Holiday Availability: All IES Abroad offices will be closed on Dec 24, Dec 25, Dec 31, and Jan 1 as we take some time to celebrate. During the weeks of 12/22 and 12/29, our team will be smaller, so responses may take longer than usual. Thanks for your understanding—and happy holidays!
Tips and Tricks for Students with Dietary Restrictions
While I have loved my study abroad journey so far, one of the things I had more difficulty adjusting to was navigating my dietary restrictions while abroad. I have been eating gluten and dairy-free for about 5 years to help with my autoimmune condition. When I first decided to go to Italy people thought that I was crazy. It’s the land of pizza, pasta, cheese, and gelato. What was I going to eat? Luckily, I’ve had years of experience navigating dietary restrictions, so I wasn’t too worried. In some ways this process was easier than I thought it would be.
Arriving in Rabat!
IES Abroad Rabat offers a truly special and unique 14 day orientation experience. Although most of it is not spent in Rabat, the first two days of the semester are. The program offered us a tour of the city, which was a great way to show us what to expect. They gave us a tour of all of the city's great sites. The old Qasba has a beautiful neighborhood uniformly painted in white. It overlooks both the Atlantic Ocean and the Bou Regeg, the city's main river. Along with the Alhambra gardens, this Unesco World Heritage Site is enclosed by walls dating from the 12th century.
Enchanting Restoration from the Forest
Away from the baroque buildings, coffee cups, and canals,
A rejuvenating serenity is found.
The forest is the source of this serenity.
Now nestled through and in the alder trees,
Two voyagers crunch the ground leaves with a shrewd hiker’s expertise.
They travel toward a field that holds this ancient language in its rosy pink flower petals.
And when they get to the field, a harmless yet childish game commences.
And the voyagers will develop their own nomenclature of a forest’s clearing fauna.