Monthly Archives: April 2012

Philippe Farm

Our CIEE residents and their group planned a community service trip to spend the day with the people of Philippe farms. We collected clothes from students at our Liesbeek Gardens residence and bought food to give to the residents at the farm. When we arrived at the farm the people were very appreciative of our efforts and were kind enough to share their story with us.

They work for the owners of the farm and receive 300 rand a month as pay. They then pay the owners about 150 Rand as rent to live on their land. A family is expected to live on 150 Rand a month (7.5 Rand = 1 USD). I alone spend about 250 Rand a week on groceries! Though they were appreciative of what we did for them, I still think about the people at the farm and how they would have to survive the rest of their months, years, and lives.

It is times like these when being here is a tough pill to swallow. I am not at any specific apple of culture shock, just feeling more human in a way. What inspired me most about the individuals at the farm was their willingness to share their lives with us and it is only right that their story is told.

Location: Cape Town, South Africa

Cutie Chewing Love

What comes to mind when you think about music in Japan? Of course there is western music galore here and within Japanese music you can find something in any genre. But I would like to think in terms of music born and raised in Japan, Candy Candy sums it up image I have perfectly.

This song is just one of many ways that Japan lives up to the hype. I wish I could say this is just something I stumbled upon and happen to like because I’m odd, but this is a real mainstream, number one hit single. You can learn more about the singer and false eyelash entrepreneur, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, on wiki, but first, press play.

Location: kuwana-shi, mie-ken, Japan

Hunter Valley (March 17, 2012)

Hunter Valley is known as one of the premier wine regions in Australia. Before leaving for Australia, I spent time researching possible trips I wanted to take during the semester. Hunter Valley seemed like the perfect place – a close location and lots of wine. I love planning trips, but knowing nothing about Hunter Valley, but seeing as Hunter Valley is about 6 hours by public transportation from Wollongong and the area is pretty hard to get around without a car, we decided to take a Colorful Trips tour leaving out of Sydney. Colorful Trips targets a younger market of travelers, meaning our tour was made up of twelve 20-somethings and not any snooty wine connoisseurs who actually sniff their wine and know what it’s supposed to smell like.

The drive from Sydney to Hunter Valley was 2 hours and very rainy. The rain had subsided once we arrived and the rolling hills of grapevines looked picturesque under a blanket of fog. Our first stop was Drayton’s Family Winery, one of the oldest in the area. In addition to the reds and whites, we tasted a couple port wines and chocolate liqueurs – all of which were a puckering sweet like nothing I’d ever tasted before. After our first tasting, we had a BBQ sausage lunch prepared by our tour guide Wazzo. The highlight of lunch was getting to try a taste of kangaroo meat. It was hard not too feel bad eating it, but it tasted just like steak.

Our next winery was McGuigan’s Wines. Here we sat on stools at a round table while our host went around and poured each wine and explained its flavor. Here you definitely felt like a classy wine connoisseur. The most interesting thing I learned about Australian wine is that a rose is not nearly as sweet as we would think it to be in the US. Another fun fact is that many of their sweet whites are variations of a moscato, a wine that is not commonly thought of as high-test in the US. All the wines we sampled were available for purchase and I hoped to buy a bottle to bring back as a present to my parents, but seeing as I was almost over the weight limit on both my suitcases I brought with me to Australia, I figured a bottle of wine might be too heavy – sorry mom and dad!

The other stops on our tour were the Hunter Valley shopping area, a collection of cute shops and candy stores, and the Blue Tongue Brewery. At the brewery, you had the option to sample beers, but we chose to forgo the $10 sampling fee and continue testing wines. While we were there, a bride was arriving for her wedding reception. Hunter Valley is apparently a popular place to get married – getting married at a vineyard seems like a fairytale to me! Before we left the valley for our two hours rainy drive home, we stopped at a scenic overlook to sample some strange cheeses.

Overall, the trip to Hunter Valley was a fun excursion and I would highly recommend it to those looking for a more laid back adventure. If I ever become a snooty wine connoisseur, I would love to go back to Hunter Valley on a sunny day and do more exploring in the area. Though next time, I’ll pass on the kangaroo meat.

Location: Hunter Valley, Australia

Easter in Croatia

I got to spend my long Easter weekend in one of the most unique places–Croatia. I say unique because not many people known anything about Croatia, let alone visit it. It lies in on the other side of the Adriatic Sea from Italy. We went to the town of Split which is located on what is called the Dalmatian Coast. We went with one of the tour groups, so we had to take a bus so it was a long bus ride, about 12 hours. The view as we drove in would have been beautiful, but it was very rainy. However, it soon cleared up. We went to the main market in Split. It had some typical things- clothes, sunglasses, jewelry, and food. It also had some unique things- baby chicks and duckies!! They were selling them for Easter. They were so cute! Then, we walked around to see the beach. It was a little too chilly to lay out, but we at least got to see it. We found a random little restaurant and I had a phenomenal chicken with some kind of cream sauce.

