OK, so apart from being completely eaten alive by mosquitoes and virtually melting from the humidity, I really enjoyed Dakar…once we got our accommodations in working order.

The ocean is gorgeous, and you can see it from almost anywhere.  Our residence hall was a block from the beach and I never got over the view!

Lots has happened in the past week! I figured I should keep y’all abreast (I can’t believe that’s actually a word! The thirteen year old boy inside me is giggling.) So here goes…

The second day in the Amazon was just as incredible as the first. When we visited the lagoon we got in this tiny boat that rocked all over the place. Usually I am not afraid of a boat tipping over but this one rocked so much i thought we would all end up in the water. Usually ending up in the water would not be a big deal but this lagoon had caymen and piranhas that I would prefer to stay away from so I was a little bit scared being in the boat.

I had a lot of video clips I never got the chance to use so I decided to throw them together into a fun final video post. I wanted to make a video that reminded me of all the good times, the laughs, the love, the energy of our program group and of Rio de Janeiro, “Cidade Marvilhosa”!

After another great week in South Africa I have many more photos to share! From hiking Table Mountain, to attending rugby matches, shopping in the markets, diving with Great Whites, and hanging out in the townships, we have done it all! It is bittersweet to think that we are already halfway through our adventures in Cape Town…

For the past three days, the weather has been perfect. This is exceptionally uncommon in Beijing where pollution is an almost permanent resident. Since the smog is so thick, most days you can’t see the sky, or the sun, or sometimes even the tops of tall buildings. This article from February says you can even see the pollution from space. As I learned recently, though, this is partly because of topography.

It is quite hard to believe that my time in Rome has already come to an end. These four months passed very quickly, something I believe had much to do with the fact that I was so engrossed with my internship and the development of Italian politics during this period. While a semester is hardly enough to understand why Italy is in its current state, I undoubtedly have a better understanding of how the country presently functions and what obstacles it will need to overcome in order to return to being influential on the international stage.

Artist, Teacher, and Friend…

When telling friends and family about my upcoming semester abroad their reactions were somewhat typical.  They would usually express their excitement and envy all the while adding a bit of curiosity about how I would spend my time in one of the most famous cities in the world.  People would usually exclaim their envy about two things in particular, the food and wine.  Now that I have settled into my abroad experience and been fortunate enough to have an internship, I can say with confidence, that the food and wine are perfect avenues