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Below you'll find just a sample of our student's comments from past study abroad adventures. What will happen during your first week?
Female, age 28, Barcelona, Spain
"Well, it is my fifth day in Barcelona, and I am feeling more at home by
the day. I started school on Monday. There are six students in my class.
We spend two hours each morning studying grammar and then two hours in
conversation class. The last class of each day is a cultural class. This
week's unit of study is La Musica. Basically, we study the different
types of music in Spain and then sing a song in that music genre. I
know, it sounds cheesy. It is, but it is actually so much fun! My
favorite song so far is La Reina de Pop (The Queen of Pop)."
Female, age 24, Rome, Italy
"After class I went to lunch with the other classmates. We had lots of
fun and I think were all going to be good friends. Then we went to see
the monument to Victorio Emuula... then to the fountains. Let me just
say wow. I will post pictures at the end of week. It was just more than
words can say."
Female, age 26, Barcelona, Spain
"I have made a bunch of new friends over the last couple of days and
have been spending time with them after classes. Yesterday, I went with
a girl from my class to Barcelonita (an area near the port) and had
AMAZING seafood paella. It was definitely the best meal I have had since
I got here. I'm sure the pitcher of Sangria we had made it even
better...ha!"
Female, age 31, Oaxaca, Mexico
"A typical day starts with breakfast at 8am, fresh juice, fresh fruit
and some sort of eggs, tortillas, etc. After breakfast I walk to school
about twenty minutes. I have class from 9am to 1pm. Then I am on my own,
usually check email, study and take a nap. I have dinner around 7pm, it
is typical Mexican food. It has all been good, but I am looking forward
to sushi when I get home!"
Male, age 29, Shanghai, China
"The teachers are very skilled and apply a great deal of knowledge. The stay has been wonderful and educational..."
Female, age 25, Guanajuato, Mexico
"Moved into my homestay yesterday. The casa is so cute and so is my hots
mom. I have a lot in common with her and spent all day at the beach
getting to know each other. We enjoyed an extremely potent margarita and
hit the flee markets to find her a beach bag. I had a wonderful time
seeing the sights. After a long day of sunning and shopping, we went
home and had dinner. She makes wonderful chicken salad, has lots of
fresh produce, Los frijoles esta muy delicioso."
Female, age 25, Barcelona, Spain
"Other than the lack of sleep (and I can't complain - I am having so much
fun), everything is going well. My classes are great, my Spanish is
improving, and I am very relaxed and happy. I have learned my way around
Barcelona and don't get lost too much now."
Female, age 21, Quito, Ecuador
"Ecuador is AMAZING! Its so different from the states, but absolutely
beautiful. The first day I was here I met my family at the airport went
back to their house and unloaded my stuff - then joined the mother of
the house and her daughter (who is my moms age) at the grocery store.
They are so nice and inviting. The grocery store was really similar to
one that we have in the US except soooo much cheaper. Some wierd
stuff... they dont have cold milk and they have little kids packing up
grocery bags that have to be only 7 or 8. I love it that there are
thousands of fruits, stuff I havent even ever heard of (and that for
liqour its cheap as water - earmuffs mom!) A couple other different
things, in my house there are two sisters and a brother all my parents
age plus their mom who all live together. Dinner was delicious, the mom
here makes everything fresh from the soup to the juice, and the bread is
really flaky and tasty. Can't wait for classes to start tomorrow. Hasta
Luego!"
Female, age 20, Quito, Ecuador
"Guess it's a good thing when you're having so much fun you don't have
time to get on the computer! Today breakfast was so great! Fresh fruit,
and when I say fresh I mean it doesn't come close to anything we have
back home (papya for this morning), fresh squeezed juice, flakey fresh
bread (pan) and cafe (they have cafe with EVERY meal - I love this
country). I went to school for the first time, we studied ser and estar,
some vocab and numbers. I am realizing that even though I have been
taking Spanish since 7th grade I really haven't learned anything...
great. My family loved the presents I brought them, especially the
yankee candle holder with the us flag colors on it. I brought debrands
chocolates but they melted on the plane!"
Female, age 42, Playa del Carmen, Mexico
"It is now Sunday... the time flies by and at the same time it stands
still. There is a joke amongst students (and teachers), we call it
Mexico time. You just do not fret about the time, the checklist, or the
schedule, you just relax and enjoy the moment. So you or your friends
are a little late, estar tranquilo es mejor. Today and yesterday were
both great days."
Female, age 28, Flamingo, Costa Rica
"Well, my plane landed safely in San Jose on Saturday. I stayed at the
cutest little bed & breakfast and had my very first cup of Costa Rican
coffee! The coffee is so good here that I can drink it black! The next
day I jumped on a bus with my fellow classmates and we took a BONITA
(beautiful) 6 hour drive into Flamingo. The country side is sooooooo
pretty. Everything is green and gorgeous! I met my host family Sunday
night and at first it was pretty difficult. I barely speak Spanish and
my host papa only speaks a little English but we make it work. The mama
tica is really sweet and they have adorable twin boys. Yesterday I saw
the Pacific ocean for the first time in my life! We hung out on a
beautiful black sandy beach. A group of us tried to kayak but the waves
coming into the coast were too big. Instead we swam in the ocean, ate
fresh friut and drank muy cervesa!"
