University of South Carolina - Columbia
May. 21
El Olvido Está Lleno de Memoria
“The forgetting is full of memories.” This comes a little late, but I think it’s important. About a week and a half ago, my program took us on a trip to Santiago to visit some memorials from the dictatorship. Before…
Apr. 25
Chapters
This chapter of my life is almost ending. It’s funny how we say that–like our lives are books, separated somehow by page numbers and paragraph breaks. Chapter 1: Infancy and Toddlerhood Chapter 2: Elementary and Middle School Chapter 3: High…
Apr. 13
A Moment of Reflection
Before I’d arrived in Chile, if you had asked me if I loved my country I would have said yes. If you had asked me if I was in love with my country I would have shrugged and said no.…
Mar. 24
Finally Settled in
Well, I’ve now been here a month. The month mark hit Thursday. It’s mind-boggling to think that I have been in this country for a month — it feels like I’ve been here for ages, but also like I just…
Mar. 03
Observations and Lessons
I apologize for the boring title, I’m awful at coming up with catchy titles. However, I’ve decided to make a post about all the different things I’ve noticed here, compared to the U.S. or just what I’m used to. 1)…
Mar. 02
Bienvenidos a Chile!
¡Hola! I have been in Chile for over a week now, which is incredible. I kind of feel like I’ve been here forever. On Thursday morning (2/21), my plane arrived at 10:15 Chilean time, which is 8:15 EST. It took…
Feb. 28
Doing Touristy Things in London
Two weekends ago Christine, Kendra and I went to London. We took a late train (because it was the cheapest) and did not get to the hostel until around midnight. This hostel was very different compared to the one Christine…
Feb. 19
Learning the English Ways
In this post, I plan to talk about some things I have noticed about England after living here 6 weeks. - They say the time differently. They don’t say the exact time, but how many minutes past or until the hour.…
Feb. 09
Oh, How Time Flies…
Well, it would seem I have less than 2 weeks until departure. 11 days, to be specific, or 1 1/2 weeks. I’m not quite sure how that happened. There isn’t much left to do at this point, other than buy…
Feb. 05
A Weekend Spent in Edinburgh
This weekend I visited Edinburgh, Scotland with Christine. I have asked multiple people what their favorite city in Britain is and several told me Edinburgh, so I was really excited to visit. We stayed with Christine’s friend, Mackenzie, from her home university,…
Feb. 03
Crossing over to the South Island
Hello everyone! Lots of updates today! After Rotorua and a great afternoon visiting Hobbiton (which looks just like the movie by the way), the group headed to Taupo where I did another swing, over water this time. It was a…
Jan. 28
Adrenaline!
Hello everyone! I have a lot of stories to share this time On our way to Rotorua we attended a sheep show and learned all about the different types of sheep that are bred here and the quality of wool.…
Jan. 26
Wildlife :D
Hi everyone! I’ve got a quick spot of internet, sweet! I arrived in Auckland yesterday but we started the first day of the tour this morning. We saw some Kiwi birds on the way to Waitomo, which are so cute! …
Jan. 13
Counting Down the Days
So, all of a sudden I’m leaving in 38 days. I think the appropriate response here is “….what??” It seems unbelievable that in just over a month I’m leaving the country, the continent, and the hemisphere to go study in…
Jan. 11
My First Week in England
I have made it to England! I have literally been so busy exploring and meeting new people that I have not had much time to write. Living in England has not been a major shock to me. The major difference…
Dec. 27
One Week ‘Til Takeoff
In exactly one will I will be driving down to Chicago, where I will fly to JFK, meet up with other study abroad students, and take a group flight to Heathrow. It is hard to believe that something I have…
Aug. 20
So close!!
From my study abroad blog for the University of South Carolina: I have flipped the page to a new week in my planner, and I am reminded by very brightly colored arrows of my departure this Sunday. I am so…
Aug. 13
It’s the Final Countdown!
Copy/pasted this from my blog for the University of South Carolina Study Abroad Blog: (Lucky number) 13 days until I leave for a semester in Florence, Italy! Today is the first day my feelings of anxiety and nervousness have truly…
Jul. 27
What the Penn State story means for higher ed professionals
Maybe a study abroad blog isn’t the best place for these thoughts to go. But I am currently abroad and following the Penn State story on the recent NCAA sanctions as best I can. Why? Well, because I find this…
Jul. 27
ONE month till Florence!
