Loyola Study Abroad – Page 3

Two down, Two to go!

By luctechco | June 10, 2014

你好! I have officially been living and studying in Beijing for two weeks and have two more weeks to go! I have to admit that I can’t believe it’s already the third week, it really has flown by. I have looked forward to going to China for as long as I can remember and thanks to China Encounter it was made a reality. These weeks have been filled with fun and fascinating trips to popular tourist spots, restaurants, and “real Beijing” locations.

My goal before coming to China was to really dive into Beijing. This is my first time travelling abroad and I really wanted to push myself out of my comfort zone. Whenever I am out and about in Beijing, I always think to myself “People, Places, and Food!”. Yes, this thought may be broad, but whenever I get a little overwhelmed and a feeling of culture shock comes upon me, I remind myself that I want to learn, see, taste, and really enjoy everything relating to the Chinese culture. So far I believe I have succeeded! Although I wish I could spend all day discussing everything, I know that would make for a not so enthralling blog so I have decided to make a few entries with some of my favorite highlights. I will start off with one of my favorite food experiences.

Food checklist: Peking Duck and Hot pot. In preparing for my arrival in Beijing I made a very small food checklist. Of course I knew I would try many different meals that I haven’t heard of, but Peking duck and hotpot were a must do, well actually a must eat. As of now I can check one item off the list: Hot pot! I will admit, I did have high expectations for hot pot, but this experience completely blew me away. Last week, a group of us headed to a hot pot restaurant a few blocks away from campus led by some UIBE Chinese students. I was excited but did not realize what would come next. The host greeted us at the door and took us up the elevator and into the restaurant. There was a room next to the restaurant, where guests were welcome to partake in FREE MANICURES! The service was top notch. We were even given aprons to wear and ziplock baggies to protect our phones.Two boiling pots of broth were placed in front of the twelve of us, and then we dug in. The assortment of food included: shrimp, beef, lamp, potatoes, noodles, tofu, and a few more items that were very tasty, although I am still not sure what they were. I definitely let my adventurous side take over. We all gathered around the pots cooking our food while being entertained by masked dancers and noodles throwers. This was definitely an experience I will never forget.

Summertime at the Summer Palace

By luctechco | June 15, 2014

Miami. Chicago. Beijing. I am definitely a girl that enjoys the city life. The hustle and bustle always motivates me to get out and join the pleasantly pushy people party, as I now like to call it. Whenever I am feeling down in a city it is nice to be able to look around and realize how much is going on. It makes it easier to not sulk and worry about the small things. My love for cities will always be strong, but a calming break every once in a while has its advantages. I enjoy jet skiing in Miami, barbecuing on the beach of Lake Michigan, and now relaxing on dragon-shaped boats at the Summer Palace.

Secluded and Serene, the Summer Palace is the ideal escape from the ever so active and populated Beijing. It truly amazes me how it sort of hides in plain sight. It is a little piece of paradise in the middle of the chaos. For lack of a better term, I will admit I was feeling a little “body of water” sick and this haven was definitely what the doctor ordered.

Once I was inside the grounds of the Summer Palace, I immediately thought to myself that the Qing emperors really knew how to enjoy themselves. The place gives off the feeling of actually overflowing with palaces, pavilions, temples, and beautiful landscapes. These gorgeously constructed attributes are perfectly placed around a peaceful lake. Exploring the buildings can be challenging at first, due to the uneven steps and rocks, but it definitely made me feel more adventurous. And of course it made the boat ride on the lake an even bigger reward. The ride across the lake allowed for some really great photos.

I could definitely not complete this post without acknowledging one of the impressive parts of my experience, encountering and admiring a certain group of Chinese women…the heel-wearers. Climbing up and down the steep stairs presented itself as a challenge to me in my Toms. I kept thinking to myself, “Why didn’t you just wear your sneakers? Come on Allison.” But then those once obvious thoughts became a little less obvious and more confused when I started noticing the sheer number of Chinese women in heels exploring the uneven palace. I lost count. There were the occasional ones who were dressed up for some sort of modeling shoot, but that was the minority. Chinese women really do commit to the idea that pain is gain in fashion. Props to them!