Female, age 31, Oaxaca, Mexico
"Hola amigas! I have been busy learning Spanish and have added some
volunteer work! On Wednesday and Fridays afternoons I, along with a few
other students and a teacher from school, go out to a small village near
Oaxaca. There we are helping the artisans, primarily rug weavers learn
English phrases. They are learning these phrases to help them sell their
wares to the tourists. They are a fun bunch of women, although there
have been a couple of men that show up! It is nice to be back in the
teacher role and hearing them speak Spanish has been good for
me!"
Female, age 28, Munich, Germany
"The program is full of people from all over Europe, and of course I
managed to meet 2 Russians on my first day. In fact, there's a Russian
student in my class. Anyway, later that day a bunch of us - my roommate
Eva, Ania, Macek, and Tomek from Poland, Philip from Czech Republic, a
guy from France and a guy from Belgium (can't remember names) went to
see "Mambo Italiano" - in German! I think the foreign language made the
movie more fun. To top the great day off we went to a pub after the
movie and sat there and chatted until all we could say were strange
phrases made up of Polish, Russian and Czech words."
Male, age 23, Berlin, Germany
"In the evening I met up with some classmates and we went to... guess
where... a beer garden... what a surprise! Anyway, this new place called
Park cafe was pretty neat and we even got to see a fire-eater."
Female, age 20, Berlin, Germany
"I went out with a member of my German family. We had the most
awesome time together, as one would here say Super! or Toll! I learned
more new words with her than I usually do in school and she enlightened
me on the intricacies of German teenage culture. We went to an open-air
movie theatre, and although they were showing Casablanca, we still
enjoyed ourselves immensely. It was really neat to sit under the stars,
watch a movie, and chat. Some people around us were picnicking - with
wine, beer, food, etc. - so it was a lot of fun, and I got to practice
my German a lot!"
Male, age 34, Porto, Portugal
"Today my teacher, Angela, brought some CDs of a famous Portuguese
fado artist, Amalia. She is known here as The soul of the Fado. We
listened to several songs and read the lyrics. They are sad ballads
about lost love, grief and death, accompanied by the Portuguese
guitar... Yesterday we toured the Ribeira in an old electric trolley car
from the early 1900's. They are beautifully made, with wood interiors,
in very good condition. The history of the wine commerce here in Porto
is very interesting. Many inventions are related to it, such as the
development of banks, bottles, checks, drinking glasses. Today the
students and teachers are going out for lunch together. Should be fun!
Adeus!"
Male, age 24, Cochabamba, Bolivia
"One of the students I made friends with has family here. On Saturday
he invited the other students up to his aunt's house. His aunt's house
was amazing! It had a pool, tiki hut, bbq pit, and a basketball/tennis
court, and lots of extra land. Plus the view of the city was gorgeous,
especially at night. The stars here are soo beautiful and bright because
there aren't many lights to block there illumination. So we chilled at
the house, played some cards, and ate dinner. The next morning I awoke
early and accompanied my host mom and 2 of my host sisters to a market
to buy foods. I learned alot of different foods. When I returned some
classmates and I went to the Christ statute. We took the cable cars up
to the top. The view was AMAZING!!"
Female, age 28, Biarritz, France
"I usually arrive home from my afternoon outing at about 7:30pm just enought time to shower, and share an evening drink with homestay - I have tasted some odd drinks! Dinner is at 8pm with the family - one of my favorite times, not to mention the best for my French. We eat slowly, and enjoy good conversation for about one to two hours and sometimes more. We eat like kings... Dinner usually begins with slices of thin meat (salami etc) or vegetables for an apetizer. Next we move to the main course followed by salad, then cheese and bread. We end with a gateau (cake/pie)."
Male, age 34, Cochabamba, Bolivia
"Sunday I went to the local church mass service...it's kinda hard
finding a Protestant church here. This weekend my neighborhood
celebrated its anniversary of I think 36 or 37 years. After church i
went with my host sisters to the community center. There were futbol
(soccer) and basketball games. My host dad plays on the men's club team,
he is the captain, and my 2 oldest host sisters play also. I watched
there games, but unfortunately they both lost. Most of the neighborhood
came out and there was food also. Lots of fun. At 2, went with the other
students and some of the other neighborhood people I know to play
volleyball."
Male, age 27, Berlin, Germany
"Got to hear a lot of good, free Jazz today! It turns out my housemate
is an aspiring Jazz musician, so this afternoon I came home to hear him
practice his saxophone and piano. It was pretty cool - he is amazing at
improvisation."
Male, age 22, Okazaki, Japan
"On Sunday I went to Nagoya again with some other classmates. We went to
Osu Kannon temple, for the god of mercy Kannon. We threw our coins in
the box, rang the gong three times and made a wish. Around the temple
there is a street mall, we went to one of those infamous Japanese
electronic stores, Britta bought an electric dictionary and I bought
some cool head phones. Then we went to Nagoya Castle and then to a book
store near Nagoya station. The stations here are like malls, and you can
buy anything from fried potatoe (french fries) to a car!, and even
though the city seems huge above ground it's massive when you realize
that half of it is underground."
