March Madness
The month of March has been one full of travel! I’ve been somewhere new each week! I went to Belfast with AIFS (included in my program fee) for the first weekend of March. When we arrived in Belfast, we went on a bus tour of the city. We saw the Peace Wall, Samson and Goliath (two cranes on the harbor), and political artwork throughout the city. The next day we explored more of Northern Ireland, including the Dark Hedges and the...
Living the (Ice) Dream in Vienna
I believe there are a finite amount of times in a person’s life when they are doing something and are suddenly struck by the overwhelming significance of their ongoing experience. Sometimes it is when we are doing something for the last time, for example attending your last high school dance or competing in your last competitive swim meet. Other times, it is because of a strong emotional connection to the people or location associated...
My heart is here!
Wow! I can not believe I have been in England over a month already. The time is really flying by as I stay busy with school and traveling on the weekends. I still love all my housemates and look forward to going to the dining hall with them for dinner every night after an exhausting day. Recently I have been walking to the university in the mornings. The weather is warmer than when I arrived and the sun has been out the past few days,...
On The Shoulders of Giants
“This grave contains all that was Mortal of a Young English Poet Who on his Death Bed, in the Bitterness of his Heart at the Malicious Power of his Enemies Desired these Words to be engraven on his Tomb Stone: Here lies One Whose Name was writ in Water. 24 February 1821.” The Tombstone of English Romantic poet John Keats These are the words engraved upon the tombstone of John Keats, marking the final resting place of the famous...
Planning – Thoughts After a Week in Florence
I am a planner. My new roommates identified that about me before I had even been on Italian soil for a full 48 hours. In our short time in Florence, I had already made multiple searches on Yelp and Google Maps for the next highly reviewed place to eat lunch, how long it would take us to get to our next meeting from the restaurant, and where we should grab gelato afterwards. You see, I don’t like the unknown or unexpected changes—I...
Dia duit!
My name is Blake, and I’m studying abroad at the University of Limerick in Ireland. For those that are wondering, “dia duit” is Gaelic for “God be with you,” which is how people say “hello” in Ireland. The past three weeks have been the best of my life! I traveled abroad for the first time, flew for the first time (my first flight ever was international), and traveled completely alone for the...