Tag Archives: traveling

Who knew a piece of my heart was in Florence?

The other day, I was sitting in my favorite place. The one where David and Andrea work. It sits on the Arno, and we call it “Caffè.” The sun illuminated the rough, uneven white-brick walls and the golden brown wood of the tables. Adam sat across from me. It was his birthday; he turned 32. David sat at a table behind me on his late lunch break. Andrea behind the counter continuing the daily grind of Caffè work.

IMG_6765David and Andrea are brothers, (“i fratelli”), and they look like twins (“i gemelli”), but Andrea is two years older than David. David is but 22, and I am 20. I could easily fall in love, but it surely isn’t meant to be. They brought out an omelet with a little heart reading, “With love! 32” on it, and their classic goofy smiles. (Earlier that day they gave Adam a two day old piece of cake with two candles that were shaped like 22, which wasn’t even the right age, and then another slice of cake after the omelet. So funny and sweet!) They are just cute for the fun of it, and they enjoy life. It’s refreshing.

Alexxus sat behind me and to my left at the barrel with her iced cappuccino and biography of Tiziano Ferro, her favorite Italian singer and songwriter. Alexxus is younger than I am, I learned this just yesterday. She is a deep thinker, and coming without knowing a single soul, brave indeed. The sun warmed my soul as did the presence of my friends.

The romance of a moment, irrepeatable.

I was wearing my favorite dress in my favorite caffè, where I always do my work while Adam does his, and we joked with David and Andrea that “we all work together.” My hair was neat in my ballerina bun as usual with the wispy tendrils framing my face, IMG_6762and my soft tan dress tied at the waste by my dark blue denim collared shirt–a bit warm on this sunny day but just perfect for me. I sat at the table with my laptop and phone in front of me, hard at work on my photography homework. Beside my computer was a copy of a letter. It was addressed to the editor of one of the english speaking newspapers in Florence where I hope to remain for the summer months. I had just submitted it online the evening prior.

In part, it read: “…before I arrived in Florence, I thought I wanted to see the whole world, but once I arrived here, everything changed. I fell in love with this charming city. As I enter my fourth and final month in my study abroad program, I can’t even fathom leaving…”

I held the paper in my hands with my shoulders back and the warm sunshine on my face. With one ear available for the sounds of the caffè and an earphone in the other, the soft music of Ben Rector’s Sailboat awoke me to the romance of this moment. Suddenly, I realized just how intricate it was, irrepeatable. This moment of longing, of loving, hoping, and desiring for this experience to last a little longer–a moment that defines my 20-year-old life in a way that I am now different, somehow transformed from who I was before.

Who knew a piece of my heart was in Florence?

Who knew I would find part of myself here of all places? I have grown a lot from this experience. Annie has taught me to be myself. Elizabeth says not to care what others think. Why need we be all the same? Santi Apostoli has given me a home and a mission. Gianna and Giovanna have made me smile with authentic zeal. Alessio teaches me to be free, to always try, and to never fear failure. Screen Shot 2016-04-09 at 2.08.46 AMAnd, my Florence family, and Cici, and Katie, and the staff of my school, and everyone! Florence especially, if I may personify the city. Everyone has taught me to love so deeply, so deeply that I am drunk off the sweetness of life–figuratively of course, but so deep that it almost feels literal.

The bliss, the riding of a wave that feels like a natural forever… But, in the back of my mind, and somewhere in my heart, I know I have to leave. I know the wave will eventually break against the shore. But, I just don’t know… how long will this loveliness last? And, I praise the Lord. I praise His holy name for giving it to me in the first place, and I hope desperately that my desires match His will. But, I also know that I need to trust Him. He is goodness and depth itself, while I am a little whisp… here and then gone in the blink of an eye in the whole history of human existence. My sight is so limited, tethered to here and now, latching onto the best thing I know in this world.

Fr. Mike Schmitz once said, “God knows us better than we know ourselves, and he loves us better than we love ourselves.” I love this. It reminds me that God has created me, His will is always and forever better than mine, and whatever He has planned for me is good. He has handcrafted this perfect bliss, one that speaks to my heart in ways nothing else can. And, whatever is to come is what is best. God is the bliss.

“The threshold which the world crosses in him
is the threshold of wonderment.” -Saint Pope John Paul II
“My soul doth magnify the Lord.” -Mother Mary

More sweet moments

Last night I went to Adam’s birthday party. It was an apperitivo at La Petite, near Piazza della Repubblica. Rena and Alexxus came too. There we had a drink and some Italian food and enjoyed conversation about nothing yet everything with Melinda. Melinda is a writer and expat here in Florence, a woman who fell in love with Florence just like I am beginning to drink up its sweetness, only three months deep. Little did I know I would come across a former writer from the very publication I was applying to. What a truly lovely surprise this was.

Long story long, I am loving it here, the friends I’ve had the pleasure to meet, and all life’s serendipity. More photos to come!

Ciaooo

Angela

xoxo

Current mood: in love

 “Sono andata da Firenze a Ginevra e ritorno!”

