Bama Bloggers Abroad
First thoughts at home…
Currently, I am sitting at the Atlanta airport thinking about my time abroad. I have never been more excited to be at an airport. I am so ancy to be back in Indiana. It is crazy to me that I am...
My Summer in France Refection
Looking back at my trip, I am so glad I put such hard work in order to go because it was all worth it. I was fortunate enough to have a great group of students with me which truly made the...
My UA Study Abroad in France Experience
I had a lot of preconceived notions about France from hearing other peoples’ experiences. For the most part I was wrong about my initial expectations and stereotypes about the country and its...
C&IS in France
I’ve known I wanted to study abroad years before I even knew what college I would attend. As I started to come into my own at Alabama, I learned about C&IS in France, a program that combined...
How I prepared for Chemical Engineering in Ireland
**DISCLAIMER** all of this information is about June 2019’s experience in Ireland. While it may be the same program, the University College Dublin (UCD) or The University of Alabama may have made...
Living in the Dominican Republic
Here is a glimpse of what I have been up to the past few weeks in the Dominican Republic! I was so fortunate to receive a grant to study here this summer. I am taking intensive Spanish and Dominican...
Welcome to Sydney: First Impressions
I had been abroad before, so I didn’t have any of the usual jittery feelings about being in a foreign country that some students might experience. I was eager and ready to undertake another...
5 Things Nobody Tells You About England
Here's the view from my window Until 8 days ago, I had never left the North American Continent. I was definitely excited to visit England, and thought I had a pretty good grasp on what the...
Returning to the USA
Six weeks have flown by in Colombia, and now I'm back in the USA. The first couple days back, I found myself saying things in English but in grammatical structures of Spanish or even saying certain...
Finally Home (Well Sort Of…)
Processed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with p5 presetProcessed with VSCO with hb2 presetProcessed with VSCO with c1 preset As my wonderful time in Madrid came to a close I was more...
Reflecting on Study Abroad in Spain
I have been back in the United States a week now, and even though I was homesick in Spain, I'm now homesick for Spain here in Alabama. My experiences, memories, and the things I learned during my...
Studying in Eastern Europe: the Do’s and Don’ts
As my time abroad is coming to an end, I am reflecting back on what I wish I knew before starting my studying abroad. My trip around Eastern Europe was incredible, but there were definitely some...
Why Did I Sign Up For This?
UA in Oxford ~ Pre-Departure There are many “firsts.” I could go on and on about the matter but in this case, the “first” would be travelling internationally. Whenever someone encounters a “first,”...
Arrivederci, Italia
It has now been a month since I have returned home from my four months abroad in Italy. I already look back on the days when I could walk by the Duomo and munch on a cannoli anytime I wanted like...
Scotland Soon!
Hey, my name is Tristan, and I am a senior chemical engineering student at The University of Alabama. I will be leaving to Edinburgh, Scotland tomorrow for UA in Scotland: Unit Operations Lab. I...
(sorta) Alla Mezza
I planned to pop back in at the half way point in the semester to write...but things got a little busy! So, this is my mid semester check-in, and it is coming at a time that ironically feels the...
Choosing UA in Oxford
"The Sun never sets on the British Empire" ~Unknown Choosing the UA in Oxford program wasn't a hard decision because there are several centuries of history on almost every corner that's still being...
Pre-Departure: UA in Oxford
With less than twenty-four hours before I embark on my journey to Oxford University through the UA in Oxford program, I think what experiences I will have there. After all, Oxford University has...
Learning Abroad
Today in Madrid, we had our final day of class. For my program, our class culminated in a presentation about how we have been changed by the trip. During my month in Madrid, I took two classes for...
EC 309 in Croatia Upon Return
I have now been back from my intermediate macroeconomics study abroad trip in Croatia for about five days. Upon initially arriving back in the United States, I was very happy to be back and felt...
Why Delays and Missed Flights Are Just Part of the Adventure
Hi guys! I am Kaitlin, and I am studying abroad in Madrid, Spain this summer. Before my trip abroad, I had never been on an international flight before. In fact, I had only ever been on a plane...
Excursions in Spain
One of the best parts of my study abroad program were the excursions. I participated in UA’s Language and Culture program in Spain, and we visited some of the most important historical and cultural...
First Impressions of Prague
With this being my first time leaving the United States, I didn’t know what to expect of the Czech Republic. I watched several...
A Lot to Learn
The EC 309 class that I took during my 3-week trip to Europe was the least of the lessons that I am taking into my future. That’s not to understate the terrific teaching of Dr. Lee and Dr. Arcabic,...
Discover Something Unique
Throughout the extent of my UA Macroeconomics in Europe course, I was able to visit some of the most beautiful cities in Europe. Between Prague, Budapest, and Venice, I’ve taken so many beautiful...
