“Mind The Gap”

Posted on June 26, 2014 by Bridget Rayburn

I have been in London for a little over a week now. My first day was not ideal, as I went to the wrong orientation. I found myself waiting in a Starbucks in the heart of London using their wifi trying to communicate with someone from my program. I was scared and felt hopeless. Finally, someone from my program came to find me. From there on out, everything has been great!

I feel like I have seen so much but I also feel like there is so much to do and see. The culture here is very similar to any big city back in the states. There are obviously differences, the main one being the means of transportation here in London. I have almost been hit by cars and bikes multiple times because I can’t seem to remember that the vehicles are coming from the opposite direction than they do at home. The steering wheel being on the right side of the car makes everything more confusing. I catch myself looking into cars and being confused because it looks as if no one is driving!

I have become much more comfortable with riding the tube (London’s underground transportation system) and have ridden it alone multiple times now. Everyone is very quiet on the tube and I feel like an outsider eating my breakfast on my way to class… no one eats on the go here, very different than in the states! All of the different underground lines are color coded so it makes it easy to navigate. I have memorized my route to class and have becoming great at “minding the gap”

I have had quite a bit of fish and chips since I have been here and have started exploring different food options. My flat is equipped with a kitchen so I have been eating at home at times to save money. Also, getting “take-out” or “to-go” means nothing to the locals… it is called “take-away” here and they will look at you blankly unless you use their terms.

I have met people from California to New York and everywhere in between who are studying here as well! Everyone has gotten along so far which has been great. My flat mates are really nice and most of us have similar interests.

“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” -Ernest Hemingway

Tower Bridge!

The London Eye

At the gates of Buckingham Palace

Bridget

Leaving Today!

Posted on June 25, 2014 by Ashley Templeton

Today I am leaving for Mexico! I am super excited to be a part of the culture and can’t wait to see what all I will learn during my stay in Queretaro!

Pre-Departure to Queretaro

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Hi, my name’s Caitlin Mills. I’ve been looking forward to studying abroad in Queretaro, Mexico for a very long time. Overall, I am very excited to Mexico. I’ve always wanted to travel and learn more about Spanish. I’m excited to for the opportunity to learn about another culture and take Spanish and an ESOL class for the education program. I am a little nervous, only because I have a tendency to get home sick. To help with the nerves, I want to keep myself busy by exploring Queretaro with my friends so that I adjust quickly and experience more of what the city has to offer. I also want to be an example to show that not all Americans are what is portrayed on TV.

What I know of so far about my host culture is that extended family are more likely to live in the same house, grandparents, cousins, etc. live with a family. I also know it’s not that uncommon for older children, college grads, to still live at home. The culture places a higher value in families than in the States. Mexican’s also love their spicy food. I’ve heard that driving in Mexico is crazier than it is in the States. Houses are smaller, but are more decorative. I picture the houses as modern, or the stucco build that is seen in the Southwestern states. I also know that they love soccer. Most of the population is Catholic.

At the Host House

Posted on June 24, 2014 by Jennifer Hight

I made it to my host mother’s house. Her name is Monica and she is a very nice woman, however she does not speak any English what so ever so communicating is a little bit difficult right now. I figure after a couple of days it will be better, I at least recognize basic commands. It’s the full length conversations that are getting to me. She seems like a really nice lady (it’s only been a couple hours though) but strangely she doesn’t want me to really help with anything around the house. She has two children who are moved out and married, so I think she enjoys taking care of someone. I offer to help of course, but she refuses.

My room in my host mother’s house.

The house is a bit away from the university, so I’ll have to walk in the morning for a while to get to classes which means I get to wake up early. Yay! I was originally going to take four classes here, but after talking to the professors here they convinced me to take three. Their argument is 16 credit hours, when you meet every day for class, is a bit ridiculous. Even with three classes I’m in school until about 2 o’clock. Also, Monica bought me a phone for my stay here. It’s a pay as you go phone, mostly so I can call her if I need to. I just showed up and there it was ready for me to use. Tomorrow she’ll be taking me down to the store where I pay to use it so I can talk to the other kids in the program.

I’ll try and post something tomorrow about what the classes are like here.

Argentine phone Monica bought for me.

