Valpo Voyager

Student Stories from Around the World

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I’ll be boarding a plane headed for Zaragoza, Spain

December 13, 2012 / / 1 Comment

45 days from now, I’ll be boarding a plane headed for Zaragoza, Spain and embarking on a journey that, 45 days ago, I wasn’t sure I would be taking.

… What?

As an education major, I was told that studying abroad wouldn’t be a realistic option to pursue if I wanted to graduate in four years. I remember being a starry-eyed freshman sitting in my first advising session, and feeling the sinking disappointment that came from my adviser’s warning to me about studying abroad…

“I really appreciate your ambition, Emily. It comes in handy in the education field. But you have to take into account that you will already only have seven semesters to do what most students do in eight. You student teach during the spring of your senior year.”

“So… I shouldn’t get my hopes up about going abroad?”

“Probably not.”

… and that was that. To make a long story short, freshman and sophomore years went by with few bumps in the road and without much more discussion about leaving the country. This past summer, though, the winds of change rolled in and rocked my world in ways that I couldn’t have predicted, leaving me in one of the lowest emotional places I’ve ever found myself in. I was told by a number of people that it was time for me to do some soul searching, to re-discover my identity, and to fully pursue the things that I was most passionate about. The deeply-rooted yet inconvenient desire to study abroad resurfaced, and even though I promised my parents that I wouldn’t do anything stupid to get my hopes up, I went and had another discussion with my academic adviser.

By some miraculous twist of fate, I found myself both academically and financially able to afford a semester abroad. So here I am now – standing on the brink of what’s sure to be the biggest adventure of my 20 years of life.

I’m a different person than I was three months ago, when I started to reconsider studying abroad. At first, it occurred to me that running off to a place where nobody knows my name would be an excellent way to step away from the problems that have caused me so much hurt. As time has passed and my heart has healed, I’ve realized that my motives for going to Spain have changed drastically. I’m not running away from something, but rather I’m running towards something much greater. I’ve grown and changed as a person during these past few months in ways that have amazed me, and I know that going to Zaragoza is only going to help me grow even more into the person I’m supposed to become. Change begins when we leave our comfort zones, and leaving my home and loved ones behind for five months will definitely be out of my comfort zone. I’m terribly nervous, but the excitement I have for what’s to come is beyond what words can say.

45 days and counting…

 

[as of posting, it’s 25 days, 0 hours, and 42 minutes!!]

By Emily DeVries, Elementary Education Major, Spanish minor, from St. Charles, Illinois.  More posts to come!!

Paris

Why Let me ask you this: Why not Paris?

December 13, 2012 / / 0 Comments

Bonjour! Je m’appelle Emily Hardesty et j’étudierai en Paris le semestre prochain. And for those of you who don’t speak French: Hello! My name is Emily Hardesty and I will be studying in Paris next semester. Oh, Paris. The city of love. Who wouldn’t want to spend four months of their life in one of the greatest cities in the world? Not this girl. I am an old fashioned romantic, and I constantly dream about sitting in a quaint little café by the Eiffel Tower sipping a café au lait.

Paris

But let me start from the beginning. How did I decide to study abroad in the first place? I grew up in a small, not-so-quaint village called Beecher, Illinois. Yes, you read that correctly. Village. It’s not even big enough to be considered a town. Because I spent twenty years surrounded by cornfields and stranded thirty minutes away from the nearest shopping center, I dream of the day when I can live in a big city filled with excitement, strangers, and opportunities. I am tired of living in a town where I know everyone by name. To put it simply, I want to see the world and understand how the rest of the world lives.

France

So why Paris? Let me ask you this: Why not Paris? I started studying French my freshman year at VU, and I fell in love with the language. After declaring a French major (and an English major), I knew that I had to visit Paris someday, and what better time than when I am learning French? I will be completely immersed in the language while I am living there. My speaking skills are not quite up to par just yet, and although I am a little anxious about communicating with native French speakers, I am ready for the challenge. It’s going to be tough at first, but who said life wasn’t going to be tough? After I knew I was going to be studying in Paris, I immediately chose the Central College Abroad program for one main reason: it’s in Paris. Since I’m going to be studying in France, I’m going to make sure that I’m living in the city where all of the action happens. It may be the number one tourist destination in the world and full of lost tourists who can’t speak French (hopefully not what I’m going to be!), I think that’s sweet. The whole world wants to visit the most romantic city in the world. If that doesn’t tug at your heart strings a little, you need to go watch The Notebook one more time.