Breaking Up (with the U.S.) is Hard to Do

By luctechco | September 18, 2014

Recently, I broke up with the United States. After a 20 (almost 21!) year long, committed relationship with only one brief break (to test my feelings for China) it was time to move on. Comfortable relationships are fun, don’t get me wrong. The United States understands me on a level that I’m not sure my new love, Italy, will ever be able to. The U.S. knows that I want a big cup of coffee in the morning, the bus to come on time, and for stores to be open at the reasonable hour of 1 p.m.

Nevertheless, I have to hand it to Italy for catching onto my love for cute side streets, spiraling ivy on brick buildings, intense shots of caffeine, and carbs, lots and lots of carbs.

Any change in life, especially with relationships (particularly those with one’s home country) brings a necessary adjustment of the body and mind, and traveling abroad for the next 3 months has been no exception to this rule. Upon my arrival in the country of wine and pasta, I noticed that a little thing that we in the Unites States like to call “punctuality” is simply optional and frequently opted out of.

As a person who is consistently 30 minutes early to class, gets anxiety when leaving for a destination a little later than planned, and thinks being on time is being late, this aspect of Italian culture has been quite a challenge for me.

On one particular day, as I set out for my first on-site class, Art in Rome, the bus simply did not come for 45 minutes. I had initially left campus before 8 o’clock for the 9:30 class with the intentions of being early enough to grab a cappuccino before the lesson began. However, standing there at the stop with about 20 other Rome Center students, I started to realize that this simply was not going to be possible. 10 minutes passed and I was still optimistic, but once we hit the 20 minute mark I became frantic to get on a bus. One after another the wrong bus passed, and I contemplated jumping on one, despite not knowing where it was headed, in an effort to simply go somewhere, anywhere.

Eventually, after almost an hour, the correct bus (the 990) turned the corner to the stop and the crowd of us began cheering at the sight of our salvation. We were all about ten minutes late to our class at the Roman Forum and Colosseum, but our teacher was very understanding, as the bus situation in Rome is a bit spotty. I realize now how thankful I am for the CTA in Chicago and will likely never complain about waiting 10 minutes for the Red Line to come ever again.

So yes, this break up has been very hard to do. I miss the familiarity and reliability of the United State’s public transportation system, and I certainly miss Chicago, the city that probably will always have my heart. Yet, Rome, thus far, has been an exhilarating adventure I would not give up for anything. What this new love may bring, we have yet to really know. Time however, time will tell of all the excitement to come.

Until next time, ciao!

Old Habits Die Hard

By luctechco | September 20, 2014

“Vorrei un caffe per favore” (meaning I’d like one coffee please) has become a cherished phrase in the land of cappuccinos and afternoon macchiatos. Milk is considered taboo to drink after noon, so ordering a cappuccino at 3pm not only designates your nationality but your inability to adjust to the Italian mindset, which also has its own set of quirks. One of these being reliability. I often question how Italians get anywhere on time but then I realized they don’t! Blessed be the days of using the CTA because ATAC (Rome’s public transportation service) has many things to be desired. Sometimes the bus arrives every 30 minutes. Sometimes the bus simply does not come and when it does your bus driver might have an agenda of his own that does not involve stopping anywhere near where you wanted.

Becoming familiar with Rome makes you feel like a freshman again. Most students tend to roam in packs in an effort to explore, because being alone in a foreign city is something the consulate strongly frowns upon. Nobody wants to be the lead actress in a Taken remake set in Italy. Another added layer of anxiety is the ever present state of being lost. Every time I’ve been lost, however, I’ve come across something I was destined to find. Rome has a way of producing breathtaking architecture and monuments out of thin air. One moment you’re searching a map to find the nearest 990 bust stop and the next you’re bumping into the Pantheon on accident. Another short stroll and you’re reliving the Lizzie Maguire movie at the Trevi Fountain. Not having GPS or Google maps on my phone is definitely a double edged sword I’ve become a professional at wielding.

