For some reason, I thought I would not experience culture shock. Perhaps this was because I did not experience it when I traveled with a group to Scandinavia a few summers ago. The reason that this time is different is because I live in Buenos Aires; I am not simply a tourist. Culture shock is sometimes so subtle that you do not even notice it until afterwards. It is hard to recognize because it wears many colors. It begins with the first day.

Through the DiscoverIES I had the opportunity to take a cooking class! This was one of the best experiences that I’ve ever had. We got to make some amazing food and had an awesome time doing it. Anyone who is considering taking a cooking class in another country I would recommend it one hundred percent. This DiscoverIES all started when our cooking instructor Yves picked us up from the metro stop. He then drove us to his beautiful home, where the cooking class would take place.

I was at Disneyland Paris with my friends getting food. We had to place our order at the register and go to a separate station to pick it up. The cook was preparing my food and when they were done, they held my plate, smiled, and asked where I was from. I said, “I’m from New York.” They smiled again and said, “No, but where are you really from?” This took me back to the end of my last semester abroad in France…

哭笑不得 (in pinyin: kū xiào bù dé). This is a Chinese idiom, or chengyu, meaning that one is between laughter and tears. The Chinese use this idiom to describe a situation that is both funny and embarrassing, or an experience or movie that is dynamically happy and sad. My coworkers taught me this idiom yesterday, and there is no better description, even in English, that could describe my past week.

The first thing that you should know about people from Massachusetts is that they love being from Massachusetts. I am no exception to that fact. I love the fall foliage, the snowy winters, and baseball season (also known as spring and summer). Maybe my family's and my own love of the Northeast is one of the reasons that I have never really traveled before. So, when I tell people that I am going to be studying abroad in Christchurch, New Zealand, for the next several months, this is generally how the conversation goes:

I only have a few days left in Salamanca and it’s bittersweet. I am looking forward to going home and sharing stories from the past month, but I am also going to miss life here. Over the past 25 days I have gotten to know the people here with me and we’ve learned a lot about the culture in Spain. However, I feel as though I’ve only just gotten to know Salamanca and the many things that make this city unique. I learn more every day, and I’m looking forward to learning more up until the day I leave.

I'm now home in Denver, Colorado and while I'm happy to be back with my dog and parents, I have been feeling pretty senti about the past four months. I've been thinking a lot about everything I got to do while abroad, and I've compiled a list of the top ten.

Ciao! Last weekend, we had the opportunity to visit Pompei and the Amalfi Coast. This trip was a once in a lifetime opportunity. We all keep talking about it and how incredible it was and laugh about all the memories we made during it! We started off the weekend taking a bus to Pompei and going on a tour of the ruins. Pictures do not do these places justice! Then we got on a bus in 100 degree heat without A/C to get to our wine tasting/lunch just at the bottom of Mount Vesuvius.

Before leaving Chile, I took a final trip to yet another of its dramatic ecosystems – the Atacama Desert. At a base level of 7,900 feet and less than one millimeter of rain per year, it is known as one of the highest, driest places on earth, and certainly did not disappoint in either respect!

One of the first things I noticed upon arriving in Freiburg is how many bicycles there are. As soon as you walk out of the Hauptbahhof (main train station) there are bikes EVERYWHERE. Right next to the Hauptbahnhof is a parking garage for bikes with parking spaces for 1,000 bikes, plus other parking all around. People were speeding by on bicycles right alongside the cars, and even small children had were trailing behind their parents on small bikes with streamers and bright colors.