Male, age 34, Madrid, Spain
"I love that I can walk everywhere here -I can enjoy the beautiful
weather, see all the neighborhoods, and actually get a workout as I
walk."
Male, age 28, Madrid, Spain
"Well I arrived in the city and am amazed at how busy the place is.
There are people from all over here, and a lot of young adults like
myself. On the plane alone I met 3 others here to study Spanish. I hope
we all do."
Male, age 23, Antigua, Guatemala
"Classes are good, but very different than university. So far we have
spent a lot of time just talking. It's slow because I must speak in
Spanish. We start at 8:00 de la manana and break at 10:00 then resume at
10:30 until media dia (noon). Anyway we've discussed religion, film,
family, museums, my plans in Guatemala, etc. So far we're working on my
mastery of verbs. "Es muy dificil"
Female, age 45, Tamarindo, Costa Rica
"Today my friends and I went surfing in Playa Tamarindo. It was a great
experience! The beaches are beautiful here. The water is so clear. My
Spanish classes are going along well. My host family is wonderful...very
good cooks. They have a three year old daughter, Ariana, who is trying
to teach me spanish, also! I walk along the beach each day to go to
school. Tomorrow we are going snorkeling and kayaking. Friday I am going
scuba diving with another student and this weekend we are going on a
trip to a rainforest."
Male, age 27, Tamarindo, Costa Rica
"Today we will go on a canopy tour where you wear a harness and clip
onto a zipline and go through the rainforest!! I will let you know how
it goes! The food here is sooo good, especially the restaurants on the
beaches. Well, we are off for lunch! Hasta luego!"
Male, age 32, Flamingo, Costa Rica
"I just had fresh tuna on the grill. Esta muy bueno! Anyway...I went
kayaking and snorkeling today. That is one of the best experiences that
I've ever had. We saw tons of fish, manta rays etc. I'm getting over a
lot of fears that I had prior to this trip...one being going in deep
ocean water. Last night my homestay mother and I went to "ladies night"
at a bar on the beach. Esta muy loco! Everyone in town comes. I don't
know if I want to come home! I could definetely live here, or maybe just
visit a lot. Hasta luego!"
Male, age 25, Flamingo, Costa Rica
"This week I'm working hard to master the language of Spanish. I did
take a break from studying yesterday morning to go snorkeling. We saw an
eel and it's babies. Today we have a celebration at school. They are
celebrating the anniversary of Costa Rica's annexation. Should be very
interesting! I started volunteering at the local elementary. They are,
as expected, very different here. I did learn, however, that Costa Rica
has one of the highest literacy rates. The children enjoy English.
Ariana, the 3 yr old daughter of my homestay, loves when I teach her the
alphabet and the colors in English. She is constantly walking around my
room pointing at my things saying, "Que es eso?" It means "what is
this?"...I tell her what it is in English, and she tells me what it is
in spanish. Very amusing!"
Female, age 28, Monteverde, Costa
Rica
"This weekend some friends and I went hiking in the mountains, going to
the cloud forest, and practicing our Spanish with the locals! Tomorrow
we are going on a canopy tour. This tour allows us to repel waterfalls!
I hope to get some great pictures! I resume classes on Monday, and I
start volunteering at the elementary school. I am looking forward to a
more relaxed week. We went nonstop last week with activities. I hope to
snorkel and scuba dive again this week though. I have to memorize most
of the Spanish verbs by Monday, so we quizzed each other along the way.
Oh, I saw a sloth today! It moves so slow that there was moss growing on
it. Tonight we are going dancing at a discoteca! Adios!"
Female, age 23, Monteverde, Costa Rica
"Today we went to a place in Montevrde called Aventura Canopy Tour. Holy
cow! Words cannot describe the feeling in my stomach after this
experience. We were hooked on to several ziplines and flew through the
rainforest and cloud forest. I also repelled down trees and did a tarzan
swing! Breath taking views, and I think I lost my stomach somewhere in
the rainforest!"
Female, age 21, Heredia, Costa Rica
"My new homestay family is great. A father, mother, two daughters 8 and
22, and a grandma. They speak no english which is great for me because
it forces me to speak totally in spanish. My room is very large and has
a spectacular view of the city SaS Jose. Well I'm off to a restaurant
with a group of friends...adios."
Male, age 18, San Jose, Costa Rica
"I survived the rafting trip! It was a total of 19 miles long, we were
on the river for three hours. It was spectacular! To have the most
thrill possible, my friend and I volunteered to sit up in the very front
of the boat. Which, by the way, is the scariest seat! We got hit by the
rapids first! It was a pure adrenaline rush. The views were great...tons
of waterfalls and animals. They are actually peranas in this river! I
got a hold of a cheap water camera that eventually fell apart during the
middle of the rafting trip. I'm crossing my fingers that the film will
develop though. Tonight, when I got home my Tica family was having a
fiesta for my Tica mom's birthday. They really party!"
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