by Amelia W. | Jun 23, 2025 | Africa, Arts & Sciences, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
Hi, I’m Amelia from New Orleans, I am preparing for my study abroad adventure in Benin, Africa. As a student in the foreign languages and literature program, I’ve always been drawn to francophone cultures. Growing up surrounded by several francophone communities made...
by Saphia H. | Jun 23, 2025 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
I landed at the airport around noon in Paris, France and took a bus to Tours, France to meet my host family after landing. I was tired and super nervous to meet them. Meeting them eased some of my worries a bit, and the country is so beautiful. I cant wait to go see...
by Saphia H. | Jun 23, 2025 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, _
After spending a month in Tours, France, I have had numerous interesting experiences. The culture shock has worn off, and I have adjusted to life here. Classes were intensive, and my French has improved a lot since I’ve been here. The Language and Culture Study...
by Olivia B. | Jun 23, 2025 | Africa, Arts & Sciences, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
When I signed up for UA in Benin I was very nervous, knowing little about Benin and throwing myself into this adventure alone. I had never been away from home for such a long time, and had never traveled somewhere so unfamiliar. However, I was still very excited! I...
by Alyssa W. | Dec 20, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
“Americans are so talkative and friendly—people here don’t just chat with everyone they meet”. This was a comment I got on the train to London at 4 a.m., after spending the past hour talking to someone from the area about everything from economics to music. It was a...
by Alyssa W. | Dec 18, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
Everywhere has a signature food: New York pizza, Wisconsin cheese curds, Kentucky fried chicken. When traveling, we imagine taking advantage of the famous restaurants, and schedule time to sample Chicago deep dish from Giordanos or sourdough bread from a San Fransisco...
by Alyssa W. | Dec 18, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
I am a chronic overpacker. There’s no getting around it. I always find myself leaving home with a bag bursting at the seams, hoping desperately I don’t have to open it and somehow manage to achieve the miracle of zipping it shut a second time. Unfortunately, this is a...
by Emma D. | Dec 18, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
If you have been on the Internet for any length of time, you have no doubt experienced a sharp divide between European and American users. One can often find the two groups arguing about food, stereotypes, tourism, and most often and most divisively; politics. No...
by Abigail Tanner | Dec 12, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Honors College, Summer, _
With this trip being my first time abroad, I had no clue what to pack for a month in Amsterdam and Copenhagen. Now, I realize some things I *really* should have brought with me and some things I **really** should have left at home. Starting with the Dos: DO pack an...
by Kyndra L. | Dec 12, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Faculty-Led, South America, Summer
I can confidently say that I had (and still have) a great first impression of Colombia. Everyone was warning me about how hot Colombia is during the summer, but as a native of Mobile, Alabama, heat is nothing new to me. The humidity was a little stronger than...
by Kyndra L. | Dec 12, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Faculty-Led, South America, Summer
Now that I’m back home, I have such a great perspective for the rest of my summer and the rest of my college experience. I have learned so much over the past few weeks, both academically and socially. I struggled with a lot of homesickness during my trip, but in...
by Bethany T. | Dec 12, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
by Anna H. | Dec 12, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
Take this advice to heart my friends: if you plan to go abroad for an entire semester maybe do it in the fall so you have the summer to get ready without the nightmare of balancing finals. While I’m frantically trying to finish final projects and studying for...
by Trista M. | Dec 12, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
This will be my final post, and though I didn’t intend for it to arrive so late, I’m very happy that I am reflecting on my experience now after a semester back at Alabama. I think when I first went to Spain to study abroad over the summer, I saw the experience ending...
by Tessa Pickens | Dec 12, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
This past weekend two of the other members of the UA in Oxford cohort and myself had the opportunity to spend the weekend in Rome, Italy. A weekend in Rome has been a dream of mine since I was a little girl as I have extended family on my mother’s side that...
by Ria P. | Dec 12, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
“Sometimes one day in a different place will give you more than 10 years of life at home.” -Anatole French The farthest tip I have ever made was when I decided to leave Illinois for The University of Alabama. I have never left the country or traveled in a...
by Renee A. | Dec 12, 2024 | Africa, Arts & Sciences, Non-traditional, Summer, UA-Affiliate, _
Setbacks come in many shapes and sizes. For me, the worst types of challenges are the little ones that build on each other until you get to the point where any little inconvenience makes you feel like there is no way to overcome it. This trip is the first time where I...
by Renee A. | Dec 12, 2024 | Africa, Arts & Sciences, Non-traditional, Summer, UA-Affiliate, _
Service Learning is completely different from any other study abroad, and I highly recommend it. There weren’t any classes (though I did write some papers). Before I left, I talked with many people about what I was going to do in Morocco. However, like most people...
by Nathan Hodgson | Dec 10, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
For the first full month in Madrid, I met so many cool people and had so many great experiences. From walking around the city and interacting with locals, to trying new food and drinks, I would not have changed anything about it. For the second half of the first...
by Nathan Hodgson | Dec 10, 2024 | Arts & Sciences, Europe, Faculty-Led, Summer, _
For the last month in Madrid, I finally found the rhythm of things. I had found all of my favorites: restaurants and convenience stores were some of my favorite things, and I grew a lot closer with those that were in Madrid for session 2. We had a lot more free time...
