Monday, October 29, 2007

Carissa - Australia - Fall 2007

Good Day, mates! My name is Carissa Cheney and I am studying at theUniversity of Melbourne in Australia. Melbourne is a gorgeous andcomfortable city. There is so much to see and do in this city alone. Itis also a nice location for other traveling within Australia. I wouldhighly reccommend it to anyone wanting to travel in Australia. Theweather hear is just getting to perfect. Today it was 30 degrees celciuswhich I think would convert back somewhere about 75-80.I have had the opportunity to live at Whitley College. It is most closelylike what we would call a dorm. However, they have a lot more events andfunctions. There are also many organizations within the Colleges that youcan participate in. I live at one of the smallest colleges (131 students)so I have been able to get to know everyone hear. It is a close knit,welcoming atmosphere and there is never time to get bored. I have had mybest memories here and have had the best opportunites. I have been ableto go home with many of my Aussie friends to visit and meet theirfamilies. Its been wonderful to get out of the city and also to enjoysome good home cooking. I am excited because I bought my ticket to theMelbourne Cup today. Its the biggest horse race in Australia and takesplace in a little less than 2 weeks. It is racing season here - which isa big deal - people get very dressed up and it is an all day affair.The biggest academic change has been the grading system - as it hasdefinately taken some getting used to. Grading here is much moredifficult than that of the States. They use more of a bell curve andinstead of A, B, C, D, F they use H1, H2A, H2B, H3, P, N. Their wholeeducation system is very different from that at Elmhurst. Being at alarge University has also been an adjustment, but I have enjoyed andlearned a lot from it. I am ecstatic that you all have decided to studyabroad as well. It is an experience unlike any other. I recommend thatno matter where you are going - you don't stay in a safety group ofAmericans, but rather get to know people your age from that country -afterall that is what you are there for and it will definately enhanceyour trip! Cheers!Carissa

Ashley E. - Austria - Fall 2007

Grüß dich from Austria. Right now I'm living in Salzburg, Austria were at this moment it is snowing and has been snowing for the past couple of days. My time here so far has been amazing and I'm loving every bit of it. The first week or so was the really hard thing getting use to hearing German everywhere and not English, along with not knowing what everyone is always saying. Once I met my roommate who is from Southern Germany, it really helped with that aspect. We speak German to each other to the point where i can't understand then she tries her English and we go from there.
Salzburg has one of the best views in the world in my eyes. I wake up every morning and get to the part of the Alps out of my window. Completely different then Elmhurst.

Bis Später!!
Ashley Egert

Ashley - Austria - Fall 2007

After a visit in Germany (and Oktoberfest, naturally), I’ve made it here to Salzburg and am settling in quite nicely. The only way to describe it here, is that I feel as though I am living in a postcard! Everything here is so new and beautiful! I am so amazed at what this city has to offer. It has been a month since I was last home, and I am still not missing it! There is so muc h to see and experience and take in that I have no time to think about what is going on back home. My experience with Austrians, for the most part, has been very pleasant. Luckily, if I am at a loss for words, many people here speak English and communication has not be difficult. That has been a huge blessing on this trip; I always think of those who are studying in countries such as Thailand or China and just how difficult that must have been to get used to speaking.
I, along with two other EC students are part of a larger group through BGSU, and it has been a such a fun group and has been easy to meet new people, Americans and Europeans alike. We have so much to teach eachother and it has been fun times along the way. Luckily I find myself in an extremely clean and neat area and am able to go off and explore without a large group. I feel that has been the best way to settle in here, as well as speak German! I cannot wait to spend the rest of my time here!
mfG,
Ashley H.

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Alison - Australia - Fall 2007

I am really enjoying Australia! The semester is going pretty well,definately some adjustments, like we discussed in the prep class! When Iarrived in July, I started to blog at the site provided on that bookmark;so I already have a lot written down. If you'd like to check it out, here is the link to it: http://alisonsauadventures.blogspot.com/

Emily - Thailand - Fall 2007

Sawadii ka.So i'm in Chiang Mai thailand and it has had it's good and bad things.It's interesting to be here while all of the stuff in Burmna is coming tolight in the world. It's about time, because those people have beensuffering for far too long. And also during the time of interestingpolitical issues being brought up in Thailand--like a new constitutionbeing voted on and the ousting of Thaksin.I've learned so much about SE Asia that i realize how little Americateaches about it in school. They have such a fascinating history which isnot very old at all. Right now i have some downtime before i go to my Thailanguage class. Which is long, but Ajaan Tik (prof Tik) is very funny, andis very good at her job (she better be, she teaches Thai to USgovernmental officals.) I have been having a lot of fun conversing mymonks at Wat Chediluang (where i volunteer) i have gained much insightabout the sangha and Buddhism in thailand, which is another blog untoitself. Tonight other IPSL students and i are going to the AllianceFrancias to see a video called "Sacrifice" which is on the issue of humantrafficking (which is a huge problem in the US as well as SE Asia, soeveryone should do some research on it) -Emily Nagle

Aja - France - Fall 2007

1st blog post from Aja Robinson

My time here has been incredible.
I've never been so far away from home before, or for this amount of time. Nor have I ever been stuck in a situation where I absolutely had to use French. I guess there's a first time for everything.

First of all, to assure anyone who's never flown before, trans-atlantic flights are the best and safest ones you can take. Flying to Europe was the first time I've EVER flown, and it was not has frightening as I thought it would be. The staff are extremely professional, and the pilot is the best of the best. You will be in good hands.

Anyway, one thing I have to say about France so far is that it's real. What I mean to say is that even thought I've seen France and other European countries in movies and pictures, read about them in books and seen news reports on TV, this part of the world was never a "real" place until now. I've spend my whole life in America, completely unaware of just how different other cultures are, just how real they are. It's really a mind-blower for a person like me. But it's also something that has already changed my life.

I absolutely love it here. At first, I was pretty apprehensive about coming here because I was scared out of my mind. Even after the CPP class, I still wasn't sure about what to expect. But once I got settled in with my host family, I realized that as long as I accept the different way of life here and try to fit in as best as I can, life here will be fairly easy. One thing in particular that I've really grown to enjoy is the use of public transportation. It's actually quite liberating to not have to pay for gas, car maintenance, etc. All I need is my monthly pass and I'm good to go. In that respect, I've also grown quite accustomed to walking. Now, to most Americans, these activities may not seem like the most luxurious, but really they're quite serene. I've learned that there's nothing like a walk to the bus on a crisp, foggy morning in France. It wakes you up in such a way that coffee will never be able to accomplish.

Oh, and by the way, the food is AMAZING. But for those of you who happen to be lactose intolerant (like yours truly) be sure to bring a good supply of pills with you. There is cheese and cream in EVERYTHING.

Lets see...what else.
I guess I've run out of things to say, so I'll leave some room for questions here.
Ask me anything! If I don't know, I'll find out for you.
Merci et à très bientôt!
Aja

Monday, October 15, 2007

Welcome to Fall 2007 Semester Abroad

Hello from International Ed at EC!Welcome to another semester of ECAbroad. I hope that you will find this site to be a useful tool as you communicate with each other and with us back on campus. I encourage all of our current study abroad students to start right away to post blogs to the site - as you know, our current CPP250 students are anxious to hear all about your experience and to ask you important questions related to your experiences. Please e-mail any posts to me at alicen@elmhurst.edu and to Marj Galvan at marjg@elmhurst.edu. We will validate them and post them to the site, at which point others can add comments at will.Let me know if you have any questions. Can't wait to hear what's cookin' in the far corners of the world!