Mont Saint-Michel, Normandy

If you haven’t realized it yet, I am so excited for my trip to Paris. I want to see and experience everything I possibly can while I am in Europe. The Nôtre Dame Cathedral, the Musée d’Orsday, the Louvre, and obviously the Eiffel Tower are a few places on my I-have-to-see-this-before-I-die list. Outside of the city, I plan to see the D-Day beaches and the Mont Saint-Michel in Normandy, the palace of Versailles, and the Alps in the East. I also plan on traveling outside of the country as much as my budget allows. While I would like to travel to every major city in Europe next semester, I am sadly living on the budget of a college student. (Easy Mac is my best friend.) So, I narrowed my must-see cities in Europe to London, Rome, Edinburgh, Dublin, and Madrid. I’m pretty optimistic that I’ll get to go to all of these cities, but I know they will all be waiting for me in the future after I return home in May.

French Café

Sometimes I can’t believe that in less than two months I will be living in Paris. How does a girl from the middle of nowhere get the chance to fulfill her dream of traveling the world? The answer is through extensive planning; a great support system at VU, Central College, and at home; and a student loan. (I’d have to say that last one may have been the key factor!) While I may be apprehensive about living in a huge city where I may not be able to communicate perfectly or I may get lost sometimes, I know that my time abroad will be well spent and will be one of the greatest experiences of my life. I hope that students reading this blog will understand the value of traveling abroad and will do whatever it takes to make their dreams of traveling the world come true like I did.

 

By Emily Hardesty, English and French majors, from Beecher, Illinois.  More posts to come!!

Germany, here I come!!!!

December 13, 2012 / / 0 Comments

Hi, my name is Mary-Ann and I'm one of the Reutlingen bloggers!

When I prepare for the grocery store, I make a list of everything I need. I mean usually I end up leaving with more than on my list, but hey, who doesn’t?? During finals (and I’m sure you can relate to this!) I make lists of everything that needs to get done. Sometimes I’m so swamped that I even need to write down time to relax and to stop stressing. Story of my LIFE!!!! Finding out I was accepted into the study abroad program and that I was going to be studying abroad in Reutlingen the spring of 2013, what did I do? That’s right. Made like 80 lists of everything that I was planning on taking with, what I wanted to see, things I wanted to do….writing lists was probably the stupidest thing I could have done at the time. Why? The whole point of writing lists, for me at least, was to reassure myself that I don’t need to stress about everything. Boy was I stupid. With each list I got more and more nervous. Try so nervous that I had almost-couldn’t-hold-the-pen-cause-my-palms-were-so-sweaty kind of nervous (which for a girl is pretty disgusting to admit – so I apologize in advance). Nervous couldn’t even begin to describe what I was feeling. I started to think about all the things that could go wrong. Not to freak you guys out, but it was stuff like forgetting my passport (not even possible, though who thinks rationally when they’re freaking out?!?!), not having enough money, buying the right passes, not packing too much or (oh my gosh!) not packing enough……you get the idea. But then a thought occurred to me. (And I hope with all this worrying, that I didn’t freak you out about studying abroad. Trust me; I can worry enough for the both of us.) And let me impart this wisdom upon you: anything this nerve racking (and stressful!!!) must be exciting and worth all of the mixed emotions. Mixed emotions usually indicate something that is going to be so worthwhile that we often times look back and wonder just why we were so nervous and hesitant to begin with. Life is more unpredictable this way (and even a little fun!). And let me tell you, I am not comfortable with the unknown, but there’s just something about finally going to a place where I might not know what’s going to happen that gets me a little excited and that whatever will happen, I know that it’ll be worth it. Don’t get me wrong, family and friends will be sorely missed, but I also know that if I don’t take the chance to go now, when will the next chance for me to travel come? Never let an opportunity as priceless as this one be passed up. With the end of the semester coming, I might be stressing out about finals (let’s be real, I AM stressing out about finals), but the thought that I would be going on my own little adventure next semester keeps me going and makes it all worthwhile. Germany, here I come!!!!

By Mary-Ann Craft, German and Biology Majors from Kendallville, Indiana.  More posts to come soon!!

Why Reutlingen?

December 13, 2012 / / 0 Comments

                I chose to go to Reutlingen because I have always wanted to go to Germany. I am a German Major and have been studying the language for almost 6 years now. However, despite all this time, I have never actually been to Germany. As a German major, this can be really tough because the majority of my peers have already visited Germany. I look forward to going to Germany and see exactly what my peers have been telling me and what I have learned in class. I choose Reutlingen for these exact reasons and I hope to show everyone what my learning experience.