Just got back from a calm and relaxing weekend in Geneva, Switzerland (“Ginevra, Svizzera” … Can you guess the title?!) where I visited my Aunt and Uncle for the weekend. (Or, I suppose, grand-aunt and grand-uncle would be more like it!) Screen Shot 2016-02-12 at 1.40.41 AMI thoroughly enjoyed seeing Geneva and their home, flying over the Swiss Alps on the plane ride there, and then again gaping at the view of the Alps through their kitchen window! Unbelievable.

We also saw some beautiful neo-impressionist art by a Swiss painter named Signac, enjoyed Swiss fondu and delicious chocolate (“il cioccolato”), took those naps, and indulged in life convos over coffee, croissants, and oj at the breakfast table! This was definitely my favorite weekend by far!!! I also heard tons of French (“Francese”) and learned a little bit as well, but just enough to get me through the airport and back to Florence!

“Oggi a Firenze”

“Today in Florence” for my Italian class, our teacher met us at the Piazza della Reppublica to practice our speaking and listening skills. We introduced ourselves to random Italian people, and we asked them if we could interview them for our class! All in Italian! It was so much fun! The people we spoke to were all very gracious in helping us do our assignment. Today was also an incredibly warm and sunny day (“oggi”), which has been quite a change from the past few. It was so warm, I was even able to hang out on the front steps of la Basilica di Santa Croce. Church (“chiesa”) steps seem to be a common place for Italians to hangout.

Current mood: in love

I feel like all the beauty in the whole world is just being revealed to me, and I’m just standing here speechless receiving it all in my heart, feeling tons of emotions, and loving everything. I’m so little (almost too little to handle it), but so in love, and I can’t imagine ever going home! (“Ti amo Firenze!”)

At this stage in my study abroad experience, I think the song “I See The Light” from Tangled sums it up perfectly…

Chorus
"All those days watching from the windows
 All those years outside looking in
 All that time never even knowing
 Just how blind I've been
 Now I'm here blinking in the starlight
 Now I'm here suddenly I see
 Standing here it's all so clear
 I'm where I'm meant to be..."

And, the people I’m meeting? Incredible. A good friend (“la mia amica”) of mine named Annie told me today, “It’s never too late to have a childhood. It’s never too late to be who you are, and it’s never too late to add to yourself.” She’s had some inspiring life experiences working with kids at her day camps. She’s like the kind of girl you’d read in a storybook! Like, Merida from “Brave” or Rapunzel from “Tangled.” She’s a brave, brave girl with a kind heart and a wicked sense of humor! She also has a horse named Annie too, but purely by coincidence!

I met a girl named Rena, who’s like a sister (“sorella”) to me! We are so similar! And, Cici, and Megan, and Brian, and Heather, and Nick! Such adventurous and endearingly optimistic people. And Sara, my beautiful friend from Florence, and David and Andrea, who work at the cafe next door to school (“scuola”) and put up with me trying to learn Italian!! What a dream this is! It must be!

 

 

Finding my bearings!

So far, I’ve been here for 23 days, and I’ve experienced quite a whirlwind of events.

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Italian Notes | Photo credit: Rena Kassak

Since I’ve last written, I’ve gotten into the thick of my classes and have fallen in love with the staff of ISI Florence. Professors here are a bit more laid-back than in the States. Our Italian Language teacher ensured us that we’re on the same level, and he made sure that we know we can go to him for help with anything at all during the semester! From my past experiences with college, which I carry solely from the U.S., this hasn’t always been the case. His heart is focused on helping us learn, and the same goes for my photography professor. Put simply, ISI Florence is taking absolute wonderful care of us!

Learning the language

I’m in love with the language here. It’s so beautiful. Today we engaged in conversations with four Italian speaking 20-somethings who visited our class; it was kind of like speed-dating! I speak “un po” (only a little!) Italiano, and they could speak a little bit of English. It was neat to see how well we could communicate.

View of Florence from the top of the Duomo!

View of Florence from the top of the Duomo!

Also, last week, I met up with a Florentine girl named Sara. We met through a language exchange website. She loves traveling and learning languages, and she studies English, French, Spanish, and Chinese. It was so lovely to meet her and to learn about Italy from her perspective! I very much enjoyed our conversation, which was mostly in English seeing as she speaks English better than I can speak Italian. And, not to mention, I am still a bit shy! (“Sono un po timida”)

Il Duomo di Santa Maria del Fiore - View from Piazzale Michelangelo

A view of the Duomo from Piazzale Michelangelo – In the last photo, I was looking out from the tippy top of this one.

We talked about the differences between Italian boys and American boys, indulged each other with stories of our past relationships, and bonded over a love of purity. She also taught me some slang words in Italian, like “figo,” which means beautiful but is used how we would use the word cool, and also its synonym: “ganzo,” which is only characteristic of Florence.

Wine tasting in Chianti

On a school trip to Chianti, we met Gino, a family-oriented man, who showed us the “sweetness” of life. The Italians’ mentality is much different than what’s common back home.

