As a student who loves to read, I’ve trained myself to look beyond taking things at face value. Words have much to offer, and taking words too literally leads to an experience that is unrewarding at best and downright misleading at worst. There is at least one notable exception to this rule, though: it’s the phrase thrown around more than any other with students who study abroad.

As I step off the train into Märkische Schweiz, I feel more or less at peace.  Last weekend, my feelings of contentment (of accomplishment) stemmed from my ability to navigate the Spree River alone, order a beer, and read a book to myself, completely unperturbed and doing it all for the sake of itself.

It has now been two weeks since I arrived home to America. My flight home was a stressful one; one bag too heavy (the shifting of clothing from luggage to luggage followed) three flights, three times going through security, one lightning storm that delayed flights and customs, thus caused one missed flight, the final ticket bought on a plane to Baltimore, a delayed take off, and then two missing pieces of luggage that were sent off to Washington D.C. without me. Sigh.

To whom it may concern, I have decided to compile a list of my preliminary observations about life in Santiago. I cannot begin without commenting on the heights here. I have to laugh a little because I have the great fortune of towering over the women and many of the men here. For those who do not know me personally, I stand tall at the above average American female height of 5’10”. For those that do know me personally, I ask you not to dispute that number because I will argue it until you pull out the tape measurer.

I suppose wherever you study, the end of the semester can be a bit hectic. Professors pick up the pace to cover as much material as possible before finals. Every class seems to have an end of the semester essay or project –sometimes more than one. Students stress about grades, calculating what percentage they need to earn on their final exams. I haven’t prioritized writing post in a while, because I have been plenty busy lately, but that’s just what I’ll right about now: the typical use of my time here in Santiago.

    Being adopted from China, I always knew that going back to “the Motherland” would be a trip I had to take. After nearly twenty years, I found IES Internships and decided to go to the completely wrong area of the Motherland: Shanghai.

My first week in Rabat has been an overload of the senses. I live in the most colorful, detailed, and lively place I have ever seen: The Rabat Medina. It is the old quarter of the city, far more traditional than other parts. In order to record my feelings and observations, I have been using sketching amongst other media. Here are some of my doodles that capture things I have seen or thought throughout the week.

Tomorrow is the day and I could not be more excited to head to the land down under. I have had the opportunity to go on many amazing trips in my life, however this will be the longest one yet and first one alone! Although I am a little scared to be traveling alone for the first time, I know that once I am there and settled in I will never want to return. 

Salut de New York,

I have returned “home” home and it’s not the same here. As Buzzfeed said, “Studying Abroad in Paris Destroys You For Life.” Here are my own reasons why:

1.The métro was the fastest, easiest, and quietest way to get around.

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream About Everything

Argentines are very vocal people. Strolling the streets of Buenos Aires on any given day, one can encounter various demonstrations. Masses of people will march through the city streets, carrying colorful banners, chanting, and beating drums.

 Literally everyone holds a demonstration for every conceivable issue and occasion.