            Despite all these years of learning German, I still do not know a lot about daily life and popular culture in Germany. I am excited to not only learn more about the daily culture, but to experience it myself! I hope to make a lot of friends while I am there too, to help me with the culture shock. Also I

To prepare for Germany, I lived at the German House! Here's our fancy Easter Dinner.

wish to perfect my speaking proficiency while in Reutlingen, bringing me to the same level as my peers. This way I hope to become someone that my peers can also look up to, such as I have looked up to them.

Another reason why I choose Reutlingen is to visit the many places I learn about in my German classes. Our professors have set up a list of places to visit while we are in Germany, many of them relating to what we have learned. I hope to visit all of them and visit many other parts of Germany as well. I also choose going to Reutlingen because it is near the border of other countries. Because of that, I hope to visit as many new places as I can while I am there, in Germany and other countries as well. Having never been outside of the United States before, I am super excited to experience all these new places and cultures!

My friends and I getting ready for Homecoming!

I really am going to miss home and all my friends back at Valpo, but this is a trip that I have been looking forward to for a long time. I only wish that all my friends could have come with me to experience Germany with me as well! Realistically though, I hope that they will keep in contact with me and support me as I learn and grow. I hope that they and other Valpo students can learn from my experiences. With the prospects of visiting so many new places and increasing my language skills, there is no reason why I would not go to Reutlingen!

 

 

By Emily Wambach, German Major, Japanese & Communication Minors, from Knoxville, Tennessee. More posts to come!!

Why I Chose Cambridge

December 13, 2012 / / 0 Comments

There are so many things I could say about this topic. Why I chose Cambridge? The reasons are too many to count! The main reason I chose to study abroad in England, is that it has always fascinated me. Starting when I was around 10 years old, Great Britain has been an obsession of mine. I love everything about it. Their history is so amazing and so vast. It spans back centuries and it is so full of mystery and opportunity. I love reading about the history of England. Just to think, the city of Cambridge first came into being around the time that Christ was alive. So many thousands of years of history! I cannot wait to explore that history. So then, when an opportunity to travel 2 weeks in Europe was presented to me my sophomore year of high school, I jumped at the chance to experience all that I was so enamored with. I told my parents about it, and my Dad told me that I could travel for two weeks in high school, or I could take a semester in college and study abroad for a full 5 months. I was ecstatic! I couldn’t believe my luck that my parents would let me do something like that. Looking back now, I kind of think that it was my parent’s way of getting me off my travel kick for the moment and keep me safely in the U.S. I don’t think they ever dreamed that I would grasp onto that promise- that I would be able to travel in college- and I would never let it go. When I was searching and applying for colleges one of my stipulations for attending any college was that it had to have a superb study abroad program so that I knew I would have the best experience possible. So when I found out that Valparaiso had such a good Nursing school, I immediately set to searching about its study abroad programs and what I found thrilled me. Not only did they have a fabulous study abroad program, they had a study site in Cambridge, England! I was beyond thrilled! My wildest dreams were going to come true. I knew for sure I was going to Cambridge.

I am looking forward to so many things while I am living in another country. I am looking forward to a new culture, a new way of doing things, and a new way of viewing the world. I am looking forward to learning more of their history, and meeting new people. And most of all, I am looking forward to traveling. All over the world! From London, to Paris. From Berlin, to Venice and Rome. I cannot wait to go on a gondola ride in Venice, or climb to the top of the Eiffel Tower. I can’t wait to touch the Berlin wall and walk through the castle that inspired the one and only Cinderella’s Castle. I can’t wait to see the Stonehenge and wander through the Colosseum in Rome. So many things I have on my bucket list that I hope to do while I am over there. I am so excited writing this that I can’t even contain myself! There are so many other things that I wish to do, but I don’t want to write too much!

Although a lot of people probably don’t add this, I am looking forward to the classes I will take while I am abroad. They can teach me more about the country I will be living in for my semester abroad. I can’t wait to write blogs and journals. I love writing, and to be able to write about my experiences in the most exciting 6 months of my life will be a blast!

By Abby Lorenzo, Nursing major from Seymour, Indiana.  More posts to come soon!

 

Christmas carousel...

Medieval Christmas Market in Esslingen

December 12, 2012 / / 0 Comments

I have definitely never heard of a medieval Christmas market before, so this was quite an interesting experience. There was a normal German Christmas market, but the main attraction for most visitors is the medieval market. One could buy period clothing, handmade crafts and baskets, as well as make candles and throw knives or axes. If you ventured up a steep staircase to a great viewpoint over the town, you could also shoot a bow and arrow (which cost 8 Euro!), but the view was great.