I think most people, like myself, find comfort in routine. In an effort to retain some normalcy I’ve been frequenting the same places throughout Rome. Once a week I try to go to my favorite neighborhood bar, Il Siciliano, for a much needed caffeine boost and a cornetto of course. I’ve also become a regular at Frigidarium, the best gelato place I’ve had thus far. How many times I go there any given weekend is something I will take to the grave.

Although cutting down on how many vats of coffee I drink each day and coming to terms with being perpetually late has been rough, the past three weeks have opened my eyes to all that studying abroad has to offer. Everyone has a different strategy for independent travel while abroad. It honestly comes down to a quantity versus quality approach. I’ve heard of people traveling almost every free weekend they have to get “the most” out of their time abroad. I plan on staying in Rome for most of my weekends this semester to get to know Rome well opposed to just seeing as many countries as I can. If I can leave Rome three months from now with enough knowledge to show family and friends around the city I have accomplished my goal.

Until next time,

Veronica

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun(ghi)!

By luctechco | October 1, 2014

“Oh, when the working week is done, oh girls just want to have funghi! Oooh, girls just wanna have funghi!”

My very own version of that feel good classic was swirling around my head the entire weekend as we climbed our way through the mountainous terrain around Cuano Mutri to devour some mushrooms. All Cyndi Lauper puns aside, this weekend was most definitely the best I’ve had in awhile…and I’ve been living in Rome for the past 5 weeks so that’s saying something! There are so many differences between Cusano and Rome, it’s almost like comparing apples to oranges. In a way, Cusano Mutri felt more authentic. I was not greeted in English, but *gasp* Italian! You would think living in Rome this would be common, but the constant tourist population definitely hinders any Italian language exchange. I fell in love with the small town atmosphere immediately and embraced the full mushroom menu I enjoyed all weekend. I am not exactly the outdoorsy type, so this was definitely an adventure in more ways than one.

Most of the weekend was planned around what were described as “novice hikes,” AKA: something even this athletically challenged, city-goer could handle. Well, what started as a leisurely stroll through a forest preserve on day one suddenly shifted gears into an intense, rocky climb on day two. Our guide for the second climb was hardly breaking a sweat as our group ascended 1,500 feet up hill. I’m convinced that this temporarily closed ski slope we were traversing was at least a 75 degree incline at all times, or at least that’s what my calves were telling me 15 minutes into our hike. Where were we climbing to you ask? To the top of the world:

A view like that was worth every bead of sweat and rock I tripped on getting to the top.

Throughout our trip, SO MANY mushrooms were eaten. I’m convinced my fellow JFRC members and I cleaned out the entire harvest ourselves. Each course we had included mushrooms in some way, from mushroom gnocchi to polenta in a tomato and mushroom sauce. There was no shortage of funghi that’s for sure! This fungal feast continued into the small vendors throughout Cusano Mutri. There were mushroom and truffle cheeses to be enjoyed! Cured sweet and spicy sausages to be devoured! Nutella doughnuts and various cakes to conclude our meals! And most importantly regional liquor to be tried, including fragolino. What was described as a strawberry wine, would be a closer relative to limoncello in my opinion. Now I mentioned previously that breakfast is not a huge deal in Italy contrary to what every American mother preaches. Being a breakfast connoisseur, I was initially weary of being without eggs and a huge coffee to start my day off. However, this weekend I was fully converted believing in an Italian breakfast. I’m convinced the woman who ran our cabins was a saint. Each morning, at 8:30 precisely, she would open the dining room and serve us a breakfast of freshly made cornetti (chocolate, cream, and marmalade filled), juice, and individually made cappuccinos and espresso. Divine intervention was surely the cause of such a magnificent spread.