Saturday we attempted to walk around and see Split, but it was raining. We were tired anyways, so we decided to go back to our hostel and take a nap. Eventually, it stopped raining so we went back to the market. I have a weakness for jewelry, so I bought a pair of white coral earrings. That night, we went to Trogir, a little medieval town. We went to a nice restaurant for dinner. Croatia is big on seafood since it is on the coast, but I am generally not a seafood eater. We went home and went to bed early since we were going white water rafting the next day!

Sunday we celebrated Easter by white water rafting. On our busride there, the leader let us play a traditional Croatian Easter game. Everyone picks out a hard-boiled egg. Then, you go around and smack your egg on someone elses. Whoever has the strongest egg wins. We drove around some of the prettiest clifts and ocean areas I have ever seen. WE finally made it to the rafting site. They picked out wet suits for us- it was definitely a struggle getting them on. It was kinda hard to get the hang of the rowing movement at first, but it gets easier the longer you do it. Our leaders name was Marco, he was Croatian and has been a white water rafting instructor for four years. Rafting is a lot of fun, but a lot of hard work!! My arms were sore the next day, that’s for sure.

Monday, we departed for Florence but stopped at Krka National Park on the way home. It is a very famous national park and is often mention on things like “The Top 10 Things to See Before You Die.” And now, I know why. There are tons of wateralls there and they are beautiful!!

Overall, It was a relaxing trip. Croatia is definitely a cool place. I would love to go back especially when the weather is better.

Location: Split, Croatia

Missing Home!

I am sad that my last 3 weeks are here, it seems like yesterday I was arriving in Florence! It’s crazy to look back and realize how many friends I have made, the amazing places I have seen, and memories I have made. With that being said, I am in some ways ready to go home and am missing America. My roommates and I made a list of all the simple things we miss and some of the FIRST things we will do upon arrival in the US.

Obviously, everyone misses family, friends, and pets. I miss my little Chihuahua so much, and I see so many around Europe is makes me sad sometimes. I also can’t wait to be able to communicate with people without any problems. That is something you take for granted until you live in a country where you have to put SO much effort into something as simple as asking for a napkin.

A lot of the things we constantly talked about were related to food. What can we say, we are college kids so we love our food. I miss fountain pop and free refills of it! All throughout Italy and Europe in general, most restaurants hand you a can of diet coke and a cup. I am a firm believer in the difference between bottled, canned, and fountain pop. This means that if you want another diet coke, you’re going to have to drop another 3-4 euro. You may say, aren’t there McDonalds’ in all countries. Yes, there is. But even in McDonald’s you can’t get free refills. It’s a bummer for pop lovers. I am also going to love having Heinz ketchup at every restaurant- and for free. I am a Pittsburgh girl. With this being said, I find any other brand of ketchup unappealing. Most countries’ versions of ketchup are not even close. Even when you can find Heinz, most of the time you have to pay for each packet! This is not good for a ketchup lover. Also, Italian’s do not believe in “to go” cups in coffee shops. I was told by a coffee shop owner that if you ask for a to go cup, they instantly know you are American. I get that they have a relaxed mentality, but it always baffled us study abroad students that they apparently are never obligated to be anywhere on time. Speaking of coffee, my roommates always talk about how they miss real-sized coffees. I drank absolutely no coffee products before moving to Italy. Now, I am a cappuccino fanatic. We always talk about how we miss real service. I guess this could theoretically apply to other things besides food, but we always think of this when we are at restaurants. We have waited a half an hour to get a check before. And if you ask for separate checks, they will often roll their eyes at you. In America, they will often bring you your check and ask you whether you want it together or separate, without even asking. I also can’t wait to go to restaurants and not be worried about being charged for water and rolls. Finally, I miss…..peanut butter. They are really big into Nutella over here. Don’t get me wrong, Nutella is delicious but if you want to purchase peanut butter here there is usually only one kind at each store and a small tub is pretty expensive.

The last thing I cannot wait to do is go to Walmart. It is frustrating only having small family owned stores or smaller chain stores to shop for food. My favorite sauce is in one store, but I have to get my favorite cheese in another store. At least you know, you can go to Walmart and get everything you need in one visit and it is going to be the same price as most other places.

I love many things about Italy, but thinking of these simple things makes us eager to get home. Not necessarily because they are serious and important, but because it teaches us that even the simplest things can make a home, your home (:

Location: Florence, Italy

Exam time in Galway

Hello, friends, family, and fellow Geobloggers! When I left Galway for my Easter break Eurotrip, everyone was tanning outside in the gorgeous 70 degree weather. Now… not so much. It seems that was just a random week of fantastic sunshine. I’m back to drinking hot tea and enjoying the heater in my room. Just as well, I guess–it’s exam time at NUIG. I have two exams this Wednesday, Irish Mythology, Religion, and Folklore and Imagining Modern Ireland. Those are my only exams during the exam period (Irish Language was during the last week of classes and I only had essays for Irish Lit and Literary Theory). Then I only have one paper left to do–for my Castles class–due by the end of April. Then I can just relax and travel until I leave in mid-May!

I’ll be writing about my spring break trip soon, but I’ll probably break it up into a few entries so I can write about all my adventures. Preview: we went to Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany! I’m also studying, getting ready for Dan’s birthday on Thursday, and planning the rest of our international (and local) trips!