At the Ariston Hotel

Posted on June 23, 2014 by Jennifer Hight

I finally arrived in Rosario, and what an adventure it was. I got to wake up at the lovely time of 5 o’clock am to get to the airport by 6. My flight was at 7 and I wanted plenty of time to get to my gate. My taxi driver, a sweet man who spoke limited English and indulged my terrible Spanish, escorted me to the check in line so I wouldn’t get lost. From there it was pretty easy.

When I open up the window, this is what I get to see.

I got through security pretty well, the security officer just stared at me when I tried to take off my shoes like I was a very special snowflake. But still I managed and got into the waiting area. They loaded us onto a bus to take us to the plane, a tiny little thing, and I then proceeded to sleep through the entire flight. After I landed I took another taxi to the hotel, and again the driver was very nice. He kept asking me questions about California and I tried answering them as best I could but I think I just confused the poor man.

Everything worked out on the check in, and I went up to my room where I slept for about three hours before a girl from my program, Naomi, came in. We’re going to be sharing the room with one other person, Laney. After that, Naomi and I left the hotel with two other people and we went out for dinner at an upscale sports bar called Las Palmas. I split a sandwich with Michelle, something called chorizo which was delicious. Jason, the other person with us, wanted a beer but what came wasn’t a small bottle. No, this one was about the size of a liter of coke.

Dinner, chorizo, with the other study abroad kids.

Dinner with everyone at Las Palmas.

The most exciting part of the meal wasn’t watching Mexico beat Croatia at soccer. It was when all of a sudden during the meal a parade walked by us. About fifty kids who looked to be in college with drums and signs, all chanting the same thing as they walked by. It was bizarre but really cool. Again, looking at the buildings around me is strange. Half of them are upscale and modern, while the others are old and slowly falling apart. The pavement looks alright from a distance, but it is broken up in a lot of places. Also, during our walk, we learned that dogs do their business on the sidewalk and the poo is left behind.

Random parade outside the restaurant.

Well, after lunch we returned to the hotel for a quick evening meal as we met the entire group for the first time. Little sandwiches and empanadas were out for us to eat as we talked to our future professors. My Spanish must have been up to their standards because none of them laughed in my face. Once the reception finished I went on a walk with Laney and two other girls. Isamar is from WOU and I think the other girl is named Lauren (not sure on that one). We went to the Argentinian Wallmart where I got shampoo and body wash before walking down the main avenue of the town. It was gorgeous surrounded by trees and beautiful buildings. We were out for about an hour, and during this I learned one important thing.

Argentinian’s have no fear when it comes to cars. People were running around the street, one guy nearly got hit. There were no turn signals, lot’s of honking, everything was really fast and the four of us just watched in a kind of horrified awe. It was a little terrifying. The strangest thing is that there was this one juggler we saw, who when the light turned red ran into the middle of the street and began to perform. When the light turned green the cars would go and he would run through the cars back to the street. It was one of the most bizarre things I have ever seen in my life.

Taking a walk on the main avenue in Rosario.

Tomorrow I meet my host family and have orientation, so I’ll try to update after that.

First Night in Argentina

Posted on June 22, 2014 by Jennifer Hight

I got off the plane to Buenos Aires, and at first it seemed like no one was there. That might have had to do with the fact that the flight landed at 8 in the morning. Well, as soon as I got through the international check there were people everywhere. Swarms of people just talking and laughing, getting their bags, walking into stores. Being surrounded by that much Spanish was overwhelming, I forgot everything I knew and just stood there for a solid minute before moving on.

Baggage pickup was very nice, in a completely unexpected way. There were just lines of people waiting, some for baggage, some for customs, some I didn’t even know why they were there. All my bags came through which is always a relief and I met someone in line in the same situation.

Relaxing in Atlanta before my ten hour flight.

Her name was Ashley, and she was studying in Cordoba, Argentina for the summer. We quickly bonded as being the only two people who did not speak fluent Spanish in the near vicinity (she is from Scotland, and I am from the U.S. in case that was apparent already). We both enjoyed knowing there was one other person who had no idea what was happening around them.

Customs gave me no problems, they let me go pretty quickly. And then I entered the horde. I thought the international terminal was bad in EZE, but when I left it the rest of the airport was just packed with people. Once again, the shock of that many people just made me shut down a little before I got help.

