations of ‘I am sorry from the very depths of my heart’ and so isn’t really useful. You can use it, but so far the only time I’ve heard a Dane say this is when their small child hit me with a toy.

So when you’re in public, you don’t talk. You don’t make eye contact. You act as if you are in an impenetrable personal bubble and everyone else is a ghost. Even when body-slammed by someone on the street, they just grunt and walk away. 

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Walking around town is one of the best ways to familiarize yourself with the layout and culture. However, do NOT be plugged in to your iPod while you do this! When you do this, you don’t see and feel the city you’re in as it is meant to be seen and felt…

Walking is by far the most gratifying modes of transportation there is in my Spanish city. Now that the weather does not blast me with freezing air (freezing is relative, I realize. I’m a spoiled California girl), I can truly enjoy a nice “turn” about the neighborhood without complaining about the cold.

I’ve been able to see things to which I was blind when I was fighting the below-freezing weather. There’s that gorgeous Gaudí building just a few blocks away from my apartment. There’s the beautiful view from el Templo de Debod that overlooks a part of the city.

One of my grand pet peeves is seeing young foreigners walking around plugged into their iPods, drowning out the sounds of the city. If this is how they always walk through Madrid, they will not understand much about the musicality of the town…

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The saying goes something like music speaks where words fail, right? Right.

It does.

And what’s cool is that you can condition yourself to have certain songs remind you of certain moments in your life. I think a crucial part of studying abroad is listening to new music. New music will allow you to remember the feelings that you are otherwise likely to forget.

Today, I finally made my 35 track playlist from my semester abroad. I quickly learned that it varies from songs that I already knew that we sang obnoxiously to the songs I listened to doing homework (and on all of the miserable coach rides) to all of the songs that were popular in the clubs. So now, lovely readers, I have composed a list of the select tracks that I think anyone studying abroad would enjoy.

1) Anything Could Happen – Ellie Goulding The title says it all. This song is superb for getting pumped up at all of the new opportunities that come with being abroad. I have no idea what the song is actually trying to say, but the chorus certainly encourages the limitless possibilities that comes with leaving your comfort zone. This is the song that kicked off my semester abroad. I cannot tell you how many times I listened to it the weeks before I left and on the flight to England.

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via USA Today / Smarter Travel:

The process of obtaining, renewing, or updating a passport is exactly what one would expect when working with a government agency: tedious, mind-numbing, and overly complex. While you’ll find everything you need to know about the often befuddling process on the U.S. State Department website, we’ve made things a little simpler for you by breaking down the basics—from forms to fees to IDs—and providing helpful links to the appropriate forms and websites.

Getting your first passport

To get your first passport, you’ll have to show up in person. Make an appointment at an acceptance facility or passport agency; search for the one closest to you here. You likely live near a facility where you can get a passport. Many post offices and even some public libraries can accept passport applications. Arrive at your passport agency with:

• Your filled-in DS-11 application form.
• Evidence of U.S. citizenship. Find a list of acceptable documents here.
• Valid identification. Find a list of acceptable ID here.
• A photocopy of the front and back of the identification you’re bringing on clean, white 8½” x 11” paper.
• Your application fee. For a first-time adult passport, the total fee is $135.
• Passport photos. You can read more about the specifications for passport photos here. But most major drug stores, such as Walgreens or CVS, will sell appropriately sized passport photos that comply with government standards; this makes things a little easier.

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