Esslingen am Neckar!

Some people needed a little help...

As part of the medieval motif, there was food served on sticks, such as “Stockbrot”, which would be literally translated as “stick bread”…

"Stockbrot".

One of my favorite things at the Christmas market was a giant Christmas carousel…

Christmas carousel...

There were also people that dressed up to fit the period, as well as musicians and fire demonstrations for entertainment. Most importantly, though, there were stores that were open late, because it was only 20 degrees Fahrenheit, so although I enjoyed myself, at the end of the day I was definitely happy to be back on the warm train and heading home.

One of the various projections...

Chocolate Market in Tübingen

December 12, 2012 / / 0 Comments

Tübingen hosted a chocolate market this past week from the 4th through the 9th of December, which was great! I am also a chocolate lover (it is practically part of my diet), so I especially loved it. There were vendors from all over the world, as well as items ranging from chocolate covered fruit on a stick to regular hot chocolate, chocolate salami, chocolate beer, and chocolate shots. Also, there were samples! In fact, I am going to go to a store here in Tübingen that I never went into before, just because I absolutely loved the sample that they offered.

A moderately busy day at the chocolate market.

The market was also a chocolART festival, so you could watch sculptures being made, or view some pieces on display that had chocolate painted on them. I am not sure if people bought any of the various art pieces, though.

Watching the chocolate artists at work!

During the night was the best time to go to the chocolate market (in my opinion). There were projections on the buildings in the main market areas, which were interesting to look at, and they added more of a Christmas flair to the whole market. Also, at night one can enjoy a hot chocolate, Glühwein (a mulled wine sold during the winter in Germany), or a chocolate shot, which is also sold in a chocolate shot glass.

One of the various projections...

Almost looks like a gingerbread house!

The chocolate market was also directly in front of my building…

They had a nice assortment...

Getting a creepy photo from my room...

 

I wish there was just something like this in the US. Nothing comes close.

KTV

December 9, 2012 / / 0 Comments

As young college students, I think we can all agree that one of our favorite things is the weekend. Some spend the weekend partying while others relax or hang out with friends. Here in China, when I ask college-aged Chinese people what they enjoy doing when they’re not studying or doing work, there is an extremely popular answer: KTV. KTV TV screen

KTV is just karaoke, but it is much different than the Western sense of karaoke. Western-style karaoke usually involves someone gathering enough courage to go on stage and belt out a song in front of a crowd of strangers in a bar. Karaoke in the East is so popular that there are actual designated karaoke buildings. Eastern-style karaoke involves you and a group of friends getting your own private room with a huge screen and a comfy sofa. These rooms are rather high-tech—there is a touch-screen pad that you can use to select what song is next, call a waiter over, choose to do a duet with the original singer of the song or if you want do belt out a solo, etc. KTV is very popular in China with everyone- I have seen teenagers crowded in a room, and I have also seen middle-aged Chinese partying in their own KTV room…sometimes what looks like to be an after-work party!

I have done KTV 5 or 6 times here in China, and every time I go it is a blast. Each KTV place has a different selection of songs but for the most part you can find a decent selection of English songs, both new and old. This past weekend I indulged in our last day of KTV with some Chinese friends and the rest of H-23. They stuffed 13 of us in a small room, but in a way that is what made it even more entertaining. At first, KTV generally starts off sort of slow, especially if you have some shy people in the group. But once you get the ball rolling, everyone has an awesome time. My own personal motto is: It doesn’t matter whether or not you are a good singer; all that matters is that you try to enjoy yourself. I can’t carry a tune to save my life, but I don’t mind getting up and backup dancing to Beyonce’s “Love on Top” or attempting to sing “I Want it That Way” by the Backstreet Boys. Let me tell you, it is just great to see a shy Chinese person stand up and croon along to “Rolling in the Deep”. A few of us even took a shot at singing Chinese songs! All that matter is that we enjoyed each other’s company—and it doesn’t hurt that we got a mini concert out of it!

Think seriously about Study Abroad: your new favorite semester at Valpo.

December 7, 2012 / / 0 Comments

Alumni Guest Blog.

Daniel Jarratt, Valpo alum, studied abroad in Reutlingen, Germany in 2005 (R-75) and writes about how his experience impacted him.  Valpo alumni are invited to email study.abroad@valpo.edu to share their story on how studying abroad impacted their lives.

Studying abroad is — plain and simple — a lot of fun.  How about jumping into thermal baths and caving in Budapest, punting boats on a river through a medieval German town, or summiting the tallest mountain in Wales?

