Bonjour!

I can’t believe I’m actually saying this, but it’s finally time to embark on my journey to Paris. I woke up this morning with the biggest smile on my face and the most excited feeling ever. Up until this point, it hadn’t quite hit me that I’d really be leaving the country and visiting a city I have always dreamed about! Yesterday, as my friend was helping me pack, all I could think was: This is definitely just a dream. I will probably wake up soon.

My name is Maysam Al-Ani. I am originally from Iraq, born in the US, and am currently living in Qatar. I am looking forward to the many adventures and new experiences in Tokyo! I am a Muslim, so I will be on the hunt for halal and Muslim-friendly restaurants in Tokyo. I will also be on the look-out for vegetarian restaurants and let you guys know about them!

Wow, am I bad at meeting people. Given the choice between striking up a one-on-one conversation with a stranger and going for a long swim in shark-infested waters, I might just go with the latter. I mean, sharks are an unfairly maligned species, and I’m pretty good at swimming.

People, on the other hand...well.

If you come to Christchurch, New Zealand with IES Abroad, you will be offered the choice to sign up for a week long field trip to the Cooks Islands with the other students in IES Abroad.  I remember signing up for this trip all the way back in January.  The timing of the trip is nice because UC Canterbury’s spring break is 3 weeks long.  So if you sign up for this field trip, you still have two weeks free to

The time has finally come. This past week was my last in Rome and Europe.

The selfie. We all have at least one somewhere on our phone, right? We’ve all done it: taken a quick look to see who was around before sheepishly turning our phones towards ourselves and snapping a quick photo before too many people noticed what we were up to. What else are front facing camera’s for, anyway? I’m no exception to this, but I will say that long ago I vowed to myself, that despite my love of photographing my own face from an uncomfortably close distance, I’d never be a selfie-stick wielding individual.

5-20-2016

I went to JC Penny’s today to buy some tank tops for Beijing, because it’s gonna be 80 degrees and muggy every day there. When I was checking-out, the cashier asked me about my summer plans, and when I told her I was going to China she replied, “China?! You better be careful there. You don’t want to disappear to some labor camp!” I guess my reaction gave away the fact that I didn’t quite follow her, because next she responded with “China, they’re like North Korea, right?”

Hey there! My name is Lorraine Engleman, and I’m extremely excited to be a participant in the IES Abroad European Union Summer program this year! I’m from Moberly, Indiana, and I study Elementary Education at Indiana University Southeast. Between classes at IUS, observing my practicum kiddos at Whitney Young Elementary, and subbing at my alma mater, school is pretty much my life, so it’s only fitting that my summer in Germany revolves around school as well!

I am writing this after looking at my phone and realizing that I leave for my first flight in 3 1/2 days... I thought for sure I had a week or two left. I can't believe it has sprung up on me so fast and I haven't even started packing yet! Now, a little bit about me. My name is Amanda Rogers. (Fun fact: I'm named after an instrument. Amanda Lynn=A mandolin. Get it?) I am a senior at Marietta College, which is in Marietta, Ohio (not Georgia and trust me, that's a common mistake).