It’s starting to hit me that the semester is winding down. I’ve been thinking about the things I miss at home (namely, my family, Penn State, Target, the convenience of driving, Kraft mac & cheese, etc.) but I’m also beginning to think of what I’m going to miss about Galway…

Location: Galway, Ireland

How to survive out of a suitcase for 10 Days – Spring Break

Hello everyone! Sorry I’ve been absent for forever. All these experiences have made me lose track of time. It’s scary how fast the semester goes by while being abroad! So to make up for lost time, I decided to post several blogs about different topics I have found interesting here and might be useful.

The first is my experience on living out of a small vera bradley duffle-bag for ten days while on my Spring Break to Rome, the Amalfi Coast and Barcelona.

SO in the beginning, I was so excited ( Who wouldn’t be for Spring Break?). We had ten days off of school to enjoy traveling to new and exciting places, but then came the expenses. Obviously there was airfare, hostel/hotel fares, buses to and from places, taxi fares etc etc. My friends and I agreed that we wouldn’t check bags at the airport and just use a carry on for everything to make it easier on our money expenses and our traveling time. Here was my idea for packing going into this situation:
1. Pack the very basics..this includes a pair of jeans, black/colored jeans, and pajama pants/shorts etc.
2. Pack a couple tops that can inter-mix with the other to create a couple outfits (I brought a shawl or two with intermixing tops/tanktops)
3. Bring one/two going out outfits if you’re intending on being social at night
4. Remember the liquid measurement policy at the airport for your liquids (My friends and I learned this the hard way, believe me, I had to buy at least 2 hair gels because mine kept getting taken from me =( )

All in all this way of packing worked out nicely for me. I was able to survive for 10 days even though by the end I was hating all my clothes because I didn’t have my entire closet with me. In my opinion though, If i had to go back, I would have checked a larger suitcase. Even though the small duffle-bag ultimately worked out in my benefit, It would have been nicer to bring a couple more clothing options and live out of a larger more substantial suitcase.

Here are some pictures from Spring Break. It was a great time to see Rome, the Amalfi Coast, and Barcelona and be with all of my friends!

Location: Paris, France

Home from London.

I’m home from London and my study abroad experience is over. I originally thought it was bittersweet, because I missed my family and friends from home, but I’m starting to miss London more and more. I have no doubts in my mind that this was, hands down, the best experience of my life thus far. I made amazing friends, created memories that I’ll always cherish, exposed myself to new things and new people everyday, learned about other cultures, stepped outside my comfort zone, and began to understand the way the world works more than I ever had before. It’s so bizarre waking up in my own house in a small town in New Jersey, when I’ve been waking up in a busy city for the past four months. It’s absolutely insane how quickly time flew by, but I wouldn’t change a thing. To anyone still abroad or planning on studying abroad: make something of every moment you have. Know the city you’re in inside and out, stay out later, go out more than you usually do, explore new people and new things, travel — but don’t forget about the city you chose to study in. This experience has left me eager to return to Europe, and I have no doubt I will. There are lots of places I would’ve liked to travel to, but at the end of the day I chose to immerse myself in London as much as possible.

Location: Dumont, NJ

桜が咲いた

Another episode of Wow, Japan Sure Loves Nature!
Once again, people have been retreating into mountains and visiting gardens, shrines and castles just to see what the trees are doing. In the fall, I wrote about the changing of the leaves. Now it’s spring, and I’m talking about cherry blossms.

The blooming of the cherry blossoms (or 桜 sakura) represents new beginnings and a chance to start fresh for many Japanese. This is reflected in literature, art and music from way back when and up until now. Academically, around this time, it’s the end of the school year with graduations and the start of a new one. And nothing says a fresh start more than a celebratory picnic with family and friends (and sometimes alcohol). This is called 花見 or Flower Viewing.

While enjoying the cherry blossoms with Japanese folk, one might learn the different varieties of cherry blossoms like I did. To simplify, there’s the droopy kind, the white kind (which is also the mountain kind), the dark pink kind, the stereotypical kind, etc. There are also cherry blossom exclusive terms for the night time viewing (夜桜 yozakura), the falling petals (桜吹雪 sakurafubuki), and the trees who’s petals have all flown away (葉桜 hazakura). I’m sure there are even more, but my mind can only hold so much.

The fact that this is all common knowledge in this culture fascinates me, who comes

from a culture that doesn’t

quite pay attention to what’s blooming when on a national level.

Unfortunately cherry blossoms have a pretty delicate lifespan and after they’re gone it’s just greenish brown leaves (which you can kind of see in the photo). It’s been about two weeks since they have been blooming so they are on the decline from here on out. As pretty and magical as the falling petals are, I’m sad to see them go.

Location: Kyoto, Japan

Tower of London.

I went on a tour of the Tower of London and loved it. The Tower of London is a historic castle that has served as an armory, a treasury, and still houses the Crown Jewels that are used during coronation ceremonies. The tour was led by the famous ‘beefeaters’ or Yeoman Warders who describe the history in a comedic fashion.

Location: London, England

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