Studying abroad is unique.  Where else can you have an entire castle tower to yourself for a night in a youth hostel?  See the Queen of England from 3 feet away?  Walk through Roman catacombs, part of the tangible history of the early church?

Studying abroad is living history.  Stand where Martin Luther translated the Bible and where Shakespeare was born.  See bombed-out Coventry Cathedral, the home of the Community of the Cross of Nails of which our Chapel of the Resurrection is a part.  If you have ancestors in the area you’re studying, find their old homes and people who share your name.

My co-hort – R-75

I lived in Reutlingen, Germany, for three semesters (spring 2005, fall 2007, spring 2008) on two Valpo overseas programs (including one after graduation), and I did everything above and much, much more.  My time in Germany was, far and away, one of the most meaningful experiences that Valpo provided.

  • You can and should finish your degree in four years, except for a small handful of majors which have special arrangements.
  • I was frugal, and you’ll be afforded student rates on almost everything if you head to Europe (or another touristed area).  Studying abroad was a very good value.
  • There is a long history of the Grand Tour, and many of Valpo’s students (and the University itself) are its heirs.  Over the last four centuries of Western higher education, students who wished to further their education traveled extensively specifically to learn about the world beyond their community and nation.  If you have the chance to study abroad during college and you don’t, you’re cheating yourself.

Study abroad is important for many of the same reasons the liberal arts are important.  If you believe that education should be about more than just vocational training (and you’re at Valpo, so I assume you do), studying abroad is a key method of learning the liberal arts.  In fact, it may be the most effective: immersing yourself in a work — a book, a symphony, or a place — outshines lectures by even the best professors.

You (yes, you) should study abroad.  Living in Germany was one of the best decisions of my life, and my only regret is I couldn’t stay longer.  You’ll feel the same way too.

in front of the Brandenburg Gate

 

Daniel Jarratt, VU’07 with TV/Radio Production and Humanities majors and a German minor.

Is this real life? Prince William and Princess Kate!

December 5, 2012 / / 0 Comments

Now let me tell you, when I first heard the news that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were coming to Cambridge for the first time since their marriage, I literally squealed out loud. I mean, who wouldn’t? This is Prince William and Kate that we are talking about! Yes, I was one of those girls who sighed as I watched the Royal Kiss and hoped to have a prince for myself one day. (But I mean, let’s be real…I’m pretty serious!)

The entire Cambridge community was also excited to hear this news and it was on the newspaper for days. Finally it was revealed where they were going to be and what they would be doing. We had classes this day, but thankfully after working things out we were able to make it out to the city centre where William and Kate were going to be waving to the crowd.
On the morning of November 28th, I woke up extra early for classes. I couldn’t contain my excitement. I brought everything I needed to my classes so that I can peace out as soon as class ended; which is exactly what I did.
All of C-90 walked as fast as we could to the market square, and there were already so many people there. After waiting patiently for about 30 minutes, they finally came out!
I couldn’t believe that I was seeing a real life prince and princess with my bare eyes!

There they are!

The entire crowd cheered with excitement and many were yelling out their names. This was probably the most spirited I have seen of the people here!

The handsome Duke and the beautiful Duchess

Duchess Kate is known for her great sense of fashion and I’ve heard that the girls here love it and it was so true! There was a group of girls near me and I heard them mentioning many times how cute her ankle boots were and that they wanted it. They also couldn’t get enough of her coat. And I do have to say, her outfit was very classy and I loved it too!
A couple other girls and I tried moving towards an area that we thought they might walk past. This was the closest I got to Prince William!

Hello Prince William!

He was quite a handsome man! One of the girls in C-90 were able to shake hands with him and I couldn’t have been more jealous! She definitely was a lucky one.
One of the great things besides actually being able to see William and Kate was to see how many people were there and how excited everyone was. It was so nice seeing an entire town come together and celebrate this historical moment. It was such a memorable experience for me as well and I was thrilled to be a part of this Cambridge history. This was definitely a once in a lifetime experience and although I was jealous of my friend for being able to shake Prince William’s hand, I knew that I was also very lucky to be able to have this experience. Who else can say that they have studied abroad and was able to see the country’s prince? I do hope though, that they will be coming back more often after this time, and the future Cambridge groups will also have opportunities to see them as well!

 

Cheers until next time!

 

On a side note, it was released a couple days after this visit that Kate is pregnant with her first baby. So this means that we were able to see William, Kate, AND the future heir to the throne! haha. Definitely a cool experience.

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