Small town Italian culture is something I’m incredibly happy to have experienced first hand. The feeling of an entire town coming together to celebrate a harvest is overwhelmingly beautiful. Wine makers, farmers, local cooks, and townspeople all come together to celebrate the mushroom harvest as well as their own local products. Cusano Mutri wholeheartedly welcomed our group and treated us like members of their community, which I am grateful for. I’ll never get the insight to such an integral part of Italian culture as I did this weekend. Here’s to mushrooms and memories made at Cusano Mutri!

Authentic London

By Megan Prokott | February 7, 2015

Hello my lovely readers!

Well, I’m making a go of becoming a true Londoner and I think I’m making some real progress! I’ve started to feel true annoyance at those who stand on the wrong side of tube escalators (the left side is reserved exclusively for those willing to risk their lives on the incredibly long and steep escalators to be on time), I now wear scarves as stylized, belted blankets in order to fend off the damp chills of February, and I have tried every type of cider I can think of at every type of pub. I also eat sandwiches multiple times a day, I am addicted to Cadbury chocolate Oreo bars (& had a moment of genuine panic at the Cadbury ban in America), and I have blown the dust off of my two years of Deutsch, much to the entertainment of a few German friends. But perhaps, most importantly, I have finally started discovering the fun, authentic, and commonplace pasttimes of my British neighbors!

Midway through the week, I ventured out to appease on of my favorite guilty pleasures at an independent bookstore. The London Review Bookstore is the most wonderful place- no one tried to rush me out the door once I found what I was looking for, there are chairs in the basement to sample your reading material, and, most charmingly of all, I happened in on one of their monthly Late Night shopping events and was offered a complimentary glass of wine for my trouble. It was the perfect way to spend a Wednesday night.

I also spent quite a lot of time at the V&A Museum with my sister, which is often skipped during short visits to London; however, Taylor and I both found the museum and its exhibits to be truly incredible- so much so that we will be headed back soon to see what we didn’t have time for.

On a slightly more important note, we also tried our first authentic dessert at the beautiful cafe. The scone I ate (my first one!) certainly would have been life-altering, had the stain glassed windows and luxurious atmosphere of the cafe itself hadn’t already done it. Not to mention I almost shed a tear at Taylor’s perfect Victorian sponge cake. 10/10 would recommend making this stop a priority.

Finally, I am a true sucker for the ambiance of a building; therefore, I have begun my search for the perfect study space.

So far the Reading Room of the Wellcome Center is taking first with its plush staircase littered with pillows and its interactive distractions. If you need a break from Tolstoy, there are truly terrifying dentistry tools to examine, straightjackets to try on, and a postcard table to tell your mom about all the fun you’re having.

A close second is the British Library, where one can ogle original Charlotte Bronte manuscripts, Leonardo Da Vinci notebooks, and unfinished Beethoven pieces. I just went through the rather rigorous process of getting my own Reading Pass this afternoon -I had high hopes that the countless esteemed individuals whose work is on display would give me the strength to focus on the “study” in study abroad 😉

Tomorrow I am heading off to Cambridge to see what else the UK has to offer! Stay tuned 🙂

-Megan

O Wonder!

By Megan Carter | August 30, 2015

“O wonder!

How many goodly creatures are there here!

How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world,

that has such people in’t!”

-Shakespeare, The Tempest

…

Fourth Time’s the Charm

By Aleksandra Wysocki | August 31, 2015

Ciao tutti! My name is Aleksandra Wysocki, but please, know me as my Polish nickname, Ola. It’s what I’ve been called my entire life and it was one of the reasons I chose to study Italian vs. Spanish (because Hola, me llamo Ola! seemed a bit annoying to me…. Okay, that’s not the reason I chose to study Italian, but it’s definitely one of them).

Moving on.

