Our apartment is on the third floor of this building. Several horses hang out nearby during the day, helping transport supplies for the construction and brick-making in the area. My team moved into our Dakar apartment one week ago, and we have been enjoying getting to know the area. We were fortunate to find, with some help from a local friend, a great furnished four-bedroom apartment which will serve as both our home and office for eight weeks. The showers may be cold and the kitchen small, but we are [...]

Hey, I made it and I’m alive! After a long flight, I have finally made it to Sydeny, Australia! It is absolutely beautiful and still seems so unreal that I am actually here! The best part of the flight was watching the sunrise while flying into Sydney. Soo awesome! When we arrived into Sydney, it took about 20 minutes to go through customs and by 7am a bunch of us grabbed a taxi to our apartment in Waterloo, Sydney. It was definitely weird to see the drivers side on the right side [...]

Buonsera da Firenze. It’s been a great first month here in Europe, and things are only going to get better. I think it’s time I showed you around the apartment a little. Here my roommates and I (and Laura who is taking the photo) are sitting down about to eat in our dining room. It was good and very easy to make. I have never really cooked anything before coming here, but it beats the hell out of getting fed in the cafeteria in the dorms. And much cheaper too! [...]

Finally, I have begun to sleep throughout the entire night.  I think it helps that I’m not sick anymore and I don’t cough myself awake.  However, I’ve been sleeping for 8+ hours each night, which is way different, compared to back home when it was maybe 7 hours.  Not quite sure how to change that, I suppose I could still be catching up on lack of sleep the first two weeks of being here.  Now that classes have started, the dynamic on campus has changed entirely.  I was expecting a [...]

here is my wonderful closet with nothing in it! my bed and desk. here is the bathroom I share with Laura and Ryan this is our kitchen! The living room was littered with beer bottles and such :) oops! There are kangaroos all over on the bike path right by the uni.

Hello again. If you are reading this, I hope you have all had a good start to the new year as January comes to an end. Weather here has been just about the same as it is back in Minnesota and we even saw a little snow last night, although that was melted entirely by this morning. The picture you see above is of Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore (known commonly as The Duomo, or il Duomo in Italian) with Giotto’s campanile standing adjacent to the south face of the cathedral. The picture does it [...]

Right now we are in what they call O-Week.  Basically it is orientation for everyone who goes to UC so they have all of the different sessions telling you about the things that they offer or other things to do.  Last week we were here for Fresher’s week, which was for all of the new people moving onto the ressie.  So far this week has gone pretty well, I’m learning a lot and through the many activities they offer I’ve been meeting lots of people.  I believe I got my schedule figured out, they [...]

Today was move in day and I’m already in love with this city. Our flat is located in Ealing, basically a suburb of central London, about 40 minutes away from downtown. I’m not sure how I feel about the distance from the city but I think it will be ok. In Minnesota, all my classes were in St. Paul so I think I can manage this commute! Tonight is pretty low key, the girls and I are going to drink a little wine and talk about places we want to [...]

It is my first Saturday here in Jordan, and it has been quite a journey. From planes being delayed, to the craziness that is driving in Jordan I’ve been seeing a lot, and yet I am beyond anxious for more. Tomorrow I start my area studies classes at the University of Jordan (Jordanians week goes from Sunday to Thursday).  Clock tower at University of Jordan Library at the University of Jordan Hopefully by the end of the week, I will be replacing one of those with an internship though leaving [...]

The plane ride was probably one of the best/easiest rides I’ve ever had. I slept a majority of the flight, and by the time I woke up, there was only about another half hour until we landed in London. Getting off the plane, we were all disoriented and shuttled to the UK Border, where we handed our “landing cards” to security, and were ushered through to grab our luggage. After Sunshine and I grabbed our bags, we went in search of the taxis, and met up with two other girls [...]

A few Sundays have come and gone, those lazy days where you catch up on life and get yourself back on track for the rest of the week, and last Sunday was no different… if only a bit more adventurous. The Basilica of San Luca looks over Bologna from high up in the Southern hills—easily seen in those moments when you are daring enough to leave the shelter of the cozy center city and its porticoes. After the previous week, I desperately needed a calm and relaxing atmosphere that only [...]

The past week has been very stressful for everyone in the program (Bologna Consortial Studies Program). Since the second day of the program (Aug. 31) everyone has been searching for an apartment. At the end of June I made an account on a housing site for Bologna. I received around 40 emails a week advertising these great apartments in the center of the city for a reasonable price. I canceled my account since it was obvious that there were many options and I was looking 2 months early. However, as [...]

Finally all moved in to my flat in Brisbane. it’s 4 boys, 2 girls, all people I’ve spend the past week with so it should be interesting and fun. We blew a fuse playing some music the first 10 minutes. Anyway, on Tuesday we planted trees for the Cassowaries and then went out to a pub crawl (they do those way too much in Cairns). Wednesday was the best day… The Great Barrier Reef. It was one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen in my whole life. We swam [...]