A view of Chianti from Gino's vineyard

A view of Chianti from Gino’s vineyard

“There’s no food without wine and no wine without food,” he said. Gino also emphasized the joys of taking things slow and really enjoying everything with all of our senses as not to get drunk but to enjoy the wine. “Wine is everything,” he said, it’s even where you are and the people you are with; “wine is life.” He advised us to drink good wine with good friends, and warned us to never drink alone. He also taught us that just because a wine is expensive, that doesn’t mean it’s a good wine! It could just mean that it comes from a very small vineyard. The only way you can tell if a wine is good is “with your eyes, your nose, and your mouth.”

Adventures in Siena

Last Saturday, I visited Siena! Signing up for the trip by myself, I wasn’t sure I’d know anyone there, however, a stellar group of kids, Heather, Brian, and Nick (Nick, who is actually in my buon fresco class) were there!

Screen Shot 2016-01-29 at 1.53.22 AMI had an amazing time spending the day with them enjoying the city view from atop the Cattedrale di Siena, stopping for gnocchi and “picci,” a thick pasta prized by Siena, and visiting the Church of Saint Dominic where we found the relic of Saint Catherine of Siena. It was so awesome to learn about her life right in her home city! Apparently people were drawn to her, and it’s no wonder since she was so drawn to Christ! Later that day, we ventured over to San Gimignano, a small medieval town with an incredible view that I could have easily mistaken as a painting had we been inside!

V for Venezia!

Then, of course, there’s the gorgeous city of Venice! With its waterways instead of streets and boats instead of cars, Venice is one of the most quirky places I’ve visited. We were able to catch the parade where the floats were literally floating (boats, of course!) And, we enjoyed what the Venetians call the Carnevale.

People wear all kinds of fun masks during the carnival!

People wear all kinds of fun masks during the carnival!

Venice is quite touristy, and I’d suggest going later on in the week to witness the carnival in full effect. We were unaware of this, and we actually made plans with a tour group in advance. The skies turned out to be overcast, and it was only the first day of the carnival–much too soon for the fun to pick up!

Although I met some great people on the bus, I ended up spending most of the day by myself. But, on the bright side, I got to check out the Chiesa di Santa Lucia, a church by the grand canal, where I saw the relic of Saint Lucy’s incorruptible head and visited the Blessed Sacrament of our Lord in a side chapel.

I actually didn’t get to go to mass on this day (Sunday), which was pretty upsetting to me. It was mainly poor planning. I’m still figuring out how to adapt to this life on the road because, at least at this point in my life, it’s so easy for me to get distracted. But, truly God is the most beautiful!

The not-so-wonderful truth

Although the travel life can seem romantic and glamorous from stories and photographs, I’ve been here for less than a month and as you can tell, I’ve already experienced a few bumps along the road.

  1. Crepes and waffle at La Milker

    Crepe and waffle alla nutella date in between classes! I don’t know how we made it through Italian class after this! Photo credit: Rena Kassak

    Pro tip: If you ever go to Italy please, please drink tons of water, and be weary of your dairy intake! I absolutely love picking up new foods from the market, especially cheese because it’s fresh, inexpensive, and we’re in Italy! So, why not try them all? (“perchè no?”) Well, just recently, I learned the hard way… that too much cheese and other dairy foods, like gelato, can actually cause constipation. (“Come sei dice embarrassing?”) Fortunately, a call home to mom, some prune juice, and laxatives really did the trick! Thank God!! I had no idea how painful that could be!

  2. Next? Well, I lost my cell phone one evening when taking out the trash. I would have gone diving in after it!!! But, the trash disappeared into the ground. They have some clever dumpsters here, and I didn’t even feel my phone slip out the moment it happened…
    Is this not the most beautiful motor vehicle you've ever seen?!

    Is this not the most beautiful motor vehicle you’ve ever seen?! Spotted near Firenze S.M.N. train station.

    Since the garbage company was already closed for the night, we had to wait to call in the morning. At this point, it was already compacted into a teeny tiny cube. I was able to communicate with my family and friends online, and my parents had mercy on me. Fortunately, I was able to replace the phone, and everything is semi-back-to-normal, if you can even call it that.

Despite the appealing aspects of travel, it definitely has its fair share of adjustments, ups, and downs (and there are even more if you’re clumsy!), but every single one of these has come and gone, and it continues to amaze me that I am actually here… Praise you, Jesus! And, thank you, Mom and Dad!

Next stop… Roma!

Pre-Departure Musings

Florence (n.) – the capital of Tuscany; the birthplace of the Renaissance; once named one of the world’s most beautiful cities by Forbes’ Magazine; my home for the first four months of 2016
Wrapping up winter break with a visit to Little Italy, NY

Wrapping up winter break with a visit to Little Italy, NY

Ciao, my name is Angela. I am a junior majoring in journalism and minoring in international studies at Penn State University, and I’ll be living and studying in Florence, Italy for a little while. I come from a little town about 20 minutes outside of the city of brotherly love. Although my hometown and my neighboring home-city are my two first loves, I’ve dreamed of travel ever since I was little—a much bolder and far more fearless dreamer—and nothing in this world (other than travel) has ever looked so exciting! I’m not sure how I’ll process all of the “new” once I arrive, but for now, I’m just preparing myself (the best I can) to be open, optimistic, and ready to embrace everything as much as humanly possible.