This help came in the form of a taxi company. The woman who booked my cab (which was only 20 dollars in US dollars) wrote out directions to the money exchange. She then waited for me at the booth the entire time it took to complete the transaction before escorting me to my cab driver. That’s what really struck me in the airport, how wonderful and nice everyone was. Everyone was so pleasant and it was great. If they had all been super cranky I’m not sure what I would have done, especially at the hotel I’m staying at. They were all so wonderful, putting up with my mangled Spanish and helping get me checked in for my flight tomorrow. This poor guy, one of the concierges, had to help me for two hours because I couldn’t figure out how to work their computers.

I loved the ride over from the hotel. I spent the entire time looking out the windows and just studying how different the trees around me were. They are similar enough to California trees to be comforting, but just different enough to draw attention. I haven’t seen any birds yet, but they are loud out there. Another thing I didn’t realize was how humid it is here, it just feels like it should be raining at any second.

What really struck me though, and what is going to stick with me, was the strange mash of buildings on the drive. There were some ancient churches we drove past that were absolutely gorgeous tucked right up against state of the art soccer stadiums. Ranches sit right next to golf courses, a stunning white cathedral sits across from my hotel right next to an actual hovel. One of the walls was caving in, chickens and horses were running around it, and standing above it is this display of wealth. This striking mismatch shocked me. From my window, there’s a perfect example of this. A brand new soccer stadium sits proudly, while next to it is a concrete bridge for pedestrians that looks to be slowly falling apart.

One of many such projects I saw on my drive to the hotel.

My hotel in Buenos Aires.

And while I feel that these are important to point out, it was some of the ruins that really had a chilling effect. On the drive to my hotel, I noticed there was a little cute picture of a police man that said 30km. He appeared again at the 20km marker and counted down to something, I just wasn’t sure what. In about thirty seconds though I found out. The remains of a police check point was what I saw, the glass broken and burn marks on the concrete. I don’t know what it is from, and it happened to fast to take a picture of, but it was enough to make me curious about why it was so damaged.

But what really made my night was dinner. So the only restaurant is this really nice fancy one. And it was the only place I could eat tonight so I went. I felt so bad for the manager, here he is trying to keep it all fancy as people are there with their dates and families. I went there directly after getting off the plane. So its been about two days since I showered, my hair is disgusting, and I have no makeup on. I am sitting in his fancy restaurant eating a delicious meal looking disgusting while he tries to deal with it. It should not have been as funny to me as it was. Must be the lack of sleep.

A really nice place where I had dinner.

Last night at home before heading to Rosario, Argentina.

Posted on June 21, 2014 by Isamar Aguirre

My name is Isamar Aguirre, and tomorrow morning I will be headed to Argentina! I’m very nervous, but i’m also very excited. Currently i’m mostly nervous about riding on a plane, since it has been so long. But I am very excited to interact and be exposed to a different culture.

Week 1: Life with a Scottish Accent

Posted on June 21, 2014 by Natalie Wallace

So, here I am, with my first full week in Scotland coming to a close. Man, there is so much to talk about. My two classes (British Journalism and the Psychology of Evil) have both been going pretty well, I am enjoying them more than I thought I would since neither really has to do with my biology major, but it’s nice to take a break from all of the science. For the first few days, I was a bit stressed out and would be lying if I said that I didn’t miss home. I knew that coming to a new country, living, going to school, and meeting a bunch of new people would be difficult, but I was surprised how hard it hit me at first. Yet, after meeting some people and catching up on sleep, I am feeling better than ever!

So, my week was an interesting one. I have classes Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday with excursions for those classes on Fridays. Since I am taking only two classes, I have a lot of free time, which I used to go into Stirling and explore a bit both by myself and with some friends. Thursday, all of the International Summer School students had a day trip to St. Andrews, which is pretty much the birthplace of golf. At first, I wasn’t too excited to go, but once we got there, I wanted to live there. It was on the coast, the sun was out (which doesn’t happen in Scotland, like Oregon), and the town was full of beautiful old buildings. The University there is pretty famous as well, because both Prince William and Kate Middleton attended school there. While there, we went to the castle, the cathedral, went to a kilt shop, and even tried haggis nachos (yes, they are apparently world famous), which weren’t too bad as long as you didn’t think too hard about what you were eating. My day ended sitting on the beach, while listening to a man play the bagpipes on the beach, it was pretty amazing!