This is my fourth time in the eternal city. I’ve been lucky enough in my life to have been here three times previously; six weeks during the summer when I was thirteen years old, a winter break vacation when I was fourteen, and a ten day choral tour through Loyola this past summer. Disregarding the most recent trip, I think it’s safe to say that I’ve grown up a lot both physically (thankfully, because middle school me had a lot of work to get to where I am now) and emotionally between my previous visits and now. I look at the world in a different way than I did back when I was thirteen and (hopefully) people see me differently.

21577_1176340899819_3572383_n — Ola a Roma, natale 2010.

You may be wondering why Roma again? Why not somewhere new? Well… I’ve definitely thought about it, to be honest. There are a lot of places I could have gone, but yet, I’ve always gone back to the thought of living it up in la citta eterna.

Despite being here before, I can’t tell you street names where certain things are. I can’t tell you where the best gelato is (although right now Giolitti’s is at the top of my list) or where you can get the best dish of bucatini all’amatriciana (it’s to die for). I don’t know all of the names of the neighborhoods other than Trastevere, Centocelle (where I happen to have family, which is the reason I’ve been here before) and now Balduina, thanks to being a student at the JFRC.

During my last trip here this past summer, I got the opportunity to travel outside of Rome. Thanks to the generosity of the university, Loyola’s choir got to not only stay at the JFRC, but travel to Napoli, Pompeii, Assisi and Firenze and for the first time, I got to travel around Italy without my family. I didn’t only stay in the touristy areas of cities. I got the opportunity to explore on my own and with people my age, and for me that was life changing.

That is why Roma again. I want to better my Italian and to spend time with my family here as well, but I truly love Italian culture. I love their way of life, at least what I perceive it to be. I want to discover this beautiful nation personally. If I can see other places in Europe, that’d be amazing too, but my focus will be Roma. Not only will I be interning at an Italian film production company (which I’m psyched for) but I’m also hoping to tutor Italian students with English.

I’m excited to be back and see where this adventures will take me! Jet lag and orientations have rendered me ridiculously tired these first few days and I feel like I’ve been running on adrenaline. Yet, that exhaustion isn’t complete, as I’ve been out almost every other night, chilling in Piazza del Popolo and eating some delicious pizza. The beach trip to Maccarese was also a blast, despite the fact that it resulted in a slightly sunburnt Ola.

To wrap up this somewhat long post (I’m actually quite surprised with myself, seeing how much I ended up writing) as mensa just opened up and I’m quite hungry, here are two pictures from my Sunday walk in the city center with some new friends.

IMG_8244-001 — Bucatini all’amatriciana. Definitely order it if you love yourself. Originally, it was known as more of a poor man’s dish, because it was so simple and had few ingredients, but I see it as more of a triumphant ode to simplicity, as IT IS DELICIOUS.

P.S. If you want a more in depth look at my adventures/more pictures, feel free to follow my personal blog at https://olawysockiphotography.wordpress.com/!

London, I’m Here.

By luctechco | February 2, 2016

I’ve been in London for a week now and have been getting settled into this new and amazing city. My flight arrived early in the morning at Heathrow Airport and I took the underground to Kings Cross Station. Taking the train rather than a taxi saved me a lot of money. Coming from Chicago I felt like I would be able to handle the public transportation and luckily I ended up in the right place.

I am glad that I took the train into the city because I was able to sit for the 45 minutes it takes to get there and take in the views along the route. As I sat on the train I noticed how almost everyone was reading a book or the morning paper, which was quite refreshing to see.

Once I checked into my residence hall, I roamed around Islington looking for… towels. I figured it would be easy to purchase some but after walking around aimlessly for miles, I decided to hop on the underground and go to Oxford Street where I ended up at a very popular shopping area. Although browsing the stores would have been fun, I was drained by all the traveling so I bought only the necessities and got back to my place.

The next few days were spent at orientation and checking out a few of the sites in London. The International Programmes Office sponsored a bus and boat tour for us to get a brief view of the city. The tour gave us a glimpse into the popular spots, so later on we are able to go back to the places we like. We stopped by Big Ben, Kensington Palace, Tower Bridge and the London Eye to name a few of the popular sites.