Missing Belize
Being back in the U.S. for almost a month now is still odd. While in Belize, my skin was acne-free from eating fresh, unprocessed food and swimming in salt water every day. Now, my face is breaking...
Field Trips in Spain
The Study Abroad schedule in Spain is structured where we have class Monday through Thursday and on Friday and Saturday we take a field trip to a different city to see the historic places like...
Before Berlin
Although I have been in Berlin for a week, I have decided to take the time to reflect on what it took to get here. I will write about my first experiences in another country sometime soon. I chose...
Pre-Paris Departure
I’ve wanted to visit France since I began learning the language as a freshman in high school. I never would have guessed that I would still be studying French in college, let alone taking it on as...
EC 309 in Croatia While Abroad
I am currently about halfway through my UA faculty led intermediate macroeconomics study abroad trip in Croatia, and it has been absolutely incredible. Upon arriving in Zagreb, Croatia, I...
The Beginning to a New Adventure
Saturday, June 2, 2019 I am writing from the Toronto airport waiting to catch my flight overseas to Frankfurt and onto Zagreb! I have already had a long day of travel from Denver to Detroit to...
To Madrid…and Beyond!
Lisbon. Barcelona. Sevilla. Rome. Budapest. Morocco. What do all of these places have in common? I've been there! It was always my dream to study abroad as an attempt to quench my thirst for travel,...
Initial Thoughts on my Education Abroad Experience
Experiencing a new country is an invaluable and worthwhile experience. At the beginning of my trip I was very excited but I was slightly nervous about gettting out of my comfort zone. After...
Comida Comida Comida
Spanish tortilla dishA little something similar to homeMy first tapa!! My favorite thing about being somewhere other than Texas is the different kinds of food (by the way, comida means food in...
Why Go Abroad?
Hey y'all I'm Courtney and I am prepping to spend my summer in Madrid! I want to go abroad because WHEN ELSE are you young and able to drop everything to spend a month in Europe? (or any location of...
Beginning Italian Course
Academics here in Florence, Italy is quite different than it is at The University of Alabama. Florence University of the Arts is broken up into different classroom buildings based off of the class...
Cinque Terre
Sunday June 16th, we had an excursion to Cinque Terre with our study abroad program, ISA. I have been so eager for this excursion ever since I first found out about it. We boarded a charter bus...
Initial Thoughts
I have been in Italy for approximately four days and I can already state that I am in love with this new culture and environment. At first, I was hesitant to all the new and unfamiliar things that I...
Gotta to See, Gotta Know: From South Africa to Home
View of Cape Town After being mainly anxious and nervous about going to South Africa, my first thoughts when I arrived at the airport to come home were about my arrival and departure. When I was at...
Kia Ora!
Kia ora is the standard greeting in New Zealand, a bit of the language of the indigenous people (Māori) that means "be well." It is what the flight attendant at the Air New Zealand desk said to me...
Reflection
On this trip I will have switched back and forth time zones six times by the time I get back home. My sleep schedule is going to be pretty whack for the next couple days. I tried to stay up pretty...
Reverse Culture Shock
I have been home for about 3 weeks now and let me say it is a 180 degree turn from what I became used to. My first week back I...
Roman Around For The First Time.
I was ready to embrace my inner Lizzie McGuire. Pasta. Pizza. Museums. Italy, specifically Rome sounded like my cup of tea- or glass of wine! I was so excited getting ready. What will I wear?...
Saving Money When Studying Abroad
Studying abroad can be very expensive and sometimes that’s a limit that prevents us from even thinking it’s an option. I thought so too, until I found different ways to receive and save money during...
¡Junior Tu Papá!
The professional soccer team from Barranquilla is called Junior. The iconic red and white stripes of their jersey can be seen all around the city on any given day, along with people calling out...
Pre-Six Week Adventure in the Great Wide Somewhere (London)
I'm finishing my degree in Finance and Economics at the University of Alabama in December of this year. I'm from the suburbs of Chicago, and when I was a freshman I thought Bama was the farthest I'd...
Welcome to Soweto and Bo-Kaap
Street View of Bo-Kaap, South Africa When I first arrived in South Africa, I was not sure how I should feel. I still felt anxious and nervous but excited and curious about everything. To choose what...
EC 309 in Croatia Pre-Departure
Traveling is something I have loved to do for as long as I can remember. This made my decision to go on the intermediate macroeconomics in Croatia UA faculty lead study abroad trip a relatively easy...
6 Safety Tips For Your Time Abroad
My friends' and I held up our passports and boarding passes for a picture before our trip to Italy last year. Spoiler: see tip #6 for how we kept our passports safe! My study abroad trip to France...
Just Say Yes
The one piece of knowledge I’ve learned on this trip that I could tell anyone would be just say yes. While we are all college kids making our way in the world and limited funds, some of my favorite...