I can’t believe a month from today I will be in Florence. The time is creepily close to the point where I know exactly what I am doing every weekend leading up to the time I leave! I have a…
Jul. 26
Asking the “Right” Questions
My senior year of college, I was a part of a team of students from my home university that did a spring break service trip to Guatemala. This trip was the first time I had left the country since studying…
Jul. 21
Challenge 6: Leaving
The worst part of every travel experience is leaving. Six weeks ago, I arrived at Sookmyung Women’s University to begin my internship in the Office of International Affairs. Six weeks later, I am leaving this campus as a changed individual,…
Jul. 13
한국lish
Most Koreans my age and younger have attended after school academies for English, as well as a variety of other subjects (including music, sports, and other languages). So, many Koreans can speak English conversationally, or can at least make some…
Jul. 13
Challenge 5: the Working Culture
My graduate program requires students to participate in an internship for a variety of reasons. Broadening your experience, working in a new office that might structure things differently than you are used to, working with different people, and seeing student…
Jul. 10
Night photography: more than just pretty lights
I really like to take night shots of cities and places that I visit. I’ve had a few opportunities to photograph Seoul at night, although it is a tricky task without a tripod. There is something a little bit magical…
Jul. 07
Challenge 4: Cultural Activities
One of the most exciting aspects of my internship is also one of the most challenging: coordinating cultural activities for the students. Although most of the events were planned before my internship started, and I am unable to do most…
Jun. 29
Challenge 3: Students
The students have arrived! And my days have gone from (mostly) this: To this: As you can see, things have gotten much busier! I love having the students here and being able to see everything come together. Even though I…
Jun. 23
Challenge 2: Ambiguity
“How do you handle ambiguity?” It’s an interview question–a favorite one to ask of someone I know. But it’s probably the question I should have asked myself before coming to intern in South Korea. Because, Koreans LOVE ambiguity. I actually…
Jun. 20
On Adjusting and the Urge to Give Up
As I’m typing this post, I re-realize how awful I am at keeping anything journal-like in nature. I used to think, as a 3rd grader, that I could keep a diary and look back on it, but after 3 or…
Jun. 12
Hambre y Hombre
(FROM JUNE 5, POSTED LATE) After having been in Spain for 12 days, I have learned a lot about two things – hambre and hombre. These words mean hunger and mankind in English. For sure, hambre is a common thread…
Jun. 08
Went to get my visa for the second time!
I applied for my visa two weeks ago. I went into New York City and to the Italian Consulate bright and early. However, they told me I was too early and had to come back in 2 weeks. So yesterday…
Jun. 04
Ineloquence, or the Consequence of Jet Lag
I can’t think. So, let’s start from….not the beginning because that’d be predictable. It’s said to be almost impossible to lie when telling a story backwards. So from the end then, shall we? I’m in bed right now, at an…
Jun. 02
The Simultaneous Urge to Go and Stay
I had a lot of my friends in the States come over to my house for a cookout/potluck as a sort of send-off today. Between bustling to the door to greet people, making sure everyone eats and is enjoying themselves,…
May. 31
Bilbao – La Vida de un Extranjero
After a week here in Spain, I am adapting to more of the country’s behaviors – in this post I am going to address some of the stereotypes and interesting things about Spain that I have come across. For one,…
May. 29
Preparing for Battle…with the TSA
If you’ve ever been on an international flight, you know how frustrating the process of packing can be. The TSA, while having your safety in mind as priority, does not mind trampling all over your convenience. Not only that, but…
May. 29
Bilbao on a Tuesday
Today, we climbed a mountain and lost a student in the woods… Not really, but we did ride a rickety train up it and saw all of Bilbao from above. There, I climbed a giant iron structure (which later turned…
May. 14
101 Days Till Florence
I booked my flight to Florence today! (Well my mom, Dotty, did!) I will be landing in Belgium then going to Florence. This is all actually happening! I have worked out everything except the final payments! I have my appointment…
May. 04
My First Post
I can’t wait to head to Spain. My current bucket list for my time there includes surfing in Bilbao, finding a doppelgänger of a famous soccer player and taking a picture with him (I should say football since they play…
Apr. 23
4 months prior to leaving for Italy
So, I have been accepted to study abroad, I am currently applying for my visa, and saving money, of course! I am more than thrilled to have the opportunity to study abroad in Florence, Italy. There are so many things I…