Most of my time so far has been spent exploring the surrounding neighborhoods and getting comfortable in my new place. Hopefully once the first week of school is over I will be able to start planning out how I want my semester to go!

No Thaim till Thailand

By luctechco | August 2, 2016

When your countdown app reaches the single digits, you know it’s real.

Hi everyone! My name is Brandon, and I’m about to takeoff in less than 9 days for a wild year in Chiang Mai, Thailand with the USAC program! I’ll be spending my sophomore year at Chiang Mai University. CMU is one of the best universities in Thailand, and has about 50,000 students! I’ll be living in an apartment with another USAC student, but I don’t know who quite yet. This actually will be my second year abroad in Thailand, since I was previously an exchange student with the Department of State’s Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange & Study (YES) Abroad scholarship program during my senior year of high school. I lived in the south of Thailand in a coastal city called ‘Surat Thani’ (soo-raht tah-nee) with an incredibly host family. I can’t tell you how stoked I am to experience nine more incredible months of adventure, exploration, learning, weird smells, strange foods, elephants, and constant smiles. This time, I will be way up north in the mountains, in Chiang Mai. From what I’ve experienced already, the culture in Chiang Mai is far more relaxed than Surat Thani (Surat Thani is known as a fast-paced city with a lighting-fast dialect of Thai spoken), so I’m interested to see how daily life differs. And, of course, I will blog the entire year just like I did the first year! Before I make it to Thailand, I’m going to Toronto, Canada, to spend a week with my best friend in the entire world, Vinny! I leave the USA on August 11th, which is coincidentally the same day I left for Thailand back in 2014. Summer classes are almost done, flights are booked, visas are ready, and all I have to do now is pack my bags and say my goodbyes!

Most of the classes that I will be taking this year will apply towards my Political Science and International Studies majors, so I won’t be doing much with Neuroscience until I return to Loyola in 2017. Here’s what I’ll be taking this semester:

– Diplomacy in Southeast Asia

– Global Health Issues

– Reading and Writing Thai Language

– Sustainable Development

– Thai Civilization

– World Economic Issues

I’m probably most excited about Global Health Issues and Sustainable Development! While I’m abroad, I’m planning on working with the Chiang Mai ‘Care For Dogs’ Foundation, where I’ll just be volunteering and taking care of some sweet pups. I’m also planning on interning with a local hospital and the U.S. Consulate. One of my goals this year is to occupy my time with any and all opportunities that are available to me. Last time, I wasn’t as progressive with going for opportunities as I was so swamped with college applications and preparation, exams, and other things. I know for sure that I will be doing things that I don’t know about yet.

As for how I’m feeling about leaving for another year, I do have to say it’s a whole lot easier. I’m not exactly feeling very nervous or excited either, I’m just ready. I am however, feeling pretty blue about leaving my friends and family. That part hasn’t gotten easier. BUT, I do get to see my host family a few times this year, and my best friend Ashley Cox is coming all the way to Thailand to backpack with me around Southeast Asia for Christmas break. Also, my roommate this summer, Noah, is coincidentally planning on doing the Chiang Mai program as well next spring, so I’ll get to see him! I’m sure I’m going to meet so many incredible people this year, and I absolutely cannot wait; that’s one of the best parts of living abroad in my opinion.

Possibly the best part of my experience this year will be all the countries that I will be visiting. I received an awesome travel grant to work with, so I’m excited to get exploring! Here’s where I’ll be going this year:

Canada, Taiwan, Thailand, Hong Kong, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, India, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, France, Netherlands, Germany, Iceland, and Canada (again)!

Some of these destinations will be random weekend trips, some will be during my winter break, and the rest will be part of an around-the-world trek I am undertaking by myself while on my way home from Thailand. I know it sounds astronomically wild and maybe a bit dangerous, but there’s so much world to see and I’m taking this opportunity and running with it! It’s going to be a blast!

I will write again right before I depart!