Why Florence, Italy?

To be quite frank, I actually didn’t know where to go. But, I had always heard stories about Italy’s beauty, charm, and of course, its gelato. Once when I was little, I stumbled upon the words, “You may have the universe if I may have Italy,” by Giuseppe Verdi, a composer of Italian operas. The sentiment fascinated me, and travel had my heart ever since. Growing up, I continued to come in contact with beautiful images of Italian sights and splendid stories from my friend Katie Mae, who was an au pair right outside of Rome.

When it became time to choose my host country, all I knew was that I had warm and homey feelings attached to central and southern Italy. I figured, I’ve got to start somewhere if I intend to see everything, and Florence seemed like a lovely place to begin.

Three Days Before Departure

In just three days, I’ll step foot onto a plane. This makes me a little bit nervous! Although, I have traveled before—adventuring through Eastern Europe for two weeks. It was Easter break of my junior year in high school, and twelve other girls and I set out to explore Germany, Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. A little, old, Austrian man named Norman accompanied us as our tour guide along with Chief, our chaperone. Norman would tell us stories about each place we visited, and everyday he’d let us go exploring on our own. Mind you, we went to an all girls high school, and we were all 16 or 17 at the time wandering about countries that were foreign to us (buddy system of course!) Needless to say, the quote of the trip was, “Norman is out of control!” Thankfully, getting stuck in an elevator with my lovely rommate, Megs, was the only bad thing that had happened, and probably the funniest, too.

The next four months will be my longest stay overseas yet. I feel little butterflies, and my tummy kind of does somersaults when I think about it. So, I have been trying not to think. The older I get, the easier it is to be fearful because I am little more aware.

Little Italy, NY

Little Italy, Mulberry Street, Brooklyn, New York

At this point, I’m just gathering last minute items like locks for my backpack zippers and other staple pieces of clothing so I can pack lightly and re-wear a lot of the same clothes in an array of creative pairings. I haven’t yet packed my suitcase, but that’s next on the list. I’m afraid I’ll forget things, but then again, I can always run to the markets once I get there in case anything imperative is left behind, (or so I tell myself). Compiling the travel playlist is also pretty exciting. I’ve got a stellar christian contemporary line-up for the plane.

 

Expectations

I think I’ll miss my family and my pup. I love them so much, but at the same time, I am so excited to get away for four whole months to see things, (and hopefully) grow, and change, and be a bit stronger when I return. I’m treating these next four months as a retreat from everything I have ever truly known.

I imagine living among the locals, studying, deepening my Catholic faith, visiting the Eternal City, exploring churches and other places of religious significance, admiring art and ancient architecture, enjoying Italian food and hospitality, and (most hopefully) blending in as a seasoned traveler and modeling the Italian ideal of fare bella figura—to have a beautiful figure.

Although these wishful reveries are true to Florence, there’s definitely a ton about this city that I do not know, and it’s already apparent that this could very well be an unforgettable experience…

Join me as I find my bearings and, explore lo stivale, the boot, the beautiful peninsula the Italians call home!

 


Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Somewhere Only We Know

Milan and Trento: Long weekend & Roman holiday

Four days, three trains, too many metro rides later, and we made it back to Rome after a long weekend spent in Milan and Trento. These towns have so much to offer that pictures don’t do them justice, but ill take a shot at explaining them.

After the stress of getting to Termini train station on the day of a public transportation strike, my friends and I made it to Milan a couple hours later, amazed by the quietness of the city compared to Rome. After dropping our stuff at our Airbnb apartment, we headed to the World Expo where we got to explore exhibitions by 140 countries. Each country has a platform to present their ideas about environmental sustainability, innovation, creativity, and offer their signature food and drinks. We ate dinner in China, desert in Italy, drank on a ferris wheel in Holland, watched live music in Germany, and explored many others. 

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The Expo

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Hollands platform

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The Tree of Light

The next day we spent touring as much of Milan as we could before we had to catch the train to trento. My boss recommended a Navigli to me, which ended up being one of our favorite parts of the Milan trip. We ate a delicious Milanese meal and then made our way to the metro headed towards the train station.  

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Duomo

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Outside the Sforza Castel

In Trento we arrived at our next airbnb pretty late, and got ready for our full day of hiking on Sunday. We spent 10 hours hiking up the Dolomites (Monte Bondone). Locals live in the mountain range, so there are winding roads running through the trails. At one point, we followed the road and turned down a path with picturesque houses looking down on all of Trento. We sat down, ate the lunch we brought, and talked for a while, just sitting on the ground on the small street. 30 minutes later we woke up- somehow all six of us fell asleep. The best part is how we were woken up; not by a car, but by an old Italian man who lived in one of the houses on that street. He had gone and picked roses for Jessie, Katie, and I. He tiptoed up to us, pointed and said “for the girls”. We adored those flowers, and started to realize how genuinely nice people in Trento are. Nothing against Roma, but there is a different atmosphere in Trento. This was definitely my favorite memory of the trip. Im starting to realize that the memories that I cherish most are the ones where my friends and I are off the beaten path, enjoying each other and taking in the view.