Friday I had two class excursions. The first one was a trip to the Daily Record in Glasgow, which is a tabloid newspaper. We got to meet the editor, sit in on a meeting, and talk with some various other people, which was pretty interesting even though I am not a journalism major or minor. The other excursion for the day was the one I was most excited for, a trip to the Wallace National Monument, which is here in Stirling! We walked from campus to the Monument, which wasn’t too far. The stairs to go to the top were very tight and small, it was bad if people were trying to go up and down at the same time. Yet, there were three different rooms that you could stop in on the way to learn more about William Wallace’s history, as well as other famous Scots of the time. One of my favorite things was the Wallace Sword, which was taller then I am! It was amazing to learn so much about someone I share a last name with (and am probably related to). Once we made it to the top, it was breathtaking. The pictures I took just don’t do it justice. You could see for miles, it was beautiful. I was talking to a Scottish woman who said she had been to the Monument multiple times, but this was the first time it have ever been sunny. I felt lucky to have such great weather because the views were fantastic!

If all of that traveling and walking wasn’t enough, today (Saturday) me and a group of other students decided to walk up this hill (which is an understatement) behind campus called Dumyat. Even though we got a little lost on the way, we eventually found the path and started walking up these beautiful green hills through sheep pastures to get to the top. Even though it was steep and exhausting, it was worth it for the views from the top, and again, the pictures don’t do it justice. At the top was a beacon that was full of stones which represent the wishes of everyone who had made it to the top. Apparently the beacon was placed there in 1977 as part of the Queen’s jubilee. We eventually made it back to campus after nearly 10 miles of walking and hiking being both exhilarated and exhausted. I am already feeling the pain from all of the climbing and walking I have done this week, but I wouldn’t trade any of it for anything in the world, and it is only the end of week 1! I can’t wait to see what the rest of my time in Scotland will bring!

Cheers,

Natalie

Wallace Monument

The group when we made it to the top of Dumyat

Me next to the Wallace sword (they wouldn’t let me take it even though it had my name on it )

View from the top of the Wallace Monument

Trip to the Daily Record in Glasgow

Beautiful day in St. Andrews that ended with a bagpiper on the beach.

Haggis Nachos!!

St. Andrews Cathedral

St. Andrews Castle (or rather, what’s left of it)

Heading Out Tomorrow-Jen Hight

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Jennifer Hight

Last post right before I head out, tomorrow I am going to board the plane and head to Buenos Aires. I’ll be sure to keep contact up. I already wrote about what I expected once I went, so I decided to post about who I was leaving behind when I left. The picture on the left is of my and my friend Taylor, we’ve known each other since we were nine. I’ll miss hanging out with her, but am excited to go. The picture on the right is my family. They’ve been amazing dealing with my anxiety about heading out, lucky for them it’s over in about ten hours.

So I’m off soon, but will keep everyone posted at least once a week.

Pre-Departure to Queretaro!

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Marissa Gowen

Hi my name is Marissa Gowen and I am so excited to leave for Queretaro, Mexico next week! I have been looking forward to this trip all year!

I chose Queretaro Mexico because I want to become more fluent in Spanish and I want to learn more about Mexican culture. I look forward to getting to know more about the Mexican way of life and skills that will prepare me for my future. I also am excited to meet my host family and I can’t wait to get there. I chose Queretaro also because I a taking a ESOL/Bilingual class for my teaching major and I look forward to learning more about the struggles that Mexicans have when they come to the United States. Lastly, I am excited to go because I believe that I will become a more worldly knowledgeable person and I look forward to telling everyone about my experiences and fun times in Mexico.

I think my host culture will be like what I have heard about what Mexico is like. I believe that it will be hot and dry as I have been told. I also believe that there will be a lot of colorful buildings and a lot of good smells and foods as well as that women wear more conservative clothing. Lastly, I think that my host culture will have a lot of extended families and small houses. I see myself interacting with my host culture as a representative of Western Oregon and I will be kind and respectful towards everyone. I am excited because I look forward to trying new things and being abroad in the first place. I have been abroad before but I know that Mexico will be very different than Europe in many ways. I am also nervous because I have never traveled out of the country alone before and I have never lived with people that I have never met before. Lastly, I am so excited to live in another country.