by Cody W | Jul 15, 2016 | Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
After I landed in Madrid several thoughts passed through my head. To start Madrid was huge but I wasn’t tall. When I think of big cities in America I usually think New York or Chicago style cities but here it seems cities are more spread out and less tall. After...
by Jacob T | Jul 15, 2016 | Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
My motivation and reasoning for going abroad is quite simple. As a rising senior majoring in chemical engineering, I am required to take a summer term Unit Operations Lab in order to complete my degree. I have always enjoyed traveling and experiencing new things, so...
by Lauren M | Jul 12, 2016 | Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
In the year 2000, I got bit by the travel bug. Seeing as I am 21 years old, you may be looking at the year and thinking it was a typo. No typo here, that year is accurate. At age 5, I decided I was going to travel the world. I had just started learning French,...
by Carson F | Jul 1, 2016 | Central America, Engineering, Faculty-Led, Summer
Now that I have been back home for a bit my journeys in Nicaragua seem more distant. While there I hiked volcanoes, searched for monkeys, and communicated in another language for two weeks. Here in my normal day to day life I go to work, pay bills, and grab...
by Carson F | Jun 30, 2016 | Central America, Engineering, Faculty-Led, Summer
Actually getting to Nicaragua proved to be much bigger hurdle than anticipated. Despite checking and re-checking flight times and prices, and waking up at approximately 1:00 a.m., I managed to miss my flight from Atlanta to Houston. I won’t go into specific...
by Carson F | Jun 29, 2016 | Central America, Engineering, Faculty-Led, Summer
I decided that I wanted to come to Nicaragua because it was the perfect opportunity to get valuable medical experience, to be immersed in latino culture, and to travel to a beautiful place. I start my junior year in the spring and with a job, and a desire to...
by Andrew D | Jun 28, 2016 | Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
Spain is a treasure trove full of historical sites. These places make the historical sites of the United States look like babies. Through out this month long study abroad trip, we have been able to visit many of these beautiful cities. These include Madrid, Salamanca,...
by Andrew D | Jun 23, 2016 | Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
Think of the flattest place on the Earth. Well, that’s where I live, Illinois. Smack dab in the center of the Midwest. Being the second most mountainous country in Europe, Spain is full of beautiful peaks, and I am a stranger to these mountains. Every day I get to...
by Andrew D | Jun 21, 2016 | Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
As an engineering student, history class was never really my thing. Reading page after page of a textbook about the Renaissance was such a chore. But learning history from a piece of paper verses actually walking through it is completely different. Spain is a country...
by Tate T | Jun 21, 2016 | Commerce & Business, Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
I’m writing this as we prepare for liftoff, headed to Berlin from Dublin. Our stay in Dublin was everything I could have hoped. My one worry, the perpetual threat of cold rain, turned out to be a nonissue. We received nearly immaculate weather on each day we...
by Tate T | Jun 21, 2016 | Commerce & Business, Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
And just like that, the trip was over. I traveled back to the States with a number of my fellow travelers, which eased the separation anxiety a little. Arriving home, my main concern was staying awake to overcome jet lag. A ten-hour flight will do a number on your...
by Gabrielle H | Jun 21, 2016 | Central America, Engineering, Faculty-Led, Summer
Now that I’ve been back in the US for almost two weeks, I’d like to reflect on this trip and my overall experience of travelling abroad on a faculty-led program. First, I think that every student should try to attend one study abroad program during their...
by Tate T | Jun 16, 2016 | Commerce & Business, Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
It’s hard to convey the range of emotions going through my head as I prepare to depart for Ireland and Germany. The week prior has been an absolute whirlwind; four final assignments capped off by my college graduation. It’s safe to say that I’m totally sleep deprived,...
by Gabrielle H | Jun 16, 2016 | Central America, Engineering, Faculty-Led, Summer
Now that I’ve spent a week living in a house in the Belizean jungle and a week on an island resort snorkeling every day, I’ve decided to post my original packing list and compare it to what I should have brought. Here is a picture of everything I packed:...
by Connor S | Jun 15, 2016 | Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
From the day I was born two things were predetermined by my parents: that I would go to college and that I would study abroad. Fortunately, as I grew up I agreed with their ideals fostering a love of both education and travel. The only questions I had to determine...
by Jessica Van Putten Vink | Jun 3, 2016 | Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
I was in Karlsruhe, Germany, a relatively small city that is home to Karlschochschule International University. On the first day that we interacted with the University, we sat in on a lecture by Dr. Desmond Wee, a professor there. He taught us about walking culture...
by Cody W | May 26, 2016 | Engineering, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer
Although I’ve never been the best speaker I’ve had a fascination with Spanish culture since the 2nd grade. My elementary school had an Spanish class one a week for all grades. Although I obviously couldn’t learn much Spanish as a student while only...
by Kurt A | May 24, 2016 | Asia, Engineering, Semester, UA-Affiliate
“Ano….Sumimasen, ichi onegai shimasu”. I said confidently to the staff member behind the counter. I knew she would understand what I was saying. A little cavemanish, but definitely passable, or so I thought. Oh no, she was giving me that look, that look I had seen so...
by Gabrielle H | May 24, 2016 | Arts & Sciences, Engineering, Faculty-Led, Summer
Belize is a beautiful country just south of Mexico. I have yet to meet a stranger here. The locals learn English in school, so English speakers will not have a problem communicating or getting around. Languages also spoken here include Spanish, Kriol (a unique mixture...
by Margaret M | May 24, 2016 | Engineering, Europe, Semester, UA-Affiliate
I’ve officially finished my course studies in Dublin and bittersweet doesn’t begin to cover it. I’ve managed to spend the last four months seeing every piece of Europe I could, and I’m not done yet! Although I didn’t know a soul in the...
