by Madeline P | Aug 15, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
Wow, what a summer. I left for Oxford, England with zero expectations and returned to the US with numerous and irreplaceable friends and memories. This trip was one of culture, history, and knowledge that made each of my experiences abroad even more meaningful. The...
by Mary P | Aug 15, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
Today was my first full day in Berlin. I was supposed to arrive early Saturday morning, but due to delayed flights I arrived Sunday evening. Directly after my arrival, along with two friends, our group of University of Alabama students went to a restaurant just down...
by Mary P | Aug 10, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
Berlin is a city of immense diversity and many different cultural influences. I am grateful to have experienced all of them during my stay. Finishing my class at the Humboldt University made me feel both proud and sad. I learned a lot from the class, and it was...
by Madison K | Aug 5, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
Before I left for Ireland, people warned me (incessantly) about the strange type of sadness that permeates Life-After-Travel, and I laughed these off, chalked it up as a silly theory for overly sensitive people (of which group I don’t count myself a part). But...
by Emily S | Aug 4, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
One day removed from the journey back home from my study abroad trip, I’m still a bit jet lagged, but overall I haven’t experienced any extreme reverse culture shock. I was expecting to feel uneasy once home, maybe missing the bustle of Berlin or the...
by Madeline P | Aug 4, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
In my opinion, we live and study at one of the prettiest colleges in England. Worcester College and the city of Oxford have really begun to feel like a home away from home. The classes that my peers and I attend really integrate exploring Oxford, and we are encouraged...
by Megan B | Aug 3, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Asia, Europe, Semester, UA Non-Affiliate
I’ve been home for about a while now and I’m getting ready to head back to Alabama for the fall. So I have used this time to reflect on my time in Russia. Now it seems so far away and its weird to think that I’ve spent a semester there. At first I wasn’t sure...
by Madison K | Aug 3, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
When I was considering studying abroad with the university, I looked at the different programs that were offered more than I looked at the locations of those programs specifically. So, when I chose to go to Ireland with the English program, I knew little to nothing...
by Samantha S | Aug 3, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Education, Faculty-Led, Summer
My time here in Stockholm has been life changing! Unfortunately, this trip is coming to an end soon and I could not be more sad. As I sit here and reflect on my time I have realized many things. I guess I should start from the beginning though! First impressions. As I...
by John E | Aug 3, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
After arriving in Dublin after nearly twenty-four hours of being awake, my situational awareness was not at full capacity. But the first strange thing I remember noticing was riding the bus from the airport to the city on the left side of the road. A crash felt...
by Allison H | Aug 3, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Summer, UA-Affiliate
Another great perk of studying abroad is being able to experience different seasons in different places. For example: experiencing summer in Europe. Summers in Europe can provide quite the culture shock for Americans from the south. The weather can vacillate between...
by Erin B | Jul 28, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Asia, Faculty-Led, Summer
I am in the throngs of my China trip and, miraculously, nothing terrible has happened. No earthquakes, no kidnappings, no allergic reaction, I began to feel like I was on top of the world! The fact that I stared my anxiety down in the face and came on this trip was...
by Mary P | Jul 28, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
One of the perks of living in Europe is the ease of accessibility to other countries. In most cases, for less than one hundred Euros you can travel across national borders. Since I’m studying in Berlin, I decided to spend my free weekend in Prague. Along with...
by Emily S | Jul 27, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
Upon first arriving in Berlin, I immediately noticed how safe I felt. Granted, I took five years of German, so my familiarity with the language helped, but the environment of the city itself is genuinely open and welcoming to tourists. It gets dark late, locals speak...
by Allison H | Jul 27, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Summer, UA-Affiliate
While on my language program in Berlin, I spent one afternoon walking around the park, Tempelhofer Feld. This park is really special, because it’s actually an old airport used around the time of World War II. Originally used by Nazis, the airport was later the site of...
by Austin P | Jul 27, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
My time abroad was incredible and has definitely shaped the way that I interact with people. Throughout two flights from Madrid back to Chicago, I only talked in Spanish with native speakers. My first taste of reverse culture shock was going through security where I...
by Amanda B | Jul 27, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Australia/New Zealand, Summer, UA-Affiliate
Sydney and I did not meet on the best of terms. Sixteen hours of flying across the Pacific Ocean right after six hours of flying across the United States and only a couple hours of sleep doesn’t make for a great first impression on my part. But Sydney welcomed all of...
by Elizabeth P | Jul 27, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
The last leg of my journey led me to Venice, Verona, and finally seeing a live opera production! Our trip to Venice was too short, but the taste we got was delightful. It is a stunning city with a fascinating history and even more fascinating architecture. Verona,...
by Erin B | Jul 27, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Asia, Faculty-Led, Summer
“I’m going to China.” I have been repeating this mantra in my mind since I decided to go on this trip back in November. Frankly, I don’t even know how I ended up here. I was simply walking out of my Chinese 101 class when my teacher said, “You should go to China.” My...
by Michael T | Jul 26, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
So far, my only journey out of my hometown was 4 hours away to the University of Alabama. Today, I’m packed up and getting ready for a flight to Brussels, Belgium, and the butterflies are finally kicking in. I have no experience abroad, and I fight even know...