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My friends and I before a 10 hour hike up Monte Bondone

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House along the side street of our lunch break

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The street we napped on with the flower from the local Italian

Palermo, Sicily

In Sicily, I realized how diverse each part of Italy is. Comparing Rome to the weekend trips we have been on, to the island of Sicily, I feel like I have traveled to different countries each time. For me Sicily stood out because of its food. Here I had the best dessert that I have ever eaten: deep fried ricotta cones (cannoli). 

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View from the balcony of our Airbnb

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Cannolis from Cappello

Teatro Massimo

The largest theatre in Italy and the third largest in Europe. This was special for me because of a surprising run in with the Teatro Massimo Ballet Company. As we were on our tour, I heard a piano so I followed the sound and found them practicing. Amazed by their strength and grace, I stood there staring for a while. It felt like a little piece of home right here in Italy.

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Teatro Massimo Ballet Company

Sight Seeing:

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Cathedral

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The church of Santa Maria dell’Ammiraglio. This shows the 100% mosaics walls and ceilings.

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Mondello Beach: Tyrrheian Sea

These trips with my friends have given us an unexpected bond. No pictures of these weekend trips could truly do them justice- there are just some things that have to be experienced to be understood. They will always be “somewhere only we know”.


Location: Palermo, Italy; Trento, Italy; Milan, Italy

Easing Back Into “Reality”

Post Madrid, we had a three day week which was nice to use to get back into the swing of things. The Thursday of that week we went to Ronda’s 16th century bodega for a wine tasting. We learned about the process that goes into making the wine and why it’s done a certain way for each. The darker the wine, the older it is. We also stumbled across the one and only avocado tree in Ronda. It grows in the shaded patio of the bodega on the cliff side, so it’s protected from certain aspects of the weather that it wouldn’t have been if it were somewhere else.

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On Friday, I woke up with two welts that could be known as none other than spider bites according to careful research (aka browsing through none other than Google Images). Susana and I went to the hospital after school to get them checked out since the bug bit me while I was sleeping and we weren’t sure if it would go away on its own. Luckily, the doctors told me (told Susana in very fast Spanish that she later relayed to me in a simple version) that I only had to continue taking the seasonal allergy medicine that I already do. They’ve since deflated and left some Spanish battle wounds that I can take back home. There’s this quote that I like that says “Wherever you go becomes a part of you somehow”. Can’t help but to think that the way it applies here is kind of funny in a backwards sort of version.

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I woke up like this (and proceeded to unintentionally freak everyone out at school)

Saturday we didn’t have any trips technically scheduled, but everyone planned to use the free weekend to go to a Spanish beach so the majority of us took a bus to Marbella, which is about a 40 minute drive. The town is beautiful. We got it on a cloudier day than we’d hoped, but all in all it was still fun to go to. Susana told us that you can see Morocco when the sky is clear and that it’s only 14 km away. To put in perspective as to how close we were, a few of our phones picked up the Moroccan time zone.


First step in the Mediterranean  

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Puerto Banus

 

The beach itself also had a lot of people carrying around knockoff purses, sunglasses, and the like. Most told us that they had come from Africa and were trying to earn money to live in Spain which was admirable, but were so pushy in trying to get us to buy their things that it became annoying. The initial question and answer was the same from man to man:

“Sunglasses? Jersey? Buy this t-shirt for your boyfriend?”
“No, thank you.”

After tons and tons of people approaching us with only a few minutes between each, we resorted to more creative tactics that served us well for the rest of the trip, specifically our favorite weapon with the best Spanish accent that we could muster:

“Sunglasses? Jersey? Buy this t-shirt for your boyfriend?”
“¡No hablo inglés¡” (aka I don’t speak English)

It’s foolproof–10/10 would recommend.


Location: Marbella

Days 1 & 2

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            Hi! My name is Jordan Chapman, I am studying Anthropology and Geosciences at Penn State with a minor in Geography and this summer I’m spending a month in Akko, Israel on my first archaeological excavation. First, I would like to think everyone who helped in my efforts to get here, especially all the amazing people in the Student Support Services Program and the Multicultural Resource Center at Penn State. To Ms. Alicia, Ron, Ms. Devin, Mr. Moses Davis and so many other people, I wouldn’t be here without you.

            We’ve only been in Israel for about two days now. We spent most of the first day traveling to and from the airport. Most of the other Penn Staters and myself met up in Philadelphia where met up with the other schools participating on the dig like the Claremont Colleges on the West Coast, Trinity College, and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. While some of us come from anthropological backgrounds, others study history, religion, and geography. In all there about 70 of us in total which is supposedly the largest group ever in the Tel Akko Project. Once we finally made it to the Nautical Academy in Akko we at dinner then some of us headed off to bed.

