Upon arriving in London, it took me a little bit of time to adjust to a few things: the time change, the traffic change (people in London drive like crazy…), and last but most certainly not least…the weather change. I thought I had finally mastered dressing for the slightly chilly and occasionally rainy London weather…that was until Mother Nature changed her weather game.

Last week, Charlie and I flew to Mendoza to (literally) get a taste of Argentine wine country. On Thursday we toured three vineyards at the base of the Andes using a company called “Ampora Wine Tours”—in total we were 8: our lovely guide named Sabrina, a group of 5 Americans, and Charlie and me.

Last Saturday, October 3rd, was Unity Day (or Reunification Day or Tag der Deutschen Einheit—my German is still pretty poor despite six hours of classes a week), a day which celebrates the reunification of East and West Germany, an especially important day in Berlin, which saw the border through the middle of its own streets.

The opportunity to study abroad in the Galapagos is pretty unique. Before coming here, I would get questions about my abroad trip such as…

“Wait – are you going to be living on a boat?”

“There are actually people that live in the Galapagos?”

“Do you even have class?”
 

Autumn - lyrics [intro] uh uh uh, uhh, uh I love these uh uh, uh uh uh uh I love these, I love these [laughter] Autumn leaves uh [Verse 1] Autumn It’s pouring out, but I'll still dance in the rain, It’s colder now, but I’ll still laugh when there’s shade Welcome to the closing of the summer's blossom Now it’s opening day of my favorite season autumn. [Verse 2] Salobreña [LAST DAY FOR THE BEACH!!] Imagine me, sitting pretty at a beach, please Listen, it's sound of the breeze on the Mediterranean Sea No cresting current on this crystal clear icy cold g

Before I came to New Zealand I thought I’d spend my time being 100% immersed in Kiwi culture. However, that ended up not being the case at all. Ilam apartments consist of multiple cultures from all over the world and are a common place for international students to live. I am currently blessed with two wonderful ladies from the beautiful country of Malaysia as my flat mates.

Over Spring Break (Chilean Independence Day Week) a group of 5 of us went to a great little town in the South of Chile called Pucón. Just like all of the other places we've visited, it was incredible! This was definitely a adventure loving tourist destination. In the hostel we were staying in (The French Andes--10/10 would recommend) most of the other travelers were there to ski or snowboard down the close by mountains and volcanos. Yes, VOLCANOS! The volcano close to Pucón is also active so at night you can see the top of it glowing red.

Have you ever milked a cow before? Baked traditional Irish brown bread? Danced to the beat of the Bodhrán (Irish drum)? Jumped into a muddy bog for a “bit of craic”? If no, then when you get to IES Dublin, make sure to sign up for the Causey Farm day trip! The folks on the farm were so kind and funny, and they even trusted us to pick up and hold their 10-day-old sheep dog puppies, so that’s definitely the sign of awesome hosts. The dancing and the drum playing were also equally fun, though I can’t say I was a natural at either one haha!

I've been thinking for a while now about what it means for me to be here in a different country away from most things familiar to me and how I've come to deal with life and the new experiences I've been having since arriving in Japan. Though there are many similarities between here and America such as similar technologies used and a generally similar pace of life, there are a plethora of other things such as the distinct culture, lifestyle practices, language (duh), and customs that make living here quite the unique and different experience.