            Today we spent most of the morning in orientation and learning about the history of the Akko and the excavation site. After that some of our group headed to the beach while others headed into Old City Akko which is separated from the rest of the city by a large stone wall which was built several hundred years ago. The city of Akko itself has been around in some form since antiquity and has been under rule of some the major powers of the ancient world like the Egyptians and Phoenicians.

            The contemporary city is pretty modern, while walking around  I noticed several familiar stores and logos from back home in the States.  I took plenty of pictures of the Old City which is designated UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its long occupancy and the city’s famous stand against Napoleon. Everyone we talked to greeted us warmly and welcomed us into the city and I even checked out a Turkish Bazar with a few members of the group. And the view overlooking the bay and the Mediterranean was beautiful. There are still other parts of the city I haven’t had the chance to see yet like the old Crusader Tunnels which are underneath the Old City. However, our entire group we’ll be taking a trip there later this month so I’ll be sure to take even more pictures.

            Tomorrow we’ll be waking up early tomorrow morning to go to the excavation site just outside the city. In fact, we’re having our second lecture of the day introducing us to excavation methods and other things we need to know while digging. I’ve been looking forward to digging ever since we landed so I’ll be sure to go to bed early. I’ll be sure to update you guys tomorrow on my first excavation ever. Until then, see ya!

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Location: Akko, Israel

The Return: Reflecting on Mexico

My oh my, how the time flies. I have been home from Mexico for over a month now, which is frightening to realize. I’ve been so busy, yet my study abroad experience feels like it just happened, still.

 

The last few days I was there were CRAZY. Not only did I have oodles of studying to do and essays to write, but I also finally got sick. I’d been pretty lucky to be one of the few people to stay healthy the whole time, but, of course, with my luck, I had a terrible allergic reaction my second-to-last day. Luckily, the university doctor was very helpful and, with a lot of rest, I managed to finish everything in time and get back rolling for the last day.

 

All of my tests, papers, and presentations went well, and before I knew it, it was time for the Farewell Dinner. All of us students came with our families to eat together at a nice restaurant, joined by our lovely coordinators, professors, and administrators from the Ibero. They gave us all certificates and, of course, delicious comida! Our one professor, Roxana, even hired a mariachi band to play! All of the families sang along, and we all got up to dance for a bunch of the songs! It was an amazingly fun time, but it was so sad to say goodbye to everyone. It felt surreal that the trip was really coming to an end, and that soon we’d all be back, doing our separate things, here in the US. And even though I’m in Facebook contact with my family, I miss living with them terribly.

 

It takes 2 hours to get to the Mexico City airport by bus from Puebla, and the earlier group of travelers, including myself, got to depart at 2 AM. Everything was smooth checking my luggage and getting through security, but the rest was a NIGHTMARE. The plane out of Mexico City was delayed about 2 hours which, sadly, was enough time to make me miss my continuing flight out of Chicago. After grumpily passing through customs, I got put on a standby flight to Allentown, which my luggage made, but I was not able to board. Long story short, it then took me 2 failed flights, lots of pointless waiting (on runways and near gates), tons of distraught phone calls to my parents, a night in the creepy, cold Chicago airport, and over 24 hours since I’d left my home in Puebla to FINALLY get home here.

 

Since then, it’s been a blur of Harry Potter premieres, family vacations, and catching up with friends–not to mention getting ready for the Fall semester. I think I’ve been putting off writing this last entry since it means that it really is over, that I really am back. Now, though, I feel like I can really look at the bigger picture of what I encountered.

 

The Mexico I experienced was neither one of pop culture dreams nor of horrific news stories. I wasn’t kidnapped or murdered, and though I did visit a lovely beach, it was far from being the highlight of the program. The true highlights were much more real. The highlights were chatting with my family for an hour after each meal, walking to the tienda down the street where the workers knew my name and taught me the names of all the fruits and vegetables, stopping to play with a friendly dog on the way to the bus stop. They included standing on the edge of a pyramid built hundreds and hundreds of years before, steps too small for us nowadays, and viewing paint strokes on pieces created only decades ago.

 

Mexico is a clash of the past and the present. Ancient temples are found in the middle of bustling cities, and buildings are built over the remains of others. There are literally layers and layers of history, all coexisting together to make the present what it is. And it’s not just in the lay of the land; it’s in the people, as well. Traditions, old, older, oldest, are all woven finely together like a beautiful tapete in a world just blooming with New, as well. Mexico is indeed related to Europe; it was and is still a kind of New Spain, only it’s so much more. Every state, every city, and every tiny pueblo has a different personality. This is a place where poverty and wealth coexist hand in hand, where different cultures have both parted and blended in every imaginable combination. The people know their past, however confused it may be, and are willing to teach it and learn from it in ways that make me question my own historical knowledge of my own country.

 

In my opinion, the Puebla program must be one of the most overlooked Spanish study abroad experiences. If it hadn’t been for a chance presentation and my own curiosity, I may have missed out on the experience of my lifetime. Many of my peers tend to look to other great cultures that are an ocean away when we have something so rich, so touching, and so beautiful right below us. We earned a solid 9 credits over 6 weeks in a summer, and of course our language skills improved, but I feel like we all gained much more than just that. The families, the professors, the university, the places we traveled, the things we saw, the people we met… If there is anything I have learned, it is that there isn’t ONE Mexico. It’s layers; nothing and everything is inherently Mexican. I’ve learned to go beyond stereotypes or expectations of a place and have found so much more than I ever expected.

 

I miss it and all the people who I shared the experience with, but, in the short amount of time I was there, I know that I discovered something that I will take with me for the rest of my life. Here’s to hoping all of your experiences are as great! Adios!

 

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Location: Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

Almost Over

Well, once again I don’t remember the last time I blogged. I’m really bad at this. I’m bad at keeping up with it and remembering what the last thing was that I posted about. Anyway, I’m doing it now! I have a little less than two weeks left, and I’m beyond excited to come home.  I’ve learned a lot being here and I wouldn’t give it back for anything, but four months away from home is a long long time – and I’m really ready to see my family and friends again.  Since I wrote last I’ve been busy spending time with my friends and keeping up with school work.  

A couple weeks ago we went to a place called Andong – a traditional Korean village where they have the traditional houses and temples and stuff.  It was a nice weekend away and I made national TV! Apparently dancing with Korean locals makes you a celebrity.  The Buddhist temple was sooo pretty. It was over 600 years old, tucked away in the mountains. It wasn’t exactly a relaxing trip, but it was nice to see more traditional stuff.
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The drum that the monks play is in the upstairs part of this temple.  It was so pretty and so quiet.  When we foreigners were there though, it wasn’t so quiet. It looks over the mountains and the countryside – so pretty.
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The next day we went to the Traditional Korean Dance.  It was super crowded and once again, I got picked out of the crowd to dance in front of everyone.  Got some free Korean rice cakes as a prize for embarrassing myself and they were sooo good. So cute too. Shaped like the Korean masks. 
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The different masks are all carved into the wood, but at the dance a different person is wearing each of the masks. They all have different parts and roles – its pretty entertaining.  The few weeks after that I just sorta worked on school work. Not much exciting happened.  Just had to make sure to keep up with work and do my projects.  But finally, last weekend we took our last trip in Korea to Busan.  I love Busan so incredibly much.  Maybe it was the people I went with, maybe it was the beach, either way it was one of the best parts of Korea. We had such a relaxing time. When we first went, it was just three of us girls.  We stayed at a youth hostel, and the guy who owned it suggested we go to a place called Gwangali Beach. It was a nice area with lots of big buildings and lights. A pretty bridge was lit up at night.  It was just really really nice to get away from Seoul.
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Being on the beach was fun, but sitting at the coffee shop listening to the live jazz band that was playing across the street, just watching the ocean was so nice. It was very relaxing and just really nice.  However the next few days more and more people started coming. The whole trip was really really nice, really relaxing.  After the first group arrived, we finally went to the beach. While we were there on the first day, we met a guy who had a stand to do sea kayaking and surfing. We started talking to him to see how much it would cost, and he ended up being pretty good friends with us! Jeff was his name and he kept telling us he was the “Busan Boss”.  We got to do lots of sea kayaking and he even got us some free jet skiing 🙂 
When the last group of people was coming to meet us, we waited for them at the Busan Train Station. At night the fountain they have a show where the fountain lights up and they synchronize music to the water. It gets a big crowd and people try to walk through the water and the police come and yell. It’s really nice to sit and watch, so we did that while we waited for the last group to come.
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Later that night for dinner we did the tourist thing. We went to Millak Fresh Fish Market, where you pick your fish and they cut it in front of you.  We were extremely overcharged, but it was an experience.  Not everyone wanted to try it, but I did. And thats all I did. A little too fresh for my liking.
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This fish wasn’t very good in my opinion. We had one before this that tasted a little bit better when i drenched it in soy sauce.  There were some other ones that sorta looked like snails, and it was really really really hard to eat, pretty bad to look at too. So I’ll spare the photos.  
The next day after we rested a little bit, we went back to the beach.  There was a Sand Festival there, and there were huge sand castles. There was even a sand castle village!
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The group who woke up early enough to see the beach before the crowds came.  We saw the sand castles and the sand statues and sculptures. Fun festival stuff.  But As it always is, I got sunburnt really quick and decided I didn’t want to get skin cancer so instead of spending the last day at the beach, we went to the Aquarium.  
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Unfortunately the aquarium was not so good, and we paid 18,000 won for admission. It was part of the Busan experience though.  The whole aquarium was underground so I guess that was kinda cool, but it was just so little.  We ended the day at the Jagalchi Fish Market which is supposed to be like the worst smelling place on the planet. It didn’t smell too terrible, and it was cool to see all the different things people were selling. Except no one wanted to sell stuff to us.  We finally got someone to sell us one piece of fried fish to try, and it was pretty good actually. But she didn’t seem to happy to sell it to us. 
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All of the ladies selling the fish seemed unhappy. Maybe thats why they wouldn’t sell us anything but either way it was an experience.
We came back to Seoul at 1am and I spent the whole day doing nothing. Should have been studying and doing homework but we had the day off because its Labor Day in Korea. I have my last three days of class this week, then my mom is coming to visit me this weekend with her friend! I’m really really looking forward to showing them around my “home” and letting them experience some  of the things I’ve seen and done.  Then they’ll be here for a week and then finally, it is time for me to come home. This was definitely the experience of a lifetime, but I’m really looking forward to being back home.
Love to all my family and friends! See you all soon!

Location: Busan, South Korea

Melbourne

I’ve been slacking on my blog recently because of the 19 day epic trip I took with my friends Meg and Morgan. We had decided early on in the semester to go to Australia and the two week “teaching recess” seemed the perfect time. We booked our flights into Melbourne and out of Brisbane, slightly unaware of how big Australia actually is. However, I think this actually ended up being a blessing because we packed in so much more than I thought possible.

On Wednesday 13th of April, we headed up to Auckland and were met by Michelle, a friend of a friend from back a PSU. What a small world! Had a great Japanese dinner before heading to the airport to sleep before catching our 6:30am flight to Melbourne.  Michelle was so gracious and drove us to save us $80 in a cab fee!

Sleeping at the airport was not fun and even though we managed to snag some benches to lie down on, I only slept for about an hour the whole night. We also had some trouble going through security since we’d decided to take carry on only to avoid checked bag fees and all of our bags were overweight, a problem that plagued us throughout the trip. Due to sheer luck, Morgan and I managed to get through, although they made Meg check hers.

We landed in Melbourne to clear weather even though the forecast called for rain which boded well. We checked into our hostel and put our bags in the luggage room using a stuffed kangaroo as the key! First sign that we were actually in AUSTRALIA! Next to the hostel was a huge outdoor market, Victoria Street Market, which we obviously had to visit. Three hours later we had seem boomerangs, wigs, some (slightly creepy) actors putting on a tea-party from Alice in Wonderland and bought heaps of food for dinner, including a kilo of mushrooms. The mushroom guy told us that we could have mushrooms for $2 but only if we bought a kilo.

 

market.jpg Meg and I decided to go to the aquarium that afternoon and Morgan explored the city. We saw an enclosure with emperor penguins which were so adorable but I felt bad that they couldn’t actually live in real snow. They must have been so hot.

 

aquarium.jpgWe were also suckered into becoming members at Crown Casino and they gave us five dollars which I promptly lost to the penny slots. It was a shock to us just how expensive everything was. It probably wasn’t as bad for Australians being paid in Aussie dollars, but our Kiwi dollars didn’t go far AT ALL. We would pay $8 kiwi dollars for a coffee and cake in New Zealand and $8 Aussie dollars for the same thing in Australia. With the exchange rate, that’s almost $11 New Zealand dollars! Robbery.

 That night we went out looking for nightlife and ended up joining with an underground bar tour group who took us to a couple of small eccentric bars down back alleys that we never would have found on our own. The guy who suggested we join them was from “Tazzie” or Tasmania which was surprising because I didn’t think people actually lived there. Apparently they do.

Obviously, we wanted McDonalds fries after the excitement of the night and when Meg came to sit down, she said that the guys standing by the counter said that you get free refills on your fries in Australia. I went up to the counter, a little skeptical, and inquired. It’s NOT true and the guys laughed at us, but I guess it was worth a try!

The next day, we went back to the market and picked up food for a picnic. SO much good stuff! Buffalo mozzarella, prosciutto, avocado and Turkish bread. After an hour of getting lost in the city, we managed to find the right tram and headed out to St.Kilda, a cute artsy town by the beach and ate our picnic and looked round the shops. They had some amazing little cake shops all in a row.

 

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When we headed back to town, we met up with Meg’s friend Sam who lives just outside Melbourne. We had tickets to a footy match which is sort of like rugby but you can kick and bounce the ball too. Really anything goes and it was really fun to get involved. Meg and I decided to root for Richmond, the underdogs, while Morgan supported Collingwood. For a few moments in the third quarter it looked like Richmond might make a spectacular comeback, but no such luck. Collingwood crushed them.  

 

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After the match we went out to a couple of bars and had some of the best mojitos I’ve ever tasted. The next day there was a comedy festival on, so we sat down and watched some of an act. The performers were doing all kinds of outrageous things, including dragging guys out of the audience. Surprisingly the guys went along with it instead of being embarrassed. There was also a Disney exhibition on at a museum so we went to that and learned all about the history of film and Walt Disney. Really cool! Sadly it was then time to head to the airport for out flight to Sydney. I really enjoyed  Melbourne, it wasn’t touristy but it seemed really cultured and had tons of information about bands and art exhibitions plastered around the streets. I wish we could have visited the Ocean Road and the 12 Apostles (or “stacky-rocky-things” I tried calling them at first) but there just wasn’t enough time.

 

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